Removing rust from an ice screw?

A while back, I picked up some stubby BD Turbo screws for cheap (like, under $10/screw). Trouble was, they'd been stored with the ends wrapped in duct-tape, and now there's some rust or corrosion on them.

Is there a way to remove that crap without having the nickel plating replaced (which I imagine is more expensive than just getting new screws)? Or should I donate these to an artist who works in metal?

find a place with a milling machine for ice screws, or look up how to sharpen them by hand. if you paid 10 bucks and they're already trashed from the sounds of it whats the harm in taking a file to them?

I carefully hand file my new screws a bit after a season. theres a point where a machine is required though. google, ice screw sharpening.

The best way to restore ice screws to factory .... or better...condition is to send them to Jason who owns a company (true) called "A Nice Screw". anicescrew.

He is a magician. Check his website out. I think he's a monk....totally focused on his craft. It's worth spending a bit of time on his website and take in his discussion about every aspect of ice screws, i.e., better angles on ice screw ends, how he does it and why, etc.

Jason has a background in jewelry, and the smoothness and polish he puts on the cutting surfaces of a screw are amazing. Way better than what filing or honing on a stone can do. So, even if the teeth are sharp, he's the guy to work on your screws to remove rust on the threads and/or tube. And the lesson learned is - dry screws ASAP after use.

BD's website states that these are Chromoly steel and don't mention anything about nickle plating. Nickle plating won't rust but can flake off, so I doubt they would nickle plate ice screws.

FWIW (NOT ICE SCREW SPECIFIC) - if it is just surface rust and not pitting, I've always used a bit of aluminum foil, elbow grease, and maybe a little WD-40, or your penetrant/prevention of your choice, for removal and prevention of rust on other metal objects that have a propensity to rust.

If it is pitting, then I would take the previous suggestions depending on the location and severity of the pitting. If it is just on the cutting teeth, I might try the filing. If it is on the threads, I would look at sending them to the guy above.

Brian Scoggins wrote:Is there a way to remove that crap without having the nickel plating replaced...

Scotchbrite and elbow grease. Just get off the surface corrosion then hit them with a good corrosion preventative (Cortec or WD-40 or light oil).

I've always sharpened my own. Small round file and just follow the original geometry. You can play with the starting angles on the cutting teeth a bit, which, is a fun distraction from watching TV by setting with a frozen milk jug, filing, checking the start, filing. Less is more (don't remove that much material).

Yeah, the older screws were nickel plated. I dropped one through a hole on a climb a few years back, went back in the early summer and found the screw. Turned jet black. Pretty cool looking.

+1 to Jason at anicescrew

CLR cleaner seems to remove most crud rust and stuff from any metals.

This is the best way to sharpen an ice screw.

youtube.com/watch?v=tQA0Ok_…

As for taking off surface rust a scotch-brite pad or steel wool work great. If it's pitted than a wire wheel is the solution but at that point the screw is never the same.

www.icescrewsharpening.com/

A couple of other options:

ouraysports.com/services/
mountainproject.com/v/petzl…

I'm sure all of us have tried to sharpen our own ice screws and I bow down to those that believe they've done it. It's one thing to remove the rust & potential flaking from the shaft. The difficulty is the teeth. It's not just the angle of the tooth itself (they are not "parallel" to the shaft, i.e., they are slanted.....this part is tough to sharpen and esp. at the original manufacturer's specs). Moreover, I would marvel at anyone short of Jason (A Nice Screw) or the lathe technology pointed out below, that could both sharpen the "cutting blades" AND keep the very sharp business end also sharp AND more importantly, at the correct angle. My experience is that you might get one (the shaft) but not the other (the teeth and tips). My experience (and I'm sure others) is that the difference between a "self sharpen" v. a new ice screw is surprisingly different. Experiment yourself (and not on an ice cube in your fridge). A good ice screw "melts" into the ice (i.e., 2-3 cranks & you're in, depending on ice conditions). A dull one (even one that may not look dull) takes more effort at the just the moment you want to get that puppy in fast and started w/ the first thrust.

This may be over the top (but I don't think so, as soon as I get back to the car in the parking lot (assuming I get back), I dump my pack and go for ice screws first, crampons second. I take a Petzl Candela (used for reaming ice when it's super hard inside the screw, put a bit of cloth I keep for this purpose, dry them on the spot and put them under the floor heater on the shotgun side. I've had new BD screws w/a touch of rust showing from the parking lot to the house so I really baby them.

