How to choose the RIGHT and best crampons

How to choose the right and best crampons for you for ice climbing, alpine climbing or mountaineering? That is one question that ice climbers, mountaineers and alpine climbers ask themselves. Especially if you are a beginner to ice climbing or alpine climbing and don't know what features to look for. I have answered that question in this climbing vlog episode. I will talk about what I believe make out the best crampons, and help you choose the right crampons for you.

Crampons are often also referred to as steigeisen, but that ist just a matter of semantics and where you are from. Well, anyway this piece of gear is absolutely essential for ice climbing, mountaineering or alpine climbing - but all are not the same! And actually, we could include hiking too - especially if you are considering doing some glacier hiking and glacier travel. Crampons (steigeisen) are needed!

If you are interested in the differences between the ice climbing axe and the general mountaineering ice axe, then consider watching this video.

► Ice climbing axe or mountaineering axe? What is the DIFFERENCE (2020) -    • Why are ice climbing axes and mountai...  

So there are many types and nuances to crampons (steigeisen). However you can divide them into two major categories based on their front points. First first being horisontal front points, while the second is vertical front points.

Horisontal front points are broad og are really good for catching snow - so they are excellent for snow ridges, snow gullies and snow slopes. They are also good for general mountaineering and glacier hiking and glacier travel. If you are also considering some alpine climbing routes that does not over steep ice terrain, then I would go with the crampons (steigeisen) with horisontal front points.

The vertical front points are more sharp, aggressive and kinda looks like ice axes! And that is exactly what they are designed to be. Ice axes! They penetrate steep ice very well, and is therefore ideal when ice climbing steep ice. This makes them the best crampons for ice climbing.

Speaking for vertical front points, then you can have them in a mono point (having one front point) configuration or a dual point (having two front points) setup. This is determined based on what you are climbing. If you intent to be climbing mixed ground, then I would recommend mono point as a starting point. This also makes them the best crampons for mixed climbing.

Some of the best crampons (steigeisen) available on the market for ice climbing, mixed climbing and alpine climbing comes from some of the major climbing brands such as Petzl, Black Diamond and Grivel. Here is a list of some of the most popular crampons (steigeisen) on the market:

Black Diamond Sabretooth
Black Diamond Cyborg
Black Diamond Stinger
Cassin Blade Runner
Grivel G12
Petzl Lynx
Petzl Vasak

However, in this video I will show features of the Black Diamond Sabretooth and the Petzl Lynx. And the boots in the video are the Haglöfs Vertigo II GTX, the La Sportiva Trango Cube and the Scarpa Phantom Guide.

There are also three types of bindings you should be aware of, which are all shown in the video. The major brands have different names of these, so I have created a comparison chart here:

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Black Diamond : Strap / Clip / Pro
Cassin : Universal / Semi-Automatic / Automatic
Climbing Technology: Flex / Semi-Automatic / Automatic
Edelrid: Universal / Semi-Automatic / Automatic
Grivel : Universal / New-Matic / Cramp-o-Matic
Petzl : Flexlock / Leverlock Universal / Leverlock
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So if you are looking for how to choose the right crampons (steigeisen) watch this video.

My favourite crampons (steigeisen) is the Petzl Lynx. It is good for steep ice with sharp vertical front points, but also modular built - a feature people often neglect. You can change the crampons (steigeisen) from mono point to dual point, and you can change the front points, when they are worn out. Something that extends the lifetime of the crampons (steigeisen) significantly!

If you are looking for other gear videos then watch:

► How to choose the RIGHT climbing backpack (2020) -    • How to choose the BEST climbing backpack  

or

► How to choose the RIGHT ice climbing axe or ice tool (2020) -    • How to choose the RIGHT and best ice ...  

I am not affiliated with Black Diamond or Petzl, so this is entirely my own thoughts based on my own experiences, so I can give you advice on how to choose the right crampons for you.

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#alpinism #IceClimbing #crampons