Vertical Crampons

[kevino]

I used to have the Petzl Darts and I used them for Water Ice cragging. I liked them a lot, except the back had the heel spurs which I found completely annoying. I sold them off with the intent to buy darts again for this winter. However I of course have been looking around some more...theres a lot of options! Rambo IV (rigid), M10 (adjustable), Cyborg (adjustable), CAMP Nanotechs (adjustable) and the Darts of course. The darts are the lightest...does anyone have experience with the Rambo's as strictly vertical ice crampons?

[Maxtrax]

I haven't climbed in the newest generation Rambos but have climbed in the second generation ones. They climbed pure WI great but tended to shear a lot in crappier quality ice and sucked to walk in. It looks like the Rambo 4's have little mini frontpoints next to the main frontpoint along with larger/more aggressively raked forward secondaries compared to the older model. I imagine they would handle crappy ice better but be even worse to walk in.

[sweatinoutliquor]

I bought a pair of Rambo IVs a yearish ago but returned them. The reason I didn't like them was that the flat rigid platform that your boot sole goes on is indeed FLAT, which didn't match the mildly cambered contour of my trango ice evo's sole... That meant that at the toe, there was kinda a half inch gap between the sole of the boot and the crampon platform. I returned them anyway, in part because other than being rigid, they didn't seem a whole lot different than my G-14's. Also, the heel spur (which you aren't interested in anyway, and neither am I) seemed really crappy compared to the darts.

[Dane]

Maxine Turgeon in Sportiva's Batura and Rambo IVs at a belay a couple pitches below the top of the Walker Spur after climbing the McIntyre/Colton last winter...from Colin's web site.

 

http://colinhaley.blogspot.com/2009/03/les-grandes-jorasses.html

 

 

I've climbed in everything mentioned but the Camp. But one vertical front point crampon of similar design (Cyborg/Dartwin) doesn't climb much different than another of similar design if adjusted the same.

 

You start looking at the benefits of the package...can it be made into a mono point? How are the Bots? How much support does the front point design offer? T cross section of knife blade? Over all weight? Can you easily buy replacement parts?

How is the binding?

 

Really hard to beat a true rigid of any sort on pure vertical ice. The solid and secure feeling of a rigid crampon on vertical ice is different and very satisfying. Nothing else like it. The Rambo is the latest generation of that design. Bit heavy but also comes with awesome snow botts and some funky front bails and safety leashes.

 

With a good rigid boot sole and some ankle support I find the Grivel G12 or BD Sabretooth Pro climb as good as anything out there. Petzl Sarken is another I'd like to climb in along the same lines. Dual front points (vertical or horizontal) will seldom be a hinderance even on mixed. Unless you are doing a lot of hard modern bolted mixed, a mono point like the Dart is limiting imo on pure ice and most alpine. Because they lack the support of two front points they can shear out on less than stellar ice or with less than perfect technique. The Rambo offers a different version of the mono point and the stability on most ice of dual front points. It is a trick set up. Easy to see why Turgeon choose it on the M/C. But if I was limited to one pair of crampons the Rambo or Dart would not be that one pair.

 

Baturas and G12s on some fun, local, mixed last winter.

 

 

 

 

[Jake_Gano]

See one of these state-side yet?

[Dane]

Man, that is some harsh shit!

 

I like Grivel and understand the reasoning behind the trimmed down, lwt copy of the "Dart". Pretty specialised crampon design.

 

 

Hard to believe just how specialised crampons have obviously become.