charlet moser quasars

[man_vrs_mountain]

are these suckers a nice bet for starting ice climbing? whats are their strengths and faults? and what about pulsars r they any good?

Edited November 23, 2004 by man_vrs_mountain

[Dru]

those are so 6 years ago.

[man_vrs_mountain]

well i dont quite have the cash to buy 2 quarks yet

[Dru]

i feel your pain

they are an ok tool just not as much clearance as the quark

 

if you just wanna get some used starter tools think of the axar instead of the quasar.

[man_vrs_mountain]

any note on the pulsar>? or are they basically the same as the quasar

[man_vrs_mountain]

pics (left axar right pulsar bottom quasar) they all pretty much look the same as far as reach but is axar my best bet?

416413-iceaxe.doc

Edited November 23, 2004 by man_vrs_mountain

[Dru]

i used to have pulsars and i upgraded to quarks.

 

pulsars are HEAVY.

quasars are HEAVY

axars are nice and light and have a decent bend.

 

I take my Quarks in the alpine because they are so much more light than Pulsars, but if I had Axars instead of Pulsars I'd still be taking my Axars up in the hills over the Quarks.

[man_vrs_mountain]

ah so the main difference is in weight

not reach

[Dru]

pulsars have no clearance either

they do plunge nicely.

[bDubyaH]

i have pulsars... and a permanately bruised pinky to show for it. the reach for all these tools is the same probably about 45cm. the difference comes from the bent shaft, which will allow you to swing/hook around bulges. the bent shaft gives your knuckles a bit of a break and i feel that it provides a slightly more natural gripping position (but not as good as say the ergos). all that said, pulsars have been around for freakin eternity, there is a reason for that, but more modern designs are defintely nicer. axar is a great tool, but my nexy set is gonna be quarks. cheers and happy knuckle bashing

[man_vrs_mountain]

you know the pinky hook on new quarks? is it possible to put one of those things on one of these older tools?

[man_vrs_mountain]

and do you know anyone that wants to sell axars or any of these old school tools

[bDubyaH]

you can modify any tool, but for my money and even more important time just buy a pair of armored gloves

as far as axes here ya go but really you are thinking too hard about all of this. any modern axe will be more than enough to see you through several seasons of climbing. if you get into the full mixed scene then you will want the specialized tools, which you can buy later. otherwise just go bash some ice with whatever you've got and have fun. cheers!

[man_vrs_mountain]

damnit i need cash if i had that much i would buy quarks lol im just need something that will do for a couple of seasons untill i can afford better and i dont plan on dry tooling or anything just a little ice and alpine

[LYleK]

Okay, here's my two cents: If you're looking for a good, used technical axe for WI2 to WI5 then go for the Quasars. As a beginner you CAN'T go wrong with them. I've used a pair since they were released (1996?) and loved them the whole time. The curve is great (never bashed my knuckles), they rarely stick, they're good for hooking and have a nice balance. They "plunge" just fine on steep snow slopes. I've just sold my Quasars to upgrade to Quarks, so this isn't a sales pitch. And while they might weigh a bit more than the newest axes, you'd be hard pressed to find a better performing axe to learn on. I've noticed a few secondhand Quasars around for a good price, I'd go for it!

Edited November 23, 2004 by LYleK

[man_vrs_mountain]

thankyoui think i will take your advice

[man_vrs_mountain]

what kind of price should i expect for one of these?

[LYleK]

I'd guess $200 to $250 for pair (half of new), depending on condition. Used technical axes get scooped up pretty quick as there's lots of people who want to give it a try but aren't will to shell out the $500 for a new set. And there's not a lot of people selling used as you can get a lot of years out of your axes if you're only hanging on them a few times a year (and it's easy just to replace picks).

[Dr_Crash]

$200 to $250 for a used pair. Or $300 retail (less street) for a pair of these brand new:

 

 

(Marketing page at http://www.omegapac.com/op_alpine_alpha.html.)

 

So are those bad, or are Grivel/Charlet/BD overpriced?

 

drC

[Don_Serl]

Or $300 retail (less street) for a pair of these brand new:

 

So are those bad, or are Grivel/Charlet/BD overpriced?

 

drC

 

based on a day at Marble Canyon and a day on the seracs at Baker trying a few different tools including the Omegas, my judgement is that they still have a ways to go to catch up to the standards shown by BD, Charlet, Grivel, and Simond 10 years ago. the Alphas don't look they're gonna break, but they take a bit of hitting to get to place; they have a very metallic, undamped, jarring feel when they hit the ice; and once they're in, they're sticky to extract.

 

Quasars, Rages, Rambos, Pirhannas, Pulsars - buy something else used instead if money's a serious issue. or just go full shot and buy Quarks or Vipers or Cobras or Wings - there's never any doubts when you've got top-shelf tools...

(unfortunately, that removes one of the sources of excuses for failure ["my tools were sticking like pigs", or whatever] but there's plenty more for the bar afterwards if you're just imaginative...)

 

btw, i'm not totally down on Omega - they're doing a pretty nice job with their screws these days. not quite BD express in ease of placement, but very, very usable.

 

as for "overpriced", the market doesn't seem to think so.

"expensive", yes, but that's a different thing.

 

cheers,