UKC

Hi folks, I'm looking to go for winter ML assessment in March and am on the lookout for a snow shovel. What would you recommend??

In reply to chmckay:

BD Lynx

In reply to ed woods:

Agree. BD Lynx

In reply to chmckay:

BCA B1 EXT is a great shovel for personal use - light, good handle length and a strong blade.

http://www.facewest.co.uk/BCA-B1-EXT-Shovel.html.

Kodiak shovel, BCA B2 and BD Evac range are also excellent, but more ski patrol / MRT orientated (i.e. more efficient for digging, more robust, but much heavier!).

Cheers,

Stu

In reply to chmckay:

I'd certainly go for a Black Diamond one. I use the Transfer 3, and I've never had a problem with it. There isn't a huge amount of difference in the BD range other than weight and the length of the handle tbh.

Once you pick one, I'd suggest getting some wire to go with it, so you can loop it through the holes around the edge of the blade. You can use this to hang it outside the your pack American style if you want, and to use the blade as a deadman anchor or fluke. Using the handle for a T-cut anchor should be simple enough with just a regular sling.

Good luck with the assessment!

In reply to ed woods:


Have you used it for digging in hard debris? I'm also looking for a new shovel, and the testing that I have read seems to stress the importance of a square top to the blade so that you can use a boot to get extra force. It looks from pictures like the Lynx is quite rounded, but personal experience would be useful. Cheers.

In reply to StuDoig:

woops, link doesn't seem to work! Try

http://backcountryaccess.com/product/avalanche-shovel-b-1-ext/

In reply to MarkJH:

Yeah, I've dug with mine a fair bit. Never in anger for buried casualty. Someone with MRT experience might give a more informed opinion. It's not too round to get your heel on it. What I like about it is it's larger than many, metal blade, simple and solid. And cheap, it's a spade at the end of the day

In reply to ed woods:
Lynx has a T-shaped handle, I prefer a D-shaped handle. G3 Avitech gets my vote, huge blade.

In reply to chmckay:

Definitely one not made of plastic.

I watched my son trying to dig into some hard packed snow outside a hut with my mate's plastic shovel. Sobering. Should have filmed it for the benefit of plastic shovel owners everywhere.

In reply to chmckay:
Snowclaw - emergency or going out intending to dig in the snow is the choice. The snow claw is not clumpy and is very light - watch the demo vid in avalanche debris http://snowclaw.com/demo-video/ . They work and are dead easy to carry so they don't get left out.

In reply to chmckay:

Definitely agree with the advice to avoid plastic shovels, they're useless in hard snow. I've now got an Anatom one which I'm pleased with, similar to the Black Diamond Lynx but a lot cheaper. Only downside to it is the handle is quite short which makes shifting big quantities of snow (building kickers) harder work

In reply to Sam W:

The Anatom has had mixed feedback on durability but the weight is a big deal as it's mega light. I've had my eye on this one.

In reply to barry donovan:

Great for digging a snow cave (probably) but the general reviews say rubbish in actual avalanche debris (despite the video).

Ultimate shovel is a square topped metal blade with a straight shaft with a d handle.

I have a BD deploy 5. It's fine but when I've used it in comparison to a shovel fitting the description I above, it's not as good. The curved shaft is a pain to pack as well.

In reply to barry donovan:

I watched one of those scraping away a few crystals at a time in a proper test last winter: hardly made a dint in re-set debris. Fine for digging snowholes or cars out of drifts but it'll kill your partner. I wouldn't go out with anyone carrying one.

For what it's worth, I've got a big old BD shovel - I think it's the old version of the Lynx. If I was buying again, I've probably go for Transfer (and make sure that my partner was carrying it...)

In reply to london_huddy:


I've got a lynx too - must be at least 10 years old but its rather small. I have a voile alu one and its considerably bigger than the lynx. Not sure if they have changed much since then though.

In reply to TobyA:

Must be something else then. It's not light but it's done just about everything other than digging out a victim (and long may this state of affairs last). Tent plaftorms, snow holes, cars from snowdrifts, trenches into tree wells, ignoos and snow pits galore.