Titanium Walking Crampon

[Devin Montgomery]

I think you should keep the polka dots, if for no other reason than the reaction you would get when you pass someone on the side of a mountain. :)

[Steven Evans]

Does anyone know where I can get something like a fabric rivet as shown in this photo on the straps? I have some ideas for the strapping, and can't find these things anywhere. It's almost like half a button (permanent)…click the link to see what I'm talking about.

http://images.mec.ca/media/Images/Products/Climbing/5002703_v1_m56577569830566207.jpg

Any help would be great!

[Jason Brinkman]

I have never seen where you can buy that exact thing, but they look alot like half of a DIY snap kit or perhaps a small grommet. Fabric stores have lots of miscellaneous do-dads like that. They call them "notions".

[Denis Hazlewood]

The photo looks like something my neighbor uses on his Rotweiler.

[Rod Lawlor]

Steve,

We call them speedy rivets. They're a two part rivet that ideally you close/compress in a press, but you can close them with a hammer over a dolly or anvil. Just be aware that the most common ones are nickel plated steel, and will rust over time. They're also available in brass. They come in different diameters and stem lengths. You can also get a double faced style, which shows a dome on both sides.

Your best bet is a shoe or leather supply house. Ask for a two part rivet. A shoe repair shop will also have them, but they will be expensive.

Let me know if you don't have any luck.

Rod

[Steven Evans]

Jason,
I picked up a bunch of doo-hickies from the local fabric store, but nothing that held very well, I'm still testing some of them.
I forgot to reply to your original question about removal of material. I think you are right, the perimeter is the main support. I am updating my design at this time and it really is coming down to the strapping system at this point. Once I get that worked out, I will modify the titanium to suit it.

Rod,
Thanks! My local supplier carries them (Speedy Rivets). I bought something similar to them from the fabric store, but they were very small and didn't hold well at all, I could actually pull them apart so I scrapped them. I take it the speedy rivets hold much better, or ideally are permanent?

[Rod Lawlor]

Steve,

They are pretty much permanent. I use a pair of side cutters to cut them apart, but there's a definite knack to it. On fabric/straps, you want to squeeze gently on the front, rotate 90degrees and squeze gently again. Then flip it and cut the BACK of the stem off. This avoids cutting into or through the strap.

When you initially set them, make sure that the head is directly over the base, when you start and finish. The trick to avoiding them skewing sideways is to buy them not too long.

Also let me see if I get a chance to mock up my self contained three bar/side tab/lightening cutout before I take off for the holidays. I worked great in my cardboard model. How are you doing your bends? (Pic?) This will effect the efficacy of this.

Cheers, Rod

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Steve

You can also use brass eyelets backed up with washers – these can be got in the 'notions' section at most fabric shops.

cheers
roger

[Steven Evans]

I haven't had much luck with the speedy rivets, I'm going a different route…does anybody know where one can get this type of buckle sized for 1/2" strapping? All the ones I find are for 3/4" or bigger.

[Roger Caffin]

I think that is a Duraflex Sternum Strap moulding, but they only exist in 3/4" and 1" versions – see
http://www.natlmold.com/sternum_strap.shtml#SternumStrapAdjusterSliplockBuckle

If you want a small one, you might have to machine it.

Cheers

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Steve

Made in China, by Dunno-Who LLC, and sold by Kovea of Korea:

Cheers

[Steven Evans]

Thanks for the link Roger. I like the side tabs, kinda like the kahtoolas, except these ones aren't flexible. I bought a bunch of stuff from seattle fabrics and am going to see which ones I like best.

[Eric Fitz]

I was in LL Bean the other day and noticed they were selling a boot/snow shoe combo. The boots had little metal cup receivers on either side on the soul. The snow shoes had pins that fit into the cups on the boot. The design eliminates the need for the other the foot straps. When I saw this thread I wondered if it would be terribly difficult to use a similar approach by modifying the boots to have some sort of fitting. It may not work, but I wanted to throw it out there.

[Steven Evans]

These are still in the works. I thought I had them nailed down, but I need to beef up the thickness of the material. They hold up very well to snow and ice, but minimal exposure to rock has shown some damage to both the material and the bends – not good…
I received my supplies from Seattle Fabrics (finally!) and the strapping is much more secure and now it does not require sewing. This also allows for easy replacement when the straps wear.
The new strapping system has only one buckle. The toe and heel use single bar slides for adjustments but do not "undo" when removed. The process is to insert the toe, slide the heel strap over the back of the runner, and connect the buckle over the top. Much cleaner look too!

