top picks

[bolt_clipper]

Being a newbie ice climber, I have a stupid question. How sharp should my picks be? I have read some conflicting advice, and was wondering what people with experience say.

[freeclimb9]

In my experience, and according to my preference, for pure ice the picks can be fucking sharp. At the tip, and along the top.

For black ice (dirt embedded in the ice), alpine outings, and thin ice, I de-tune the edge to avoid chipping the pick, or bending it over, when I inevitably hit something that's not ice. I carry a small flat file -a bastard intended for chainsaws. BTW, I sharpen the picks so they're curved rather than the straight bevel they have from the factory.

Hope this helps.

[icegirl]

I second what freeclimb9 said. When I am planing a trip up north to some nice WF ice, my picks are wicked sharp, and I tune them every night between climbs... If I'm going to be doing something that could thrash on my picks, I change them for used up ones or sturdier ones. Find a book that has pictures of tuned picks, or find someone who will show you how. It makes a HUGE difference in how the pick handles in the ice.

[bolt_clipper]

Thanks for the info. Damn, now I gotta get to some ice. NOTHINGS IN!! (I think)

[Lambone]

I don't agree with the whole wicked sharp thing, at all.

 

I ussualy sharpen my picks once a year if that. Even when I was using them three times a week in Bozeman. Maybe I will take a burr out or something if I nick the rock.

 

The more you sharpen them the quicker you will wear them out. Sharper tips get duller quicker...and in my opinion, sharp picks don't make as much of a difference in ice penetration. A low profile pick will displace less ice, whether it is sharp or not. File your picks skinny from top to bottom, but leave them wider horizontaly(don't know a better way to say that???).

[freeclimb9]

Winter hasn't even begun. There's plenty of time left in the season for ice to form, melt, and reform.

[Cpt.Caveman]

icegirl wrote-I second what freeclimb9 said. When I am planing a trip up north to some nice WF ice, my picks are wicked sharp, and I tune them every night between climbs... If I'm going to be doing something that could thrash on my picks, I change them for used up ones or sturdier ones. Find a book that has pictures of tuned picks, or find someone who will show you how. It makes a HUGE difference in how the pick handles in the ice.

*********************************************

I sharpen my picks when they get blunt. That means twice so far in over a year. They work fine. Sharpening your picks every time unnecessarily will shorten the lifespan of your gear. Plus the bar is a better place to spend your evening than some tent or hotel room.

[Figger_Eight]

Mine are razor sharp at the beginning of the season (including my front points) and I tune them throughout the year. In fat, plastic ice it doesn't really matter, but when you're hooking into thin ice, the sharper the better. Cavey's right though...If I'm on the road, I'd rather be at the bar than in the hotel room. I guess if they'll let you sharpen your tools in the bar - that's another story...

[Cpt.Caveman]

I've kicked my crampons into rock a bunch and they need some work but never sharpened them for 2 seasons.

 

Razor sharp tips have zero use for hooking that I can think of. However if the teeth are sharp it can help.

 

<--- you folks hang out in your room and I'll be guzzling Kokanees.

[freeclimb9]

Ain't no bars in bumfuck Wyoming, or Utah.

[Cpt.Caveman]

RE: Ain't no bars in bumfuck Wyoming, or Utah.

 

Then bring the bar with you

[fern]

I don't sharpen my picks all that often either, unless

I've whacked a rock and the tip has bent over. But I

also do what freeclimb says about filing them curved at

the tip which make them stick better and shatter less,

and I bevel the top edge and the teeth which makes it

easier to remove. Basically if you looked at a cross

section it would be a heptagon

[salbrecher]

From the title I thought this thread was going to be a photo contest