The Metolius Magnum crash pad is a large tri fold pad that has a landing zone of over 20 feet. Despite the large nature of the pad, it’s not too painful or cumbersome to hike around with. The pad comes with nice to have quality of life features like a carpet rug to brush your shoes off, stash pockets for a chalk bag or water bottle, and a velcro flap to store additional gear.
Compare the Metolius Magnum Crash Pad to the best crash pads we’ve taken a look at and reviewed.
Metolius Magnum Crash Pad Review
Pros
- Has an over 20 ft landing zone surface area for protection
- 900d nylon covering the exterior of the pad making it very durable
- Comes with additional features like stash pockets, guaranteed for life buckles, and a comfortable suspension system for hiking
Cons
- The pad’s tri fold design makes it a bit trickier stuffing gear inside the pad
- Most large, highball pads will feel cumbersome while hiking and can get caught on trees and branches
Padding
The Metolius Magnum crash pad is a giant pad and it has four inches of foam for your bouldering protection.
To absorb as much impact as possible during a fall, the crash pad utilizes a sandwich foam design. This design is common across all the crash pads that we’ve taken a look at. We are huge fans of this design because it provides a soft cushion when you fall, while still providing stability for your feet so you don’t roll your ankles.
The top layer of foam is one inch of closed cell foam, the middle layer is 2.5 inches of open cell foam, and the bottom part is a half inch of closed cell foam. This foam design provides the perfect amount of stability and cushion for your feet.
One thing we noticed with this crash pad is that it only has four inches of foam. Many of the other pads we’ve reviewed have five inches of foam. We found that using this crash pad is a trade off, it is a humongous pad that has a huge landing zone. But since it only has four inches of foam, you don’t want to fall when highball bouldering.
I would still bring this crash pad for highball bouldering since it is such a large pad. Most times I’m bouldering, I am with some friends or there are other people at the boulders. I can stack bouldering crash pads on top of each other if I’m worried about there not being enough padding below me.
Durability
The Metolius Magnum is covered in a 900d nylon, which is perfect to protect the pad from dirt, gravel, and any boulders on the ground.
If you boulder in a particularly rough area and are concerned about the outer protection of the pad, then you could check out the Black Diamond Mondo which uses 1000d nylon.
One thing we love about the Metolius Magnum crash pad, is that it is one of the only crash pads we’ve found that guarantee their aluminum buckles for life. We’re not sure what happens if you’re buckles break, but we’re willing to bet that Metolius will make it right somehow.
One thing to keep in mind is that Metolius Magnum crash pad only has four inches of foam, whereas many of the other pads we’ve reviewed has five inches. The pad felt really firm to us at first but it softened up a bit over time. After a few seasons we don’t think this pad will hold up as well to high falls, but should still be good for shorter boulder problems.
Metolius Magnum Tech Specs
| Weight | 18. lbs |
| Folded Size Dimensions | 47" x 25" x 13" |
| Open Size Dimensions | 47" x 70" x 4" |
| Inches of Foam | 4" |
| Exterior Nylon Material | 900d nylon fabric |
| MSRP | $399.95 |
| Inches of Open Cell Foam | 1" top, 0.5" bottom |
| Inches of Closed Cell Foam | 2.5" |
| Pockets | One inner pocket, one external stash pocket |
| Backpack Suspension System | Yes |
Features
- A massive crash pad that can be used as a bed in vans, pick up trucks or tents
- Aluminum buckles guaranteed for life
- Closure flap to cover straps when the bouldering pad is being used
- Three layer foam sandwich
- Tri fold design
- Small external stash pocket and a large inner pocket can store chalk, shoes, water bottles or car keys
- Plush padded shoulder straps, hip belt, and dual sets of drag handles
Transporting and Carrying
One downside of the Metolius Magnum is that it isn’t as easy to stuff gear inside the pad because there are three different sections that need to fold into itself. It’s easier to fit gear in a taco style pad or a hinged pad, we can just dump gear in and be on our way. But since this is a tri fold pad the closure is a bit funkier.
The good news is that you can still stuff enough gear for a day out bouldering. And one feature that we do like is the closure flap that goes over the entire pad. You can fit your climbing shoes within this flap and snacks, guidebook, and water in the tri fold section of the pad.
Best Intended Use
In our experience, we think that the Metolius Magnum Crash Pad is a great pad if you’re solo bouldering or are looking for your first crash pad. It has a huge surface area, a little over 20 feet and can protect a large fall area. We always prioritize properly protecting the fall area when bouldering and the Magnum is going to accomplish that.
Anytime you go out bouldering with friends, chances are that you will have multiple crash pads within your crew. And most other boulderers will be willing to combine pads
Value
This pad is on the more expensive side and if you’re looking to strictly save money, then we recommend you check out a different pad, like the Black Diamond Circuit. But if you’re willing to push your budget a bit you can get a lot of value out of the Metolius Magnum Crash Pad.
It’s a large pad that will protect your falls, but it’s still easy to hike with thank to its tri fold design. And the pad has many features included like velcro flaps, shoulder straps, and a carpet square in the middle of the pad to clean your shoes before the send.
