Nemo Airpin Stake Review

[Mark Wetherington]

Companion forum thread to: Nemo Airpin Stake Review

NEMO Airpins are ultralight aluminum tent stakes designed with notches that function as a three-point locking system.

[Rex Sanders]

In brief – these stakes are too short to work well. Maybe Nemo should make a 9 inch version. And the self-locking notches seem much closer to gimmick than useful for lightweight backpackers.

Thanks for testing using Will’s methods so we can compare.

— Rex

[Ryan Jordan]

Yep, this is essentially a 4.5-inch long stake. We know from winter camping in soft snow that a long and skinny stake like a trekking pole will always outperform a short fat deadman buried in shallow snow.

Here we’ve got a skinny stake that can’t go very deep…

Good first try Nemo but make it at least 8 inches in length.

I do like the *idea* of notches for no-knot tying, but there are ways to implement this that would be easier to adjust … oh wait – LineLocs!

[Roger Caffin]

The phrase ‘expensively stupid light’ comes to mind.

I much prefer ClamCleats CL266 over LineLocs for my guy ropes, as they seem to be a lot more reliable.

Cheers

[Matthew / BPL]

Those look a lot like Dutch’s stakes, which he’s been making for a few years. His are 6” long. I’ve never tried them… I’ll stick with my Groundhogs and occasionally hollow Eastons.

[Roger Caffin]

Notched stakes (Nemo or Dutch) in a storm – a very good way to get into a disaster imho.

Cheers

[Brian W]

I’ll stick with my MSR Groundhogs.  They’re not the lightest, but they work well.  And I can pound them into the desert ground with a rock and not worry about them.

[SIMULACRA]

Mathew beat me to it. Was going to say they look like Dutchware gear. In all the conditions I’ve been in, save for a couple, the Lawson UL 6.5″ 7g has always been good to me. 9 times out of 10 I’m above treeline in lots of wind. Forest duff can sometimes be problematic. Everybody seems to have their favorite stake though. Different conditions, etc.

edit: I literally had to look up ClamCleat as I’ve never heard of that before. And realized that’s the same type line locking system I use. Never knew the name.

 

[R]

I noticed Mark mentioned he thought these went in easier than anything else, and that these are the first stake I’ve seen w/ a full length taper.

Consider that the best holding power is a Y-stake with the flat side towards the tent.  Maybe a further optimization might be a Y or T stake with a continuous taper.  You need the most grip on the dirt at the top where it’s loosest.

In other news, I just found this article pointing out that 7″ aluminum gutter nails are a viable option.  At a claimed 0.4oz and a little over $1/ea, they seem like a great budget option.  One product listed a diameter of 5/16″.  No idea what the alloy or strength/stiffness is.  Some products look like the edge of the head could put a bit of wear on the guy line pending angles.

 

[Roger Caffin]

The cheapest tent pegs I ever got came from a bit of discarded fencing wire I found in France one time. (I had lost my bag of pegs – don’t ask.) I bent the wire until it broke into a number of bits all over 200 mm (8″) long, rounded the ends off on a rock and put hooks on one end. They worked just as well as any Ti peg.
Total cost: $0

Cheers

[Paul Magnanti]

In other news, I just found this article pointing out that 7″ aluminum gutter nails are a viable option.  At a claimed 0.4oz and a little over $1/ea, they seem like a great budget option.

Author here. Yep, a great budget item. Being a hardware store item, the prices and weights will vary. I’ve seen them under a buck here in town for example.  Call it +/- on the weight and price.

Add some equally inexpensive and effective bank line to make a loop, and you have an effective, inexpensive, and light solution.

I tend to use MSR mini-groundhogs as my personal go-to stake, but I’ve used the gutter nails many times over years esp when loaning out gear or rigging up a tarp.

 

[James Marco]

Paul, I agree on the Gutter Spikes. But, 5 shepherd’s Hooks for an ounce is very hard to beat.

[Paul Magnanti]

I find shepherd hooks to be ineffective for most of my backpacking and gave up on them many years ago. YMMV.

[Roger Caffin]

@Paul
That may reflect the sort of soil you camp on?

Cheers

[Erica R]

I’ve never had a problem with the titanium shepherds hooks. Surprisingly, even in sand. I like that they are so thin they can fit between buried rocks on hard ground. You can pound them with a rock if necessary.

i wouldn’t try them on snow.

[Paul Magnanti]

I think Will R said it best about hooks:

“ However, they are harder to insert and cannot be pounded in very easily. Their holding power is significantly increased by placing a rock on top of the stake and guyline.”

When I thru-hiked major trails and more concerned about the Lightest. Gear. Possible. rather than effective system overall. I used to use the hooks. But I find they are often one-trick ponies best for more well-used areas. And, yes, I had to stack rocks.   Oddly enough, my overall base pack weight is lower than when I thru-hiked the major trails even if heavier stakes. ;)

Going back to Will R, and the recent update,  I find this take on the mini-ground hogs fit my overall backpacking in off-the-beaten-path areas with mixed terrain. (I am typing 40 minutes from mountains at 12k+ feet, the high desert is literally out my front door, and I often camp near riparian areas):

2019 Update: The Best Stake for the Weight

• As of November 2019, it’s still the MSR Groundhog Mini. Y-channel = strong holding power, aluminum = light, and Y-channel = durable (resists bending).

 

[Roger Caffin]

Flip side: I have bags of Y-section stakes which have been sent to me for various reasons. But I still BUY Ti wire stakes at my own expense, and that’s what I use in the field. That tells me something about how useful and effective both sorts are for me.

Cheers

[James Marco]

Same here, Roger. Even double staking one corner leaves them about 0.4oz for a strong guyline. I have had a tarp rip before the stakes pulled out. I guess it depends on the terrain.

[Roger Caffin]

I can only go on my own experiences.
Some of our country is ‘rocky’ – a crumbly sort of mudstone. I can hammer a Ti wire into that stuff with a rock (except that the rock usually broke along the way), but I have zero chance of getting Y-stake to go in at all. And the cheaper Y-stakes with sharp corners – shudder.
On the other hand, in alpine grasslands, the vegetation makes a sufficiently tangled mass below the surface of the soil that Ti wires hold wonderfully.
Sand, on river banks, is different. There, I just collect some dead sticks and shove them in. Rocks on top maybe.

Now, how well they would go in deep Sierra duff, I do not know. That could be a problem, but I doubt that short Y-stakes would be much better. Long ones – sure.

Commercially, Ti wires seem to be >$4 each, while packs of Al Y-stakes from ebay are often the same price for a pack of 6 or 10. That probably counts for some differences.

I am biased. YMMV

Cheers

[Author]

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