What angle to use when building a climbing wall?

So I am finally building an indoor climbing wall. It has to be free standing in the garage (since I am renting) and the ceiling is about 9ft high. I calculated that a 60º incline leaves me with about 9.8 feet of climbing (one the hypotenuse), while a 45º leaves me with about 12 feet of climbing. I am not a huge boulder (but I like it for training) and I am more interested in training for trad and sport climbing. Any thoughts on which wall would be better (60 or 45 degrees)? Thank you!

I would go with a 45, personally I think it gives you more options with the size of holds you can put up, and if your calculations are correct the 45 gives you way more climbing then the 60.

45. 10 feet sounds like a lot but really isn't. Take.the extra room. Plus it will make for better training.

If you go with a 45 and want to do any endurance stuff, which you will for trad training, you're going to spend a LOT on holds large enough to climb for more than a minute or two at that angle.

Peruse all the walls in the 'what does your woody look like' thread. Most angles are nowhere near as steep as 45*. Common first time wall builder mistake. Try to design a a-frame deal that you can adjust.

Not to be pedantic, but I think by 60d, you actually mean 30d, as angles are typically expressed as off vertical...

I built a 33d wall (I was aiming for 30d...) and I find it excellent. For training, which is our goal, I wouldn't want it any steeper; our next section will actually be shallower to work on feet.

Ours is set symmetrically, and we added a volume that created a vertical portion for sloper training.

Have fun!

Edit: here is mine just after it was finished. mountainproject.com/v/10726…

No steeper than the 45.

I have a ~10 deg and a ~30 degree plus a big roof section which can be set to make a pseudo steeper angle. Each wall is about 12 feet wide but my ceiling is only 7 or 8 ft tall. Someday I may build a 45 to 60 degree in my shed but right now I'd be all on jugs on it anyway which is not very representative of my outdoor climbing. The roof at least is setup with chains to match mixed/drytool routes.

45!!! Definitely!

Dana wrote:You can make a wall that is adjustable so you can have different angles; it's not hard to do.

I'd say go with 60. Unless you're a sucker for horribly powerful moves 45 is gonna feel really steep. One of my buddies built a 45 and we hardly ever climb on it purely because it's so overhung. It's impossible for a 45 to feel casual or relaxed.

Make it a 45deg slab

Dana wrote: My wall is essentially just a lean-to, so I simply drilled holes 12 inches apart along the parallel supports that extend from the bottom of the wall. When I want to change the angle, I just slip out the carriage bolts that run through these holes and the holes in the ends of the parallel suppports coming from the top of the wall and pull - or push - the wall to where I want it and re-insert the carriage bolt. Crude, but easy and works just fine. Seems like a sensible idea to have a wall that you can adjust; mine goes from about 10 degrees overhanging to about 40 degrees in 5 degree increments.

Dana wrote:Yes, it will work on 8 x 8; I've used that set-up on a wall that size. You could design something more elegant and impressive to look at for changing the wall angle, but this is simple and easy to do. And how many times do you/would you change the angle? Not as if you would be doing it every 5 minutes.

I am building a a small rock climbing gym in my garage and wanted some ideas for designs and angles. I have the size measurements if you need them for a reference all you need to do it reply and ask. :)