How many of us have left them in the pack, dropped them in your equipment room (or kitchen), only to tell yourself you'll get to them "after dinner"? To be ultra paranoid, place them near a heat register (after you've dried them out).

We've all led with stubbies but they aren't my fave. I wouldn't spend a ton of $$ on sharpening them, rather, I'd use them as Xmas tree ornaments (or upon an object of your chosen faith and my faith doesn't include stubbies unless I have too). Sure, I always have one along.

I've not sent mine to a lathe service; am interested if those in this string can comment on the angle of the teeth with a lathe (thanks for showing).....the clip seems to show sharpening the "sides" of the teeth but not the angle. Does the lathe "cut them back", i.e., NOT a 90 degree angle from the outside of the tooth (the goal being NOT a 90).

I'm with Gunkiemike re: Jason at A Nice Screw as well as sharpen ASAP after use. Again: anicescrew.com. And he does all the sharpening on his own.....no employees. Look at his pics v. his sharpened screws v. the trashed ones he gets in. A miracle & I didn't believe it until I got mine back from him. I wanted to build an altar and burn incense for them. And Jason.

After reading his website, you'll know more about ice screws & subtleties of them that might alter your thinking on many pre-conceived notions, factory claims and what we pseudo machinists (like erstwhile me) think. Final advice; don't put a tip protector on or roll them up in a screw case until your screws are bone dry.

Last comment: I'm surprised that one of the shops in SLC (that narrows it to about two) doesn't offer this service, however, when I've talked with them, the understandable reply is that the lathes are too expensive (definately) to justify the purchase of one and/or the liability aspects (that ugly word) isn't worth it.

Thanks to all for good dialogue.....great stuff. Want to hear more about the lathes & other services.

You don't need to send your screws away unless you've really f-ed them up. File the teeth on the screw sharp and the screw will go in good.

The rust may come off when the screw gets wet. I've had gear with a little rust on it. I lay out the gear to dry quickly, maybe near a heater and the next day the rust is gone.

I almost forgot... try and place the screw from the ground. If the screw goes in fine then there's no problem.

Thanks! I'll see how they drive this weekend, then figure out what (if anything) to do from there. I have a bunch of other gnarled screws, so I might be sending Jason a gob of business.

I machine them with a 10° cutting angle but there is more to it than that. There are undercut angles and trailing angles. Here is a sample of a finished screw.

www.icescrewsharpening.com

By far the worst are those Grivel sharpening machines. They probably won't change their screws tooth design only because those machines can't make a modern tooth. Plus in the hands of a bad operator or a well used wheel they burn the shit out of the screws.

Try aluminum foil - just take a piece and bunch it into a ball and use it as a scouring pad. This is how bike mechanics remove rust from bicycles. I second Bill Leo at the Ouray Mountain Sports.

Warbonnet wrote:Last comment: I'm surprised that one of the shops in SLC (that narrows it to about two) doesn't offer this service, however, when I've talked with them, the understandable reply is that the lathes are too expensive

I'm probably garbling this, but I remember being told by Ouray Mountain Sports that Grivel only ever produced a few dozen sharpening machines (actually they were made by a specialist manufacturer to Grivel's specs). One of them is now in Ouray and all the rest are in Europe. Apparently the machine in Ouray used to be in SLC, but ironically the owner at the time wasn't getting much business so he sold it to the shop in Ouray.

I think some of you are confusing merely removing the rust and not paying enough attention to the screw tips and associated angles and how difficult they are to restore. Rocknice gets the picture (and shows it).

For those who suggest merely screwing one in at the base of the climb (and calling it "good") ignore the fact that on most climbs, condition of ice during the entire climb, certainly multi-pitch and angle change of sun, time of day, etc., the ice changes. In fact, ice often changes w/o the above factors. So, you might be climbing yourself into (as the Brits would say) a "spot of a bother". This is not to say that you can't use a dull screw, rather, a sharp one goes in much easier. Amazing how the smallest details matter. If speed is safety, you want to squeeze as much as you can out of that axiom.

