DIY - basic crampons anyone - anyone done some??

[slip slide]

I fell on my backside last week in the icy conditions and was lucky not to break an arm. I landed hard but luckily just had a badly grazed elbow & bruised thigh.

Has anyone thought about making some basic DIY crampons for walking use. I've been thinking about it the past few days ( see below * ).

I looked at the prices for crampons - and being that I would use them little - thought about how to make my own. To buy they were £150 - £200.

Also, the commercial ones, have those BIG spikes at the front to use when ice climbing a vertical face.

I wont be ice climbing I just want my feet to stay put on horizontal ice when walking.

Someone ( a mountain climber ) at work today suggested Gravel Spiders for walking use, they attach to boots/shoes but it looks to me that they only go under the heel. They are quite cheap though but I wonder about pressing forward on the ball of your foot when walking.

• my ideas below - all difficult to explain.

1./ Draw the outline of the sole of your shoes onto a piece of, say, half inch ply. Cut the ply, 2 for each foot, 4 in all. Drill the ply, one for each foot, to take sturdy nails and so that the nail head will be against the ply. Cut and re spike the bit of the nail that will protrude below the ply to, say, half an inch. Buy some leather straps to go round your shoe and the other piece of ply for that foot. ( Maybe ) route a grove for the strap in each foots other piece of ply. From the spiked side of the nailed ply screw the ply to the other piece of ply for that foot which has the grooves for the straps. The 2nd piece of ply stops the nails being pushed upwards by your weight when walking. Strap them to your shoes and walk.

2./ Same as above but instead of making the nailed spike boards use those 'top of wall' plastic spiky things you can buy and screw them to the strap boards. Less ply to shape and no nails to cut and resplike.

3./ Buy some of that cable mounting metal stuff that's about 4 inches wide and has multiple mounting holes along its length. ( What's it called ). Cut to the length of your shoe. Use an ANGLE GRINDER to form spikes on its upturned flanges. Bend the non spiked part of the flanges flat to its width so they don't interfere with the spikes. Use the multiple mounting holes to find a way to strap to your shoes.

Any DIY crampons need to be easily removable for when not on ice.

C'mon folks - share any other ideas you have.

.

[Clive George]

You can get mini crampons which go under the arch of your boot to give you the extra grip you're looking for, and they're not too insanely priced. Not DIY I know, but might be useful. Eg

result I found)

[John Stumbles]

Our postie said that last year they'd issued them with snow chains (as for vehicle tyres) for their shoes. Never heard of them but seemed like a good (and DIY-able) idea.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember "slip slide" saying something like:

Spiked golfing shoes - I wonder if available in more comfortable footwear?

[Pete Verdon]

Full on crampons are a bit OTT, but many of the grannies in Moscow use snow chains for their shoes. A bit of light chain crossing under the foot a few times, with some elastic I expect - didn't really look in too much detail. Eminently DIYable, indeed I was thinking earlier today about knocking some up with the chains I saved off the hanging baskets I threw away a while back.

Pete

[Steve Firth]

[Tinkerer]

Several mention shoe chains (they work, I have used them) so here is a link.

to say they are out of stock now but it is worth getting them later for the next time.

[slip slide]

many retailers at present.

One reason I thought of making my own too.

Some sites may not show as out of stock either - don't want them arriving in May.

[Paul]

I'm a postman and we use ones that look very similar to the bottom set on that site. I can vouch for their effectiveness too, they let me go at normal walking pace and style on compacted snow and even ice.

[David WE Roberts]

What you are designing looks very much like the plastic sandals with spikes that they sell to aerate lawns - you strap them to your shoes/boots and then walk around the lawn making spike holes.

Bought a pair, never used them.

The spikes are a little long for walking in anything but several inches of icy snow, and with long spikes you would have the same problem as with snow chains on cars - fine on snow but as soon as you get to a clear bit you have major problems.

Golf shoes sound a very good solution, and less likely to sell out than 'snow chain' badged goods at this time of year.

[PeterC]

Much discussion about this on re.walking; the concensus is for these:

crampons are suitable for use only with proper mountaineering boots - other footwear is too flexible. Lobster-claw crampons carry their own risks and need practice and technique to use - but good in queues, sales etc.

[Cicero]

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If you're planning long term you could buy a pair of traditional hobnailed boots for Winter wear. If you're not familiar with this type of boot it has a pattern of conical steel nails projecting about 1/4" from the soles and heels.

These were regulation army issue until superseded by Vibram rubber soled boots.

Cic.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember PeterC saying something like:

Reminds me of Lotte Lenya as Rosa Klebb.

[Andy Dingley]

but you're not allowed in cafes without removing them (even outdoor cafes with wooden steps) as they trash floors, especially wooden steps with chicken wire overlays. Worst of all, they're _terrible_ on patches of clear tarmac or cement. If the spikes can't penetrate the surface, they've no grip.

My own chains are some ancient things like the full foot RUD "two X" pattern on the Roofbox link and they work fine. The "single X" sort can work OK (and they're the most convenient), but you have to remember you're wearing them. If you ever forget to stop mincing and put your weight down on your heel instead, then you go over.

For hobnails, these people have a good range (two different sorts of racing tug of war boots!)

[Roger Cain]

Take about 1ft. x 9in. of chicken wire and fold it over the uppers from the sole of the shoe/boot.

[Rod]

So why have we not had any post for the last few days? :-)

(Actually near neighbour is a postie and he was going to work this afternoon. Had to walk in as it has been impossible to get the van he usually uses up here. But did not see any snow chains on his shoes.)

[Owain]

1. Make some Glue carpet gripper-rod to the base of the cans.

If you do not empty the cans before you use them, you also have a handy emergency food supply.

Owain

[Dave Liquorice]

Plenty of links to useful looking things at good prices already given, but stock might be another matter...

Worked on an ice rink once, the rink issued us with some elasticated thing to put on our shoes so we didn't go arse over tip on the ice. Not much more than a couple of bits of pressed metal for heel and toe and some elastic straps. Maybe a trip to your local rink and chat will find out what they are and a source.

Note the comments about ease of removal, people won't take kindly to you cutting up their floors with your spikes or the lack of grip and ordinary hard surfaces.

[fred]

In article , slip slide writes

For ice I think a pair of these would be hard to beat:

be used to discipline unruly children in summer.

[Andrew Gabriel]

Knocked these up last night...

well. Could do with another chain at right angles as there was still a bit of sideways slip, but could walk at normal speed (or my normal speed which is rather fast) on the ice.