I have a new design using thicker material, but I need to get them cut and bent before I'll be confident in them.
Let you guys know when they're ready.

p.s. Thought I should mention that the new design will have the slots properly sized for the straps – the above picture is of the new 1/2" strapping in the old 3/4" slots.

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Steve

My crampons from the 60s had some metal buckles which would be perfect. Hard to find – something like the Ancra metal buckles at The Rainshed. But finding 1/2" ones … hard.
AhhDIY have something similar in 3/4":
http://www.ahh.biz/products/hardware/Buckles_Clamp_Nickel_Plated_Steel_(www.ahh.biz).htm

Cheers

[Doug Johnson]

Steve- I'm jumping the gun…

Add me to your list! If there isn't one yet, let's get one rolling!

Writing this from my office where Axe #25 hangs…it's art!

Best,
Doug

[Steven Evans]

Roger,
Thanks for the link. The stainless ones would be great, but too big at 1 inch. The buckles I'm using now are nice because they actually curve along the foot (ie. arc shaped) – I think your clamp buckles do aswell.

Doug, no promises at this point – too busy. But your not the first to ask! Have you used that axe much?

[Steven Evans]

A couple of improvements added.

1) New strapping system:
– Curved buckles for better fit
– Thicker straps for durability
– No sewing involved (easily replaced/modified)
– Straps are no longer exposed to underside of crampon
– Strap slots moved inward (away from the bend)
2) 50% increase in titanium thickness (WAY stronger)
3) Profile added to side teeth for grip

Downside is they are 10 grams heavier @ 77 grams each.
There was some concern previously about the crampon actually sliding back and forth under the foot. I will tell you that with the straps running so closely together through the slots, this is impossible. They hold them firm – I think the strap would fail first.

No testing yet, but hopefully this weekend.

Bottom View

[Kevin Egelhoff]

Steven,
NICE work in the improvments!!! Looking forward to hearing how they work out!!

[Nathan Auck]

Steve, these look amazing! I think that maybe these crampons might perform similarly to the rubberized crampons katoolah makes vs. their full length, 10 point aluminum version. They seem to have a much more aggressive tread than the small spiked rubberized katoolah product and so might be better for both softer snow and harder ice (the katoolahs teeth are so small that they don't work very well in soft snow)! I'm looking forward to seeing some testing results! Thanks for letting us in on such an interesting project!

[Nia Schmald]

These look like they can do some serious damage, to ice anyway.

At 154g you're getting close to the 200g weight of the camp 6 punte lights. What do you see as the important advantages of the ti walking crampons? Definitely not trying to be critical, just asking to better understand the project.

[Steven Evans]

Nate, thanks. I actually don't know how they will work out. I'm hoping to get out for at least an overnighter in the next week or so. I will definitely let you guys know how they work out. I added the serrated teeth for grip and to up the extreme coolness factor :)

[Steven Evans]

Nia, good question. I really was hoping to get them lighter (sub 4 oz for the pair) but it's getting tough – especially after finding out the 0.040" thick sheet was too weak.
The titanium crampon alone weighs 52 grams. The remaining 25 grams are the straps and buckles.
Off the top of my head, I think the main benefit over the Punte Lights would be:

Titanium instead of aluminum – much more durable, especially when traveling over rock and ice sections.

And of course the weight – Saves you 1.5 ounces.

If I made them from aluminum, they would be 110 grams for the pair, but for me I need something tougher for the rocky sections.

I'd like to add that they perform better, but I can't comment on that as I haven't really used either of them.

[Nia Schmald]

So if weight's the main thing, maybe you could go from 8 points to 6. Widen the gap between the front points and only have 1 point on each of the sides. Not sure how much of a difference it would make.

One other possibility. It seems like you might be able to eliminate the 2 ladder locks and have only one adjustment point with the side release buckle. Difficult to explain without some pictures, but the CAMP doesn't have an adjustment on the front strap. The back strap loops through the front one to pull it tight. Are these heavy enough that it would make any difference?

Just noticed, you said no sewing. This would obviously require some sewing, but is still easily adjustable.

I know what you mean in terms of the aluminum. I walked very carefully for about 2 feet across a rock so I could sit and take off the punte lights. It's not bad, but there's noticeable damage. It be nice if I didn't need to baby them as much.

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Steve

I suspect you will find that the crampons can skew around under the shoe quite a lot. If you look at the lower photo and mentally loosen the webbing slightly, you will see that there is in fact nothing to stop them twisting around a bit.

This is why most crampons have metal fins or tabs coming up the sides: to prevent the crampon from moving sideways. the designers use the top ends of those tabs as the anchor points for the webbing, and this keeps the webbing clear of the rocks and ice.

Sorry!
Cheers

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