UKC

what is this ice axe??

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 The Potato 30 Sep 2013
Can anyone suggest what this axe is? Its shaft has been wrapped and repainted, there are no markings e.g. brand or B or T on the head so Ive no idea what it is.
Its 45cm long and weighs 730g

To me it looks like a technical axe but wanted to check before adding it to my winter gear pack.

http://i1227.photobucket.com/albums/ee435/bechdan/DSC_0002.jpg

 barbeg 30 Sep 2013
In reply to owena:

...it is possibly related to the macinnes axes, given the straight blade and spike shape.....if so probably quite old.....
ANdy
 barbeg 30 Sep 2013
In reply to Andrew Mallinson:

...yep, defo a macinnes axe, the ferrul shape is the give-away.....as is the straight blade.....probably about 40 years old...belongs in a museum...
ANdy
 Rob Parsons 30 Sep 2013
In reply to Andrew Mallinson:

At 45 cm long, and with a less steeply-inclined pick, it looks like a 'mountaineering' version of the Terrordactyl. I didn't know such a thing had ever been produced.

To the OP: it'll still work!
OP The Potato 30 Sep 2013
In reply to Andrew Mallinson: ha ha, well thats interesting never the less. Would it be used as a technical axe by todays standards - given the length?
 Rick Graham 30 Sep 2013
> ...it is possibly related to the macinnes axes, given the straight blade and spike shape.....if so probably quite old.....
> ANdy

I think you are right Andy, made in the same factory as the terrors, so about early seventies.
 L.A. 30 Sep 2013
In reply to owena: Its a MacInnes Peck
http://www.smhc.co.uk/objects_item.asp?item_id=31979
You`ll need to do some weight training before you use it as its a bloody monster of an axe!!
 Fiskavaig 30 Sep 2013
In reply to owena: Mcinnis,army issue i believe, i have one in the wardrobe.
OP The Potato 30 Sep 2013
In reply to owena: Im glad I posted it now, I didnt expect so much and so quick a response either! Thanks all.
 Solaris 30 Sep 2013
In reply to owena:

MacInnes/Peck axe, riding the crest of the Terrodactyl (sp?) wave. I used mine once, on my first winter climbing trip, on Central Gully, Lliwedd (V) in 1978! Can't imagine why they didn't become more popular
 WJV0912 30 Sep 2013
In reply to Solaris:

Looks like a Grivel X20 original to me... Often confused with the Peck but made from a different alloy
 dustyrat 01 Oct 2013
 Rob Parsons 01 Oct 2013
In reply to dustyrat:

Thanks for posting that - nice bit of history.
OP The Potato 01 Oct 2013
In reply to owena: looks like ive got the one for 'more serious undertakings' brilliant thread thanks
 Null 01 Oct 2013
In reply to owena:

My first ice axe in 1979, bought second hand off Roger Payne. Together we did Zero gully and numerous other routes with it. They were famous for how soft the pick was - frequently bent on route but could be hammered back into shape (too soft to break, clearly). They were also a bit dodgy for ice axe braking because the pick was very thin and cut through neve like butter.
Overall pretty useless, considering instead how revolutionary pterodactyls were (at the time).
 dustyrat 01 Oct 2013
In reply to owena:

If you want a cleaner full scan of the catalogue, let me know!
OP The Potato 01 Oct 2013
In reply to dustyrat: no its ok thanks, youve already done more than was expected. Ill just use this as a small safety axe for walking, I usually end up doing some silly descent and wish I had an axe handy.
 SteveSBlake 01 Oct 2013
In reply to dustyrat:
> (In reply to owena)
>
> If you want a cleaner full scan of the catalogue, let me know!

If it's not too much trouble I know someone who would be very grateful.

Steve

 Sash 08 Oct 2013
In reply to Erstwhile:
I also bought one around that time, but I have never had any problem with the quality of the pick.
I think later on the "design" developed a little: the pick on mine is more curved, with a larger hole for a leash, whilst the adze also has a hole, presumably for a krab for belays.
Overall mine (around 60cm) weighs just over 900 grammes, so about 40% more than a modern Scottish axe.

Many thanks for the catalogue scan: great nostalgia!
 nniff 08 Oct 2013
In reply to Sash:

That was known as a Scorpion. Not that brillaint either, although it has to be said that the adze on those things was far superior for climbing uncompolidated rubbish than anything avialble now. THe last axe that has a similar bucket-like adze was a Simond Barracuda, I think
 Simon Yearsley 08 Oct 2013
In reply to owena: MacInnes Peck. Not bad for it's time, it was certainly better than my Rupal Hammer. How things have moved on!!!
 Ian Parsons 08 Oct 2013
In reply to Simon Yearsley:

Really? I never used Stubai's dropped-pick tools from that era - with the green shafts, if I recall - but they looked pretty useful; was the axe version called the Manaslu, or am I getting confused? They appeared to copy the Terrordactyl's 55 degree pick angle, which surely would have to be better for steep ground than the MacInnes/Peck axe's 78 degrees; I assume that the latter was designed principally for step-cutting and self-arrest.
 Doug 09 Oct 2013
 barbeg 09 Oct 2013
In reply to Doug:

Epic Photo ! Reminds me of so much!
Dachies, Whillans ball crusher harness, itchty bala's (mine was green)....happy days.....
ANdy
 Sash 09 Oct 2013
In reply to nniff:
Gotta say, I am loving this thread: I shall go and look at the old axe with renewed interest, now that I actually know its name and provenance.
You are right: it IS a good adze.
and as for Doug's picture, that REALLY brings back the memories!
 barbeg 09 Oct 2013
In reply to nniff:

The adze on the Barra was epic! Just sold mine, along with a chacal hammer, and upgraded to Quarks...which have a pathetic adze in comparison! With the barra adze I would dig a snow hole WITHOUT a shovel in minutes! Did so in Lochain when Jean's Hut was full....
ANdy
 L.A. 09 Oct 2013
For those that are interested in older gear this is a huge thread but has a lot of interesting stuff in it.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=382806&tn=0&m...
 mattsccm 09 Oct 2013
In reply to owena:
I thought that stuff was still current!

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