First - there are two brands of cams to choose from - Wild Country, and
Black Diamond.  Also CCH for the smaller sizes.  Everything else is cheap
crap only purchased with future regret by poor high school students and
clueless newbies looking for meaningless functionality.  This should be the
end of this post, except I just ate a big lunch.

Take a look in any guidebook from anywhere.  Do you see "Bring a # 2 [insert
off-brand crap cam here] for the crux" or [insert off-brand crap cam here]
mentioned in the gearlists?  Better print out a decoder table.  Maybe the
fact that the rest of the friggin world sticks to two brands of cams should
be a clue.  Go to your nearest store and try to find trigger kits for
[insert off-brand crap cam here] cams.  Also, I guarantee that anyone you
partner up with is going to want to climb with cams they are familiar with.
If you dump a bunch of [insert off-brand crap cam here] into the community
pile, expecting that you'll be making some sort of contribution rather than
being perceived as a clueless cheapskate - just wait.

Now - which cam?  BD or WC?  Get 1 set of BD, then lots and lots of WCs.
Here's why:  Your observation that BD cams are heavier is an astute one.
That's why when you start carrying 2-15 each racks, you'd rather they be
something light - like WC rigid stem friends for the larger sizes, and flex
friends for the smaller sizes.  BD cams, however, are the best thing for
routes where you need a sparse rack.  Fewer (and thereby lighter) BD cams
can cover the same spectrum.   Take your little calculator and add up the
weight of the .5, .75, 1-3 Camalots, then compare that weight to however
many [insert off-brand crap cam here] cams you need to bring to cover the
same spectrum.  Toss in some CCH Aliens or maybe a flex friend or two for
sizes smaller than the .5 Camalot.

Oh - and ignore the advertised strengths of cams.  None of them will break.
Move on.

Back to work..
 

- Nate

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