UKC

Anti-Ball Plates - Strictly Necessary?

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 EarlyBird 25 Jul 2017
I've dug out an old pair of crampons for the Alps and the rubber anti-ball plates have perished. I'm keen not to spend any more than necessary so I'd prefer to use the crampons as they are. Will my parsimony get me killed?
 GarethSL 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

I find their necessity largely depends on the snow conditions.

You can always make your own from an old ice cream tub and some steel wire.

Get your Blue Peter on
 Lloydfletch 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

I've used a variety of homemade anti balling plates over the years, all work to an extent! Gaffer tape and a loo roll tube worked well! Probably worth investing in a set though.

Whatever you do don't go without anything if you've got significant snow to deal with, I learnt the hard way on the Pelvoux!
 Solaris 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

Why not ask your climbing partner what s/he thinks?

I can remember the days before anti-balling plates were invented, and I wouldn't go back to them. Improvisation is possible...
 AdrianC 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

Quite possibly. Balled-up crampons are a serious hazard, particularly if the snow is soft & warm - often the case when you're descending in the afternoon. As a slight aside, the amount of vertical steel on the crampon gives an indication of how badly they'll ball up - the "pastry-cutter"types being worst.
OP EarlyBird 25 Jul 2017
In reply to Solaris:

Naughty!

Right - the consensus seems to be pro plates. Thanks all. I'll get my Blue Peter on.
 gethin_allen 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

I made some tidy ones using an old DH MTB innertube and some wire to hold the things on. Gaffer tape is an easy one for emergency use but if you use them for a while bits of plastic break off and go everywhere.
OP EarlyBird 25 Jul 2017
In reply to gethin_allen:

Unfortunately I'm a road cyclist
OP EarlyBird 25 Jul 2017
In reply to Dave the Rave:

Very helpful - and very funny - "without so much as a candlelit dinner".
 Sean_J 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

So let me get this right - you can afford to go to the Alps but you can't afford £20 or so one something that might possibly save you life and that of your partner? DIY options are all very well and good but it's not really the time or the place to find out that they don't work very well or they've fallen apart when you weren't looking.
6
 rogerwebb 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

What kind of crampons?
OP EarlyBird 25 Jul 2017
In reply to rogerwebb:

G12s
OP EarlyBird 25 Jul 2017
In reply to Sean_J:

Yeah, thanks for the lecture.
3
 rogerwebb 25 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

Unfortunately my extensive collection of knackered crampons doesn't include them. Unlucky!
In reply to EarlyBird:

It's a few grams of weight. Better to have and not need than to need and not have. Nothing worse than boots weighing a tonne due to icing up, dangerous too!
 gethin_allen 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

> Unfortunately I'm a road cyclist

I am mostly these days. I never really got fully into DH, spending the majority of the time pushing a heavy bike up hill between short bursts of fun wasn't doing it for me.
 GarethSL 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

On checking the needle sports website a pair of proper plates is about £30... It's up to you but the same Google search revealed this thread from a while back:

https://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=395234

The bleach bottle instructions are quite good
cb294 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

G12s? Get the original Grivel plates. They are excellent, no other make or DIY bodge comes close in terms of durability and function. I even fitted some G12 plates on my old DMM Aiguille crampons.

CB
 SouthernSteve 26 Jul 2017
In reply to cb294:

I concur, those with the bubble/round bump in the middle that seems to pop the snow out are very useful.
OP EarlyBird 26 Jul 2017
In reply to rogerwebb:

Thanks for the thought anyway.
OP EarlyBird 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

Thanks again, everyone. Yes, strictly necessary would seem to be the answer. I have found replacement plates online for £15 - avoiding testing my DIY skills is probably worth the price. Having said that I cannot see any reason why a DIY fix would not be effective if a suitably resilient material were used (Dave mentions this in his excellent blog post above).
1
 d_b 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:
Out of interest are these the old (>10 year old) style G12s with the black flat anti balling plates or the newer ones with the yellow pop up ones?

A few years ago I saw some cheap AustriAlpin crampons that appeared to be identical to the old G12s. So similar I wondered if they had bought the tooling.
Post edited at 10:04
 Solaris 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

> Naughty!

You got it!

Of course, if you wanted to be really naughty, you could ask your partner to chip in!
 IainL 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

Use old plastic bags wrapped round the spikes. They last quite a long time and weigh nothing and pack small.
1
OP EarlyBird 26 Jul 2017
In reply to davidbeynon:

Yes, in excess of 10 years old. I think I had to buy the anti-balling plates - which are (or were) flat, black and rubber - separately.
OP EarlyBird 26 Jul 2017
In reply to IainL:

That really is the budget option
1
 IainL 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

Worked 40 years ago before manufacturers saw a market for accessories.
OP EarlyBird 26 Jul 2017
In reply to IainL:

Plastic bags aren't what they were, mind.
 d_b 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

I had a pair of those. They changed the design slightly so the new yellow anti balling plates don't fit on the front. I think they will go on the back though.
 hokkyokusei 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

I've only once worn crampons without anti balling plates and it was fine most of the time. But, on the descent they started to ball up and it was like trying to walk on platform shoes - really horrible. I had to kick the snow off every other step when I was at my most knackered. It only happened because I'd swapped crampons with someone as they didn't fit their boots and kept falling off. Never again!
Deadeye 26 Jul 2017
In reply to the thread:

One refinement to the DIY route is to use a curved section of PET fizzy drinks bottle. This acts very much like the rubber ones with a "spring out" action.


Mind you thousands of folks went for decades without.
OP EarlyBird 26 Jul 2017
In reply to davidbeynon:

Drat! That suggests the anti-balling plates I've just shelled out for won't fit. Looks like I might be taking the DIY route after all.
OP EarlyBird 26 Jul 2017
In reply to Deadeye:

Might be trying that.
 Trangia 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

> Will my parsimony get me killed?


Probably not, but constantly having to knock your feet with your ice axe will drive you nuts.
 jonnie3430 26 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

My darts needed a bodge job. Black nasty wrapped around the front flat bit worked well, the back seemed to get knocked off by the adjustable bar flexing. If I had to get fancy, I'd put a little rollmat under the flat bit and wrap black nasty to hold it on. Without, they can be hazardous and a nause as discussed earlier in the wrong snow conditions.
Jim C 27 Jul 2017
In reply to EarlyBird:

If all else fails in an emergency put thick plastic bags over each foot, pull up tight until the bag is pierced, and secure the bag round your ankles ( tape )
Never tried it, it looks awful, but I saw someone with this, and he seemed to be doing fine despite it being just the right sort of snow to cling to unprotected crampons.

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