Archive for September, 2010

New DRAGON Cams from DMM

Friday, September 17th, 2010

Dragon (L) BD C4 (R)

The much anticipated DMM Dragons have finally crawled from the crags of Wales and landed on our shores ready to scorch cracks.

What makes these Dragons breathe fire??

Colors

After years of climbers having to deal with each company having their unique color schemes DMM has done away with that and sided with BD as being the standard.

Sizes

Like colors each company had their own sizing. Dragons are Double-Axle which gives them the same range as BD. This means that climbers can grab a red Dragon and know what size it is.

This does not mean that Dragons are simply BD cams.

They are Lighter!!

Dragons weigh up to 17 grams less than their BD counterpart. A savings of 58g across the whole range. How do those crazy Welchmen do that?? Well, they hot forge the lobes which allows them to take out more material.

Extendable slings.

Not only are Dragons lighter but you can save even more weight by carrying less. Since the Dragons use a sling that can be pulled out to a full 10″. Meaning you don’t have to have as much webbing, draws, biners, and other stuff. Clip and go!!

• Hot forged cams that combine lightness with strength.
• Twin axle design for extended expansion range and smooth action.
• Constant 13.75° camming angle.
• Extendable 8mm dyneema sling.
• Strong springs help create a stable placement that resists walking.
• Moulded ergonomic trigger bar.
• Replaceable trigger wire system.
• Colour coded for easy size recognition.
• Anodised cams for corrosion prevention.

On top of that you get the same CE, UIAA, 3Sigma safety you have come to expect from the forge at DMM.

All of this comes together to make a cam that shows great promise and we look forward to hearing from you and what you think of Dragons from DMM.

“After including them on a few climbs, they are starting to feel very comfortable in our hands. We are really liking the adjustable length sling .”- Adam & Jim

Revised Nomics and Quarks from Petzl

Thursday, September 16th, 2010

As everyone knows the ice season can be short and fickle.

Ice climbing season has arrived!

Quark / Nomic Hammer

Be ready to send with the new Nomic and Quark from Petzl.

In stock now at Pro Mountain Spots.

New Ice Axes for Classic Mountaineering

Thursday, September 9th, 2010


Two exciting new ice axes from Grivel Italy. The acclaimed Air Tech Evo is now offered with a Carbon composite shaft Air Tech Carbon, and the odd looking Futura. First the Air Tech Carbon, dropped forged from a single piece of the finest steel, essentially Grivel’s finest, strongest, high performance, classic ice axe. The carbon composite adds insulation, and a new level of dampening and balance. T rated and stronger even than the Air Tech Evo. A truly beautiful and rugged classic ice axe.

Then there is the Futura, with the ugly yellow plastic and breaking the rule “all ice axes must have and adze”. Rather than classic beauty, the Futura is all about function and value. How will I chop a step you might ask? With the pick of course. While an adze is occasionally useful, so is a comfortable handle. Also, step chopping is rarely used since the introduction of crampons, especially the newer styles with front points.

While I would not recommend the Futura for serious ice climbs, it has become my absolute favorite axe for snow and glacier climbs. Why do I love this axe? I love the yellow handle. I can plunge the shaft more securely when the snow is firm. The self-arrest grip is superb, and has no adze threatening my face. The grip is warm, and easy on my hand especially when plunging aggressively.

For climbs where I need the ice axe only occasionally, I usually prefer my ultralight axes Corsa, and Corsa Nano-Tech. For long snow and glacier climbs, or any climb where the axe spends more time in my hand than on the back of my pack the Futura is now my choice.