Coldfinger

Kinda sounds like there is no answer if you are looking for "one pair" to do two different things: Alaskan mountaineering and technical ice climbing. Think you'll find out doubles are a big impediment on ice compated with singles. So....... If you think the majority of your actual climbing will be in the NE and lower 48 (mainly winter) just find the cheapest, well fitting winter single boot (i. e. Nepal top) and start there. Single boots that are well insulated and with a toe bail platform will work really well. As for the course, if you are NOT set on a ton of Alaska trips, either rent boots or try Intuition liners. I have a pair of Omegas, two pieces of advice; one is I got the pre Intuition liners and even then they went from uncomfortable to great once the liners were professionally fit and baked and two is if you want to do Denali, you can mate them with overboots. I would find a professional ski boot fitting shop with the oven and caps and ask them; you might be able to get by with new liners in the old shells, especially if you are not planning on a ton of time at high altitude. Btw if you ski a ton you might look at a plastic tour boot!

Just received an email from WC stating that although the Ropeman 3 had passed CE testing, experience from the field indicates it does not perform as expected--particularly with grip on tensioned ropes. They are offering either a Ropeman 1 or 2 plus a free locker. My expeience with the 2 has been exceptional, just imho. WC Notice

now it is back down to 2 pages. ????? Me thinks that might have been my first old and confused post, glad I wasn't alone Gene! Amazing the confusion when packs are involved......, but could be the touch of mod? Kinda wondering if anyone has any preference vis a vis rope and ice tool attachments btw.

Btw, anybody else noticing this thread just went from about 10 pages to 4 and now back to 10? Weird!

Good points on fit and comfort, will say it again: Am VERY impressed with the MH Summitrocket 40 hipbelt, it aint at all bulky but is very comfortable with a load of rope, hardwear and bivy gear. Kinda reminds me of my Arcteryx warp strength harness in terms of bringing the soft shell concept to belts. Hope we see more hipbelts like that one! Would add that I will not buy an alpine pack without compression straps, so called leaders packs dont need them (like my BD BBee), but those are NOT imho an alpine pack. Nice thing about a big, light alpine pack is that one can also bring a leaders pack without a big weight or clumsiness while climbing penalty.

Naw, no horse in the race for me, just seemed overly heated and not very enlightening. Maybe there should have been a cilo problems thread or maybe it should have been a spray battlecage. Just seemed too agro and way too wordy. My experience with very lightweight fabrics has been that you better know how fragile they are and you better have a damn good reason to use them as they are great for discreet specialized applications, but suck otherwise. I had a firslight tent that saved my butt in a very nasty storm but would have exploded if not for a generous dose of seamgrip. Good to keep in mind that Cilo offers highly specialized spendy stuff that is made to order, not preordered from a chinese factory, so their customer service (read warranty or return) policy HAS to be way different than just about anyone else. So two take home lessons might be to be very conscious of the fabrics and construction (especially if they send you seam grip with a pack-can't say I have heard of that!) and that how one says something is actually more important than what one says. Customer service doesnt mean you have to make exceptions, just that you have to be nice yet firm and consistent. Making exceptions for folks who are being noisy isnt at all fair to the rest of us. Sometimes you have to say no.

Agree with Kevino. Look, just take a deep breath. From the ninjas' perspective I seriously doubt they enjoyed looney tunes paragraph after paragraph. Just try being nice. If you acted toward them as you did before us, I can't blame them at all for ignoring you. Maybe you didnt understand what the limitations of that fabric are. Maybe you got a bad pack. Maybe you are one of those folks who cram shit into a pack real hard cause you're used to that and streched the seams enough to pull the stiching through the fabric. I am not a big fan of Mountain Hardwear's ultralight cordura as i have seen stetched seams and one that blew ( I was nice cause I have a relationship with those folks so the warranty was a piece of cake). The tube was there for a reason, you didn't use it. Start with owning up to that. I for one am not going to read your posts as they are a bit over the top and don't have a whole lot to contribute to this thread. You have taken this thread over. This ain't spray or even small claims court. Think about that. Anyhow, good luck and please keep in mind this is a pretty tight community.

Think Kevino tried to politely point out that Graham does not warranty packs made with that fabric as they are not durable. Graham is pretty well respected here as he has successfully built a small business in tough times, despite having to compete with large multinationals (BD, MH, Marmot, Mammut, etc), several of which are in turn owned and further backed capital wise by a Bain Capital type entity, where ALL the competing products (not CCW) are made with cheap overseas labor and Graham's stuff is made locally in the PNW. You were slamming the guy pretty hard, but I guess it shouldn't be a surprise when you got called on that and still cant be chill. Nothing personal but for one don't expect me to stay silent when you have been trolling this thread while also slamming on a good dude. Next time read the disclaimer and why not just chill out for a while, call him and try to work this out. I have found with warranty problems (or anything else) being nice and listening works way better than an ADD spoiled brat attitude. So call him up, be chill and listen!

