Homemade ice axe

Hi, these are the ice axes I built. I'd like to hear what experienced climbers have to say.

At least you won't be very far off the deck when they disintegrate.

Oh look, just joined today.

They're pretty solid. I've tested them in trees and they work fine

Did you carve your initials in the tree while you were at it?

And Jason Todd, I asked for an experienced climbers opinion

I would like to hear more about your experience in the tree with these.

Right on Nate. Carry on, best of luck, hope you do big things with your tools.

Andy Hansen wrote:I would like to hear more about your experience in the tree with these.

+1

Where would we be if Albert Franklin or Ben Einstein had listened to the haters?

I am quite impressed by the cellulose fiber handles with the built-in pinkie rests in your leashless tool design, and was wondering what materials you used for the picks?

Really looking forward to your home made crampon design.

Oops,

Hope I didn't let the cat out of the bag!

Tom-osaurus Rex wrote:Where would we be if Albert Franklin or Ben Einstein had listened to the haters?

They'd have waited until their atomic kites had worked until they they fired up the printing press.

You better get your shit together if you want to impress anyone with your homemade ice tools.

gravsports-ice.com/icethrea…

Ray Pinpillage wrote: They'd have waited until their atomic kites had worked until they they fired up the printing press. You better get your shit together if you want to impress anyone with your homemade ice tools. gravsports-ice.com/icethrea…

Carbon fiber is actually pretty easy. Carve up a mold of what you need, then it's kind of like paper machete. Pour in solvent when you're done and you can dissolve the mold. Don't listen and give up... Back before the days of huge companies, this is how most modern climbing gear was discovered/designed.

Here is my homemade ice axe. I did not make as I was not even alive back then, neither was my mama. Still pretty damn cool in my book for something made in the 1920s. I even know who made it, A.V. Goddard who ran a hardware store in Portland Oregon. It is a pickaxe that had teeth machined into it with a spike added to the shaft.

Allen Sanderson wrote:Here is my homemade ice axe. I did not make as I was not even alive back then, neither was my mama. Still pretty damn cool in my book for something made in the 1920s. I even know who made it, A.V. Goddard who ran a hardware store in Portland Oregon. It is a pickaxe that had teeth machined into it with a spike added to the shaft.

Now that is purty. Ever used it?

Here is a link for you to check out and see what other people have done and maybe get some ideas.

mountainproject.com/v/anyon…

Locker wrote:To the OP... Even if it does turn out to be a total piece of shit, personally I think it's cool as hell that you're giving it a shot. +1 for gumption!

++

I'm teaching myself how to work with carbon fiber right now, and there is a pile of shitty ugly 2" tubes littering the corner of my office.

But I have a f'ing great one on my desk that I can actually use for the project that I'm working on. Sometimes it takes a pile of failures before you get something decent.

Wasn't everything homemade at some point? Good thing Yvon didn't stop when he was hammering pitons and making jackets out of toilet bowl covers.

Wish I had the skill set to do stuff like this!

as much as i thoroughly enjoy the shit talking going on here....in my humble opinion, you have some work to do. use them somewhere low consequence and beat the dog shit out of them, figure out what fails. figure out how to fix it and repeat the process till you have something you feel comfortable with and go a little bit bigger. or do the rei shuffle....buy some tools, use them, return them and get a different set. keep doing it till you figure out exactly what you want out of a tool and start your process there....like a head that is more comfortable to plunge with on your mountaineering axe and a bent shaft on your tools

just my $0.02

Experienced climber's opinion:

A+ for effort, F for actual usability. Ice axes from the 1920's (as seen above) were more capable, and built more solidly, than what you've posted above. Do some research and prepare a 2nd draft.

Do you remember the guy here that made handles out of denim and a ton of epoxy? They were similar to carbon fibre but weird.

There have been a few people who've made them out of carbon fibre. Brent_e is the only one I can remember off hand.

Some brilliant woodworker made some (probably too pretty to be functional) amazing ones out of hardwoods.

These were all adults with a background in it. I'd be surprised if the OP here was over 17. 20 tops. I loved cobbling shit together in my dad's shop at that age too. I just didn't have the WWW to show anyone my failure. Give him a break.

Nate Berman wrote: Hi, these are the ice axes I built. I'd like to hear what experienced climbers have to say.

Those are awesome...