Several in this string have encouraged visiting Jason's site at anicescrew. If you can do it like he does and end up with the last picture in his series, I'm bringing my screws to you and trust that you can match his magic.

(Last note re: rust: perpetual rust, even the tiniest, can, over time, pit the metal, thus making seasonal use harder (and duller). Don't be dull.)

He also sharpens ice tools and crampons. Most of us know how to do that and I've never used him for that but expert climbers (the 'uber-climbers' we all know or know of) have sent their gear to him as a test, if nothing else. Most (at least the ones I know) become converts.

Sharpening your own is not impossible, it just takes a bit of time and care. My first few attempts were not great, but after some practice I can touch up points enough to not be able to tell a difference between my work and a new screw. A small diamond sharpener also reduces the time drastically, you just have to be careful not to remove too much material.

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned that BD screws kind of suck to begin with. I still use them but if I had it to do all over I would have gone with another brand to build my rack. After trying other brands it seems like BD's are always a bit harder to get started.

Warbonnet- What the hell is going on with your screws? Having them rust before you get home? Leaving that crap in your pack overnight is asking for trouble, but I cannot imagine rust occurring on the drive home.

Personally, I am a big fan of hitting my screws with WD-40 inside and out after several uses. They tend to spit ice out better when cleaning and they provide a good margin of rust protection if you do leave them in your pack overnight. I have no worries whatsoever about WD getting on my soft goods since it is basically fish oil.

Warbonnet wrote:I think some of you are confusing merely removing the rust and not paying enough attention to the screw tips and associated angles and how difficult they are to restore. Rocknice gets the picture (and shows it). For those who suggest merely screwing one in at the base of the climb (and calling it "good") ignore the fact that on most climbs, condition of ice during the entire climb, certainly multi-pitch and angle change of sun, time of day, etc., the ice changes. In fact, ice often changes w/o the above factors. So, you might be climbing yourself into (as the Brits would say) a "spot of a bother". This is not to say that you can't use a dull screw, rather, a sharp one goes in much easier. Amazing how the smallest details matter. If speed is safety, you want to squeeze as much as you can out of that axiom. Several in this string have encouraged visiting Jason's site at anicescrew. If you can do it like he does and end up with the last picture in his series, I'm bringing my screws to you and trust that you can match his magic. (Last note re: rust: perpetual rust, even the tiniest, can, over time, pit the metal, thus making seasonal use harder (and duller). Don't be dull.) He also sharpens ice tools and crampons. Most of us know how to do that and I've never used him for that but expert climbers (the 'uber-climbers' we all know or know of) have sent their gear to him as a test, if nothing else. Most (at least the ones I know) become converts.

For some of you that.. I like that Warbonnet. Next time just call me out.

The screw in question could have sharp teeth but a bit of rust on it. So you take the rust off and there you have a good screw. The screw could have a bent tooth or two and rust. Therefore you could take off the rust and file the teeth sharp. We don't know what the screw looks like so there's no reason to send a screw away if it can be repaired with ten minutes of elbow grease and a file. Now as I said before if the screw is really bad then yes send it away. Most bent teeth are from hitting rock. Nobody I know keeps on keeping on they stop pull the screw out. Therefore only about 1 cm of the teeth are bent. You can fix that on your own with a file.

Saying you can't test the screw by placing it from the ground is just bad information. If you can hang from a tool and fire in a screw all easy like two feet off the ground then you can do it a hundred feet up the route.

Don't tell me you can't sharpen a screw yourself. You have no idea. I get my knowledge from the guy who invented stubbies. I would be more than happy to show you what I know if get up to the Dacks this season.
I've already sharpened my dull screws and placed them but you never know when you're going to pick too long of a screw! If I do I'll save that one for you.

logan johnson wrote:Personally, I am a big fan of hitting my screws with WD-40 inside and out after several uses. They tend to spit ice out better when cleaning and they provide a good margin of rust protection if you do leave them in your pack overnight. I have no worries whatsoever about WD getting on my soft goods since it is basically fish oil.

Try a silicone based spray lubricant instead of WD-40.
Cleaner and less likely to stain your pack or soft goods.
I like to saturate my screws with silicone and prop them up on a piece of cardboard overnight to drain off the excess lube.
This lube job can last a couple of outings or one pitch depending on how dry the ice is. Ymmv