New Petzl Ice Tools

[Dhamma]

http://www.petzl.com/en/outdoor/ice-climbing-tools

 

Sweet! Anyone tried them out? Reviews? Thoughts? I'm upgrading from Aztars this year. Do mostly Alpine Ice/Mountaineering, but also like to climb water ice in the winter. Thinking about either the new Quarks or Nomics.

[John Frieh]

I'm doing my best to make sure we have all 3 to demo at the Portland Ice Festival this year

[YocumRidge]

When is the Icefest this year John?

[davidk]

3 months 'till ice season!!!

[jpark42]

http://www.petzl.com/en/outdoor/ice-climbing-tools

 

Sweet! Anyone tried them out? Reviews? Thoughts? I'm upgrading from Aztars this year. Do mostly Alpine Ice/Mountaineering, but also like to climb water ice in the winter. Thinking about either the new Quarks or Nomics.

 

I've gotten a chance to look at both of the new axes and they are really sweet. The new Nomics are basically the old ones with the ability to attach a hammer and a small spike on the end for balance. The new Quarks are by far some of the best tools I've seen in years. They weight less then the Aztar's and a little more then the Aztarex but now have a trigger finger grip with a choke. If you are doing mostly Alpine Ice/Mountaineering, I'd take a hard look at the Quarks due to their weight, size, shape but if you are looking for something that's going to do vertical ice and dry tooling like a champ, I'd stick with the nomic's

[John Frieh]

Great review by someone who actually climbs hard ice: LINK

 

I will have both the nomics and quarks to demo at the Portland Ice Festival

[shoo]

I just put in an order for these tools. I actually may get a chance to do a side-by-side BD Fusion vs. Petzl Nomic review this winter, which would be pretty sweet.

[Dane]

 

Not a huge difference between the old Nomic and the new Nomic.

 

Not enough any way IMO to change if you have an old pair. If you have a chance to buy an old set cheap it is a good investment IMO. Hammers (both Petzl's and Cold Thistle) and both old and new picks can be used in either generation. The new spiked pommel for the Nomic can be adapted to the old tools. The better umbilical attachment is easy and a no-brainer mod.

 

Grip size is something they did address but I have some question about that as it is generally the "big glove" guys who wanted more hand space. Big gloves are counter productive to leashless tools.

 

Fusion/Nomic side by side? Already been done. Despite what appears to be an all around advantage, the Fusion is still a highly rated dry tool but not a great all arounder. The original Nomic is generally considered a better top end, all arounder. And now the Nomic has upped the game a bit more with spikes on the pommel and finally a production option of hammer and adze.

 

The link John posted is Rob Owen's who is also a Petzl sales rep, mtn guide and who climbs very hard.

 

Everything about the newest Quark is true. It is a sweet tool. But the umbilical attachment could be a bit better as could the trigger. Sadly it is not 100% yet. Still some other good choices, all the likely suspects, in that catagory of tool.

 

If you have old Quarks you can sell them, use them or mod them.

This is basically the same thing and climbs just as well and may be even a little better than the newest Quark.

 

 

 

[Jens]

Will the new quark picks work with the old quarks and quark ergos (I use both) or do I need to stock up on like 20 of the old picks before they are discontinued?

[Dane]

Stock up. The new picks only fit the newest tools and the old Nomics. And if you aren't going to use a hammer or adze on the Nomic as most won't...the old Nomic picks are a better (read more durable all around) fit with less tiny pieces to loose. The new picks have a washer/spacer that you have to use which could make changing a pick in the field problematic.

 

If you got really desperate the newest (think Nomic) picks could be used but likely you won't like how it all bolts up. It certainly will not be as solid as the original design and you'll need spacers to fil lthe gaps of the smaller picks.

 

I have already been trying to stock up on the old Nomic picks.

And I can cut old Quark picks to work with my Nomic hammer but no deals yet that I have seen.

 

Petzl is smart that way. It also eliminates gear being used that is too old and prone to failure at the end of its service life. I think Petzl figures that as 3 to 5 years for an ice tool...but don't quote me on those numbers.

[ropegoat]

As I mentioned here:

http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/977496/1_pair_Petzl_Quarks_with_extra#Post977496

I have 6 extra old quark picks (4 Cascades, 2 mixed 4mm) and would happily sell them individually (as well as the Quarks, any takers?!). PM me and we can discuss, I'm thinking ~$25/pick.

 

[trainwreck]

I got my new quarks yesterday. They seem very light compared to the nomic, the bump-up/trig-rest is going to break during the season IMO, but overall the tools are pretty friggin sweet and will make an excellent alpine rig. I had the older quarks and have nomics and these new quarks are definitely an improvement on the older model.

 

The astro picks are still the best ones for the nomics IMO. The new ICE pick has teeth that aren't sharp for hooking which is silly.

[Dane]

New Nomic is 540g. New Quark with a trigger and no hammer is 480g. With a hammer, the Quark is 550g.

 

Picks? I shipped some gear for the Nomics to Cham last week. I asked if they wanted Cascade or Astro picks with their CT hammers? The comment was, "Does any one actually use a Astro pick any more? Send Cascade picks please. "

[Doug Shepherd]

I have four Cascade and one Quad pick for the old Quarks (I think those names are right? The B and T picks) that I'm not using anymore.

 

They are very worn, but I'm sure some handy work with a file or a trip to Dane will make them usable for a bit longer. At worst, they are beater picks for dry-tooling.

 

Anyways, whoever PMs me first their address gets them for free, I'll just toss them in the mail.

[Doug Shepherd]

Wow, that was quick. Off to a new home!

[Sir Stefan]

Got the new Quarks. They are light, well balanced and swing like nothing else. You can take off the hammer/adze but it's a hassle to reinstall them. It's easier to dismantle/reinstall the trig-and handrests. Used them last week in Chamonix. For alpine- and ice climbing they are a breeze. Looking forward to Rjukan.

[NYice]

Played around w/ the Nomic and Quark in the store. Not sure that I liked the balance of the new Quark, but not having used it on ice I'd reserve judgement. People that thought that the previous Quark was too heavy might really like it and it is prob better for alpine this way?

 

Pretty cool for a product video:

[kevino]

The ergo section is amazing.

[trainwreck]

Dane - I still use the Astro. It's the best pick Petzl has designed IMO. It cleans easily and isn't as squirrelly as the Cascade. Also faaaaar better for mixed.

[Dane]

Nice that we have a choice. I was surprised at the preference from more than one on European alpine routes for the Cascade/Ice picks. I prefer the Cascade/Ice on water ice over the Astro as it is easier for me to clean. I like the Astro for alpine and mixed for similar reasons, the two over size teeth on the Astro are hard to clean and it hooks better for me.

 

Seemingly the preference has shown up as the new Quark and Nomic are now being shipped with the "Ice" pick instead of the Astro.

 

Or it could just be a marketing ploy to sell an extra set of Astros to all of us...and it "really" is the prefered pick world wide

 

Either way Petzl makes an awesome pick, obviously either will work. I like having options.

 

stoke!

[TrogdortheBurninator]

Played around w/ the Nomic and Quark in the store. Not sure that I liked the balance of the new Quark, but not having used it on ice I'd reserve judgement. People that thought that the previous Quark was too heavy might really like it and it is prob better for alpine this way?

 

Pretty cool for a product video:

 

wow!

[trainwreck]

I took the new quarks out for a spin on the NF of Athabasca this weekend. They swing beautifully and are pretty much the ideal tool for leashless alpine climbing. I am happy with them.