Dane

http://coldthistle.blogspot.com/2011/01/be-attentive-when-placing-ice-screws.html

Pretty sure that is the UK..turf and all. Hammer? We don't need no stinkin' hammers

Grivel Exocet ergal.... from the www.aciessesaldature.com website...I do believe it is the new Jedi "Grivel" tool. Right down to the fuzzy grip.

In my best Jedi mind control voice..."these are not the tools you want, move along now". Nothing like flattery....is there? Pick angles are actually the only real difference and then only +/- 2 or 3 degrees.

Any place that has boxes and more boxes of Scarpa boots on the rack I want to be shopping there.

No music but more on climbing http://coldthistle.blogspot.com/2011/01/how-to-better-your-ice-climbing.html

Just out a few weeks ago.

Pyyno?! I catch your meaning on that heel fit. It's not great. Glad it aint just me! Funny that..as I have had the exact same experience Thanks for the feed back genetlemen.

Came across that way to me as well. Of course paying someone to guide you (that doesn't have a permit) would be illegal for both parties. NPS frowns on such antics and happily issues a healthy fine if you are caught. I suspect the original author just wasn't aware of the complication. NPS has a list of guide services available on Rainier. Several of the individual guides post here as well.

"Essentially, just adjusted the length and they could go between my adrenalins and batura's. Or did I miss your point?" That is the way it is suppose to work. I've not used a Garmont boot but the La Sportiva line of boots is generally easy to fit other than some in really small sizes.

FWIW this is from BD mail order..I got it this mornng. 20% Off Viper ice tool: Enter code hotviper at checkout. http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en-us/shop/climb/technical-ice-tools/viper

One crampon that I get the best fit from on my size 45 boots (all of my single boots from La Sportiva and Scarpa) is the G12 using a Petzl front bail. Also one of the reasons I think that crampon climbs so well for me...is the exceptionally good fit.

Nice try. DMM doesn't mention or offer a option for a front bail on there web site. Just the one bail from DMM according to Lisa Gnade @ Excalibur, Sales Manager DMM via email this morning. Grivel offers one bail, and two different styles of crampons with differing bails that are not suppose to be interchangable. One by design. Petzl offers a climbing bail and a ski boot bail. Good luck getting one to work for the other. Back to one there. BD has one currently but will have two by fall.

"I think mike is suggesting that slight movement in the crampon is not such a bad thing." And I think it's a bad suggestion. Like saying a loose pair of boots, so your foot can move around, is a good thing. Or suggesting sticky rubber is a bad thing. It makes no sense. There is a reason fruit boots have the crampons bolted on. There was a time when knowledgable climbers claimed the "semi rigid" crampon was a better mixed crampon because it flexed and held the rock better. If that were truely the case and not a sales pitch for the day and "semi rigid" which really just means hinged, then fruit boots would have taken a totally different direction. Truth is the more solid your boot/crampon interface, and the less movement there is between them, the easier it is to climb. I doubt you could get any of the crampon manufactures to suggest other wise. Or any of them to tell you they don't want to do it better. They read these threads for insight into their products and customer satisfaction. Poor crampon fit and trying to match the new boots every year has become the elephant in the room inside the industry. No company immune from the differing boot soles. All the crampon manufactures are scrambling to make their products work better. But there are so many boot sizes, profiles and designs to deal with it is no easy task and getting more difficult with every OR show. The idea behind this thread is to make climbers and manufactures aware of just how bad the issue is or isn't. I bet that 50% of the population really has crampons that don't fit well. From five threads running right now my take is I'm not far off. If nothing else we are getting a lot of data points of what combos seem to work and what doesn't. If Ueli Steck can solo le Droites in 2 hrs with one of the worst combos available for fit, it surely proves that the system "works". But few are Ueli Steck. None here. The better the equipment the better most of us will be able to climb. And that is not taking into consideration most of us want our boot crampon combos to last more than 2 hrs. Funny enough that same combo was good enough for a photo shoot but Steck doesn't "really" climb in that combo. He climbs in custom boots that perfectly fit his crampons and feet. As one of Steck's partners who is also a Scarpa rep told me..."those boots don't exist outside the pair on Ueli's feet". Imagine that

While we have been bitching about no ice..this got done. Very cool! "Mythologic, WI6, 140m on Enderby Cliffs in the North Okanagan on January 10, 2011. The route is highly visible from Highway #97, forms annually and has intrigued local and travelling ice climbers for decades. However, due to the location (Okanagan Valley, west-facing) it can have a limited life span and get's baked out pretty quick." More here and congrads to the guys! http://www.gravsports-ice.com/icethreads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=8470 Since Garry has been on it may be he'll comment as well?