I have no fucking idea what you are doing in hijacking this thread! Maybe the lesson here would be to become a little more concise and a little less hectic in your communications. Look at things from other peoples' viewpoints maybe? You know, maybe not clutter up a pack discussion with hectic spewing, maybe the rest pf us have better things to do, so just be calm and keep it quick. You lost me with your threats to sue over a friggin' pack just cause somebody can't make sense of or even want to deal with your temper tantrums.

Thanks again but I can't remember what you got. As for the MH Summit Rocket 40 not being an everyday pack, two points: 1. It uses a very lightweight cordura ripstop on the side panels, and imho and in my experience with that material, it just isnt designed for everyday use. Got a MH summit rocket trl that has a much more durable but still light ripstop that i go everyday and craggin with. 2. It isnt designed as a general, crag or everyday pack anyway. I definitely have the need for a light, comfortable and climbing oriented load hauler with the Tetons and Wind River Range out my backdoor, so it works great for that. Good fast and light multiday hiking pack too.

Have the Summit Rocket 40 and love it, but then again it is NOT an everyday use pack. Big plusses are the waist belt that is very comfortable and also both light and bulk free (reminds me of stretchy soft shell), the weight, the simplicity, fantastic helmet clearance, and especially the use of a sleeping pad as part of the frame. Not only does that save the weight of a pad, but also as I bring a light thermarest it serves to protect that from puncture. Roll top is a big plus.

Hope you see the humor in that, in a cave with..... Wasn't trying to flame, I have been using a tiny Mammut with a good lens and hyperbright LED, best of both worlds. Have found that a bulky and heavier lamp just gets in the way and can flop or fall off if I moved too much. Comfort!

Bulk and clutter ARE serious considerations, I prefer smaller lamps with a full lens to project a beam from a single superbright LED (as opposed to multiple LEDs that produce diffused light). With recharged batteries there is no need for spares. Have found that the lighter and slimmer a lamp is, the less I notice it and the more it tends to stay put while I am active, especially on a helmet.

Was a fan of the Core battery until I found out its rated power output was the same as ONE of my three 900 milliamp hour rated nimh AAAs.

My two cents, look at lumens and compactness as being as important as weight, however...... As most light AND affordable lamps are not regulated perhaps the biggest thing is what you feed them. I use nimh rechargeables not just for cost or green reasons but mainly because one can know the batteries are 100%. had an all night descent with a fellow with a decent lamp but crapped out batteries, needless to say mine was the one that found the path. I would also look at the beam lens as being crucial as dispersed is nice for reading and not blinding folks but throw is what gets you the route or anchors. Like mammut.

Sounds like you got it wired; take the second half and run with that bit in your teeth, good work is its own reward. Salud!

Yep, old fashioned shaft plunging, there is your reason. Sounds funny but I am serious. Don't use a longer axe anymore as I prefer poles (again serious), but the big question is length. Nowadays I only worry on steep snow and for once less shaft length is better. Seems easier ergonomically speaking to plunge a shorter and staighter shaft to the head on a steep slope. As you have two curved tools I would keep at least one straight shafted axe. 55cm seems a good length. Am selling my Corsa Nanotech only as I have two Matrix Lights and a shorty raven and I take the Grivel tools when there is any non snow climbing to be done. Big props to the Nano though, in the end just do what you like.

Good thing most of you already hold the $10 lifetime seniors pass... Sure do whine like 'em anyhow.

Since you said "ALPINE" bivy, tarps are OUT, got a Marmot Alpinist cheaply and like it quite a bit, use a 40 degree bag with it and have slept quite warmly with very little bulk. IMHO being up high bugs are not a problem (either cause it's too cold or just windy or there's no ponds nearby). So..... Just find a WATERPROOF bag as small and cheaply as you can, if you do get caught in a nasty situation (rain or snow) you'll be glad you have it. They're nice to have also for keeping your bag out of the dirt.

Just get some Techwash and use your sink, air dry.

Why not weave it into a rug? Not sure it sounds sound enuf for anything else age wise....

"so others may live....." Good words to stand and be remembered for.

Bugette is sweet and works well on 9.5mm.

If the cam is identical to the jumar than look at the link I posted. Weighted ropes + potential fall (i.e. collapsing crevasse lips) + jumar teeth = potential rope failure. Sheesh. Tiblocs are harder on ropes so I would rather use a jumar but those are clunky, ropeman 2 seemed a good ratchet. Keep in mind the fallen climber will not go farther than the original fall as that strand will also be anchored, hence no death fall. Sorry, but that backup seemed obvious and you are right that a jumar can cut the sheath and or the core, but that is fatal only if that strand is your sole one. So now that that is clear (ie even if the cam cuts the rope) anybody have any comments on the system I asked about?

Nope, just calling your paragraphs as I see em. You wanna hijack a thread way off topic you take the risk.