Best crampons for La Sportiva Nuptse

[rvilter]

I'm looking for opinions on which crampons might work best with La Sportiva Nupte - size 12. I have concerns that the toe bail or heel clamp on some crampons might be too narrow.

 

I'm looking primarily for general mountaineering crampons, which, on occasion, would be used for climbing vertical/near vertical ice.

 

I'm focused at the moment on Sabretooth's and G-14.

 

Your opinions are appreciated. Thanks.

[kurthicks]

I'm in the same boat. the only one's I've tried thus far are the BD Contact Strap, unsuitable for steep ice, (which maxes out at size 45/46 for Nuptses) and the Grivel 2f which barely fits. I'm hoping to try the Charlet sarkens when i find a store that has them.

[JohnHemlock]

I have the Nuptse / Sabretooth combo and they work fine. The crampons tend to flex quite a bit (or so people who watch me climb say) but they stay on the boot. I climbed a 1000 foot mixed ridge in the Alps followed by 5 or 6 pitches of WI 3 or 4 and the combo worked great. It takes a bit of fiddling to get them dialed in correctly but I can go all day without an adjustment.

[rhyang]

I tried a pair of 44.5 Nuptse's with my old-school (black) sabretooths and they didn't seem to fit (neither did the boots). Maybe the newer ones would work better.

[Dustin_B]

I have a pair of LS Nepal Extremes in a size 11.5 and my Grivel G12s work fine with a little room to spare. I would assume the G12s and G14s are sized the same since the only difference is the front points.

[rvilter]

Thanks all for your input.

[Ade]

You should really go try them on before buying. I bought my last pair of crampons mail order and it was a mistake.

[jtfields]

I just purchased the Sarkens via mail order (I live in the Midwest and we don't have any shops in town that sell crampons). I ordered them with extender bars and they don't fit my size 47 Nuptse's. They are long enough (supposedly up to size 50's) but the heel bail doesn't fit the groove in the back of the boots. The company I purchased them from was going to call Petzl for advice. I'll post any replies if they have any information.

[kurthicks]

I had to trim one lug on the sole to get my sarkens to fit. I got the leverlock version on a size 45 with the regular bars; they barely fit with the standard bars.

[rvilter]

Thanks to both for your replies. I too have the leverlock, and I've been having problems fitting the heel. The bail coming down alongside the boot hits the lug. I wonder if the bail needs to be "widened" a bit. I don't know.

 

I had been assuming that this was operator error - now I'm not so sure. I'd look forward to hearing the feedback that you get.

 

Bob

[kurthicks]

Just trim the one lug that it hits, it's pretty obvious. It's on the rear, outside of the boot.

[jtfields]

I'm not excited about cutting the lugs on a pair of $440 boots...I'm still searching for crampons that fits before I resort to this option. I have the Sarken Sidelock and I'm curious if the Leverlock would work better with the Nuptse's. Has anyone tried the Leverlock which has a different heel mechanism?

[rvilter]

I've had a litte better luck fitting the Sarkens. True, the lug has a tendency to get "caught" under the side bar, but with a little manipulation, the side bar can be pushed over the side of the lug. Easy to do in the parking lot, for sure, but on a climb, might be a pain.

 

Take a look at the lever lock style of Sarkens rather than the side lock (or whatever its called). See the link below.

 

 

Bob

http://www.alaskamountaineering.com/Product.cfm?id=148

[jtfields]

I ended up sending back the Sarken's and ordering a pair of G14's which fit great.

[rvilter]

Thanks. Did you need to order an extender bar? And you have size 47's, correct?

 

Bob