Spot on observation. It is actually a boot issue. Crampons can be made to fit every boot but if you change the sole profiles every year no way for the crampon manufactures to keep up. Black Diamond for one has tried to keep the most amount of boots usable with their current bail, for the longest amount of time. The bail hasn't changed in something like 10 years. And they are durable and reliable. All good things. Going to a skinny bail eliminates a lot of older boots. Not going to a skinny bail eliminates a lot of the newer boots. BD will soon be offering two bails as the end result. But the older, wider bail will be an option once it is replaced. BTW I was wrong, not the third version at BD in proto type form now, more like the 10th and close to being released for production. Notice? I bet every person on this thread would notice the difference and climb better on a perfectly fit pair of crampons as opposed to what you have suggested Mike.

"Most do" ??!! Far as I know Grivel (two now with the G20) but Petzl (two bails only if you count the ski boot bail) and BD make one bail currently. I think you are mistaken on that one Drew. No size options that I know of without using someone else's bail.

The old Freney and a pair of rigids is a hard combo to beat! Thanks.

Ya, you are off the deep end on that one tonight Gene. Never intended that as a "conspriracy comment" as most know the major players involved have some serious dislike for each other. But the fact is, if every crampon did fit every boot, they would sell fewer crampons. The crampon companies work hard to make their gear safe and have it fit right. Hard to do with no standard and new boots every year. I have no doubt every crampon company would like to make every crampon they sell fit every boot perfectly. But they aren't going to put much effort into improving that issue until they hear how poorly many of the current models fit.

Petzl? You could but that doesn't mean the crampon will fit your specific boot. None of the companies are lacking advantages on crampon design. Which is why each company makes so many different models. If every crampon fit, every boot perfectly, they would sell a lot less crampons is my take on it.

Best and easiest fix for BD crampons is a set of Petzl front bails. I had to change all of my BD crampons to get a proper fit. If they make the boot for ice climbing, the crampons should fit...no matter what size you are.

It is a serious question? If you haven't seen it please take a minute and add your vote or comment. Thanks. http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/997997/Do_your_crampons_fit#Post997997

I would bet that over half of the people reading this are using a crampon/boot combination that doesn't "fit". Before you call, "bullshit", read on, then go check your own rig again. What do I mean by "fit"? I mean ZERO movement between boot and crampon when latched and even more importantly when climbing. If you can flex your crampons by holding your boot /crampon combo between your legs and pull up on the front points and have the crampon flex...they don't fit. If you can move the toe of your boot inside the front bail either before it is buckled in, after it is buckled in or the toe migrates inside the crampon off to the side once you are climbing, the crampon doesn't fit. If you can move the connecting bar sideways while holding your boot and crampon combo, your crampon doesn't fit. If your crampon's heel section can be moved by pushing or pulling on the center bar, the crampon doesn't fit. It your replaceable front points have any flex in them left to right...you need to tighten the bolt that holds them to the crampon body. Not a fit issue..but you get the idea. I own 5 pairs of boots from La Sportiva and Scarpa currently. And 6 pairs of technical crampons. The crampons are from Petzl, Black Diamond and Grivel. I mix and match heel pieces and toe bales on each brand to get the best fit possible. And still there are some crampon and boot combinations that imo I simply find unsuitable for technical climbing. Petzl and Scarpa both claim in emails to me that the newest Phantom series of boots and the Dartwin and Dart combination is a "good combination with no issues". I've seen people who should know better claim a "perfect fit" between the same combo. I wear a size 45 boot and mine simply don't "fit". I own those same boot and crampons and won't use the combinations myself because of the terrible boot to crampon interface. And I really like both the boots and the crampons. Black Diamond knows there are issues with many of the newer super low profile boot soles and smaller boots in particular. None of the crampon manufactures have any control over what the boot manufactures come up with. But they must modify their crampons to fit. Easier said than done from my own experience. BD is currently working on a new bail design to better the fit on all the new boots. Having a crampon that doesn't fit perfectly just makes the climbing harder. It makes the climbing less safe. Dropping a crampon can literally be a life or death issue. It is never a good thing. Some where between now (2011) and then (1980) we have allowed the manufactures to produce and we keep buying, some really bad combos for crampon and boot interface. Why do I care? Having a "proper" crampon fit makes climbing so much easier. The crampons simply work better on hard technical terrain, especially so on ice. Do me a favor and let me know if your crampons actually "fit" or don't. The reason I ask? I was playing with my Spantik's last night and the crampons I prefer to use on them. You can guess what I found...but my thought was, "sacrebleu, these don't fit!". And now you know how I came up with 50%.

V and N quotes from their TR about conditons: What part of that conversation did you miss? May be the part where they are right beside the road in Icicle creek on what is typically TR'ed and likely belayed off a car bumper? It aint Riptide for christ sakes. They are pushing themselves intentionally to LEARN and get better. Dumping on photos of a condition TR here is like trashing some kid for aiding on his first trad lead of Classic crack. Bush league at best.

Only climb worth noting in Issaquah is the Zoo or a 154th How come that aint in there if you are local? The rest of those climbs pictured are just child's play! http://www.bicycleclimbs.com/climbdetail.aspx?ClimbId=227