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Ice/Mixed Plywood and other Training Setups!

Original Post
Brendan Blanchard · · Boulder, CO · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 590

Pictures, pictures pictures. We had a snowstorm a week from now last year in the NE, who's getting ready, and how?

Post up pictures of your ice/mixed training setups.

Today's finished product:

(Design roughly follows Will Gadd's setup shown on his blog)

16' plice training setup

Jointed, and adjustable about 10-15 degrees +/- vertical.

Joint and brace at the top of the wall.

Here's the joints in action, keeping it at vertical. Stable, and the bottom can be lifted and moved 3 feet in either direction to adjust the angle.

Top joint from the side.

Material list:

(1) 2x8 sheet of plywood
(2) 2x16' -vertical support
(1) 2x12' -brace and joint arms
(5) 3/8"(?) strips
(8) 3/8" bolts, washer and nut set
(2) 1/2" lag bolts,with washers
(1) Box of screws, 2" exterior. Probably used 100-150 screws.

Easily made for under $80 at Home Depot or comparable hardware retail.

In use for the first time:

First training session of the season!

Looking forward to seeing others as well!

-Brendan

AThomas · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2011 · Points: 25

If it gets cool enough, any thoughts on running a hose to the top?

I'm kind of tempted to try something like this:


(From alaskaalpineclub.org/IceWal…)

"The first one they made, last year, was on a single Poplar tree wrapped with orange snow fence. A garden hose from the house provided the water. The hose was kept outside the ice. It was 25 feet high, with a 10 foot diameter."

This one seems a little out of reach: flic.kr/p/7kboSK
Bill Kirby · · Keene New York · Joined Jul 2012 · Points: 480

Hey Adam,There's 40 foot tall by 10 foot wide artificial ice wall at the hostel in Banff AB. Sorry I can't find the picture I took. It looked like fun! The hostel had both water and compressed air ran to the top.

There's a guy from Westminster MD that was on the local news for building a small one. Check it out:

iceclimbingphotos.com/showp…

AThomas · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2011 · Points: 25
Kirby1013 wrote: Hey Adam,There's 40 foot tall by 10 foot wide artificial ice wall at the hostel in Banff AB. Sorry I can't find the picture I took. It looked like fun! The hostel had both water and compressed air ran to the top. There's a guy from Westminster MD that was on the local news for building a small one. Check it out: iceclimbingphotos.com/showp…
That MD wall is crazy. The Banff wall: flic.kr/p/4uhPjV
AThomas · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2011 · Points: 25

Brendan,

Is the plice getting much use? Any repairs or design changes?

JohnnyG · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Nov 2009 · Points: 10

That plice wall is awesome. So is that Banff wall. Heck I would never have to leave home if I had that in my backyard.

FWIW I nailed short segments of 2x4 to a slightly overhanging limb on an old tree in my yard (Silver maple) and it makes for a quick and easy and cheap plice. I'll look for a photo.

Brendan Blanchard · · Boulder, CO · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 590
Adam Thomas wrote:Brendan, Is the plice getting much use? Any repairs or design changes?
It hasn't seen too much use due to nursing my knee, but I really haven't changed anything. I need to tighten part of the hinge, but laziness has put that off still.
Woodchuck ATC · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Nov 2007 · Points: 3,280

Our efforts the last 2 winters has been to freeze up the side of a silo here in IL. 35 ft+, definately vertical or overhanging. Top ropes only, but awesome fun. For fall, we've been drytooling the same silo rungs with hand tools, no cramps.

Real ice in Chicagoland area.

dry tooling this fall

AThomas · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2011 · Points: 25

If only I had a silo -- or a pond near the pines at the back of my lot.

Danny Parker · · Teasdale, UT · Joined Dec 2011 · Points: 120
my woodie
i just drilled holes in 2X4's on the front, top, and sides of all the blocks in various depths, works pretty well for dry tooling i may add thin strips of wood so i can start using crampons.
Brendan Blanchard · · Boulder, CO · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 590

Daniel,

I have a woodie in my basement that I use for rock, I screwed on some drilled 2x4's and strips for just tools, which worked pretty well. I don't know if adding crampons would make it any better though.

Gunkiemike · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jul 2009 · Points: 3,492

Seems to me if your frontpoints are sharp then you don't need those strips going across.

Brendan Blanchard · · Boulder, CO · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 590
Gunkiemike wrote:Seems to me if your frontpoints are sharp then you don't need those strips going across.
I tried using mono-points in the drilled holes, which resulted in the bottom, angled front points digging into the plywood which would dig through it pretty quickly, the strips give security and durability against the crampons and tools, both of which are nice when it's just training.
Juggler Jones · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2009 · Points: 1,185

We are Dry tooling the Silo this coming Sat- Oct.19th.

Starts at 11 AM till ?? Come join us for get those arms pumped!

PM me for location details....

Gary Griffin · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jul 2015 · Points: 10

I just finished off my wall yesterday and I wanted to thank the original poster for the idea and detailed plans. Some slight variations on the original poster's plans, but otherwise followed it exactly. Super easy and super cheap. Looking to get a lot of use out it!

plywood wall
wall

gowser · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2010 · Points: 15
Plice

Originally I built a plice that could be articulated from vertical to a 45 degree angle. Then I ended up making this ladder out if it. Great dry tool training. You can do laps back and forth. It doesn't take up too much room, either.
Russ Keane · · Salt Lake · Joined Feb 2013 · Points: 392

You can actually find dead trees, with beefy trunks remaining... such as hit by lightning, or half collapsed and not too deteriorated.... I have messed around dry tooling on trees.

Really really fun

kevino · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Sep 2008 · Points: 0

Anyone make one these, but free standing? slightly over hung?

i rent, and can't build into the deck and don't have any trees, but do have a nice flat/level concrete platform. kinda like in the back ground of this video

youtube.com/watch?v=uWtV9ZL…

youtube.com/watch?v=uWtV9ZL…

AThomas · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2011 · Points: 25
kevino wrote:Anyone make one these, but free standing? slightly over hung? i rent, and can't build into the deck and don't have any trees, but do have a nice flat/level concrete platform. kinda like in the back ground of this video youtube.com/watch?v=uWtV9ZL… youtube.com/watch?v=uWtV9ZL…
Overhanging plice? Isn't that what Gowser has above?
Greg Miller · · Westminster, CO · Joined Jul 2012 · Points: 30

Hung some chains up in the garage, been good for building upper body strength and precision. Certainly no plice, but don't have a reasonable way to put up something outside where I live.

Chains

jackkelly00 · · Chocorua, NH · Joined Apr 2009 · Points: 325

My ice tower from a couple years ago. Had hoses hooked up to top of fence. Produced a cool 40' curtain of ice

Ice tower

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Ice Climbing
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