Moisture managementcomes into play after using your crampons. Before stowing your crampons in their case, be sure to remove any ice and wipe them down to clean off any excess moisture and dirt.

You may end up with a bit of a gap between the two halves of milk bottle (like I have). That’s okay – use the scraps of flat plastic that you cut off the milk bottles to patch up the gaps. Duct tape the whole lot sturdily together. The milk bottles now form one solid plastic basket. DIY Crampon Bag Step 6: Finally, the other thing to consider is the number of points and how these are arranged. Usually crampons will have 10 or 12 points. Some will go up to 14 points for ice climbing. The more points the more traction you’ve got, so typically 10 points are for gentler gradients. Most crampons have 2 front points (a single point is only really an advantage in ice climbing). A Crampon Fitting Guide If you have 8-point crampons, then protectors for 10 or 12-pointers will work fine. However, the reverse is not true—i.e., using protectors with 8 covers is going to leave 4 points unprotected if your crampons have 12 points. This ensures you aren’t poking any of your hiking buddies’ eyes out, but also improves balance by consolidating your load and reducing the risk of snagging. It also, of course, eliminates the risk of loss. Further reading: Learn how to use your crampons correctly with our hands-on guide. Step Four: External Storage

Durability: The steel Petzl uses for its crampons is specially selected for its durability and strength characteristics. Using such high quality steel allows the crampons to be as light as possible without sacrificing strength. A special electroplating process is applied to the crampons to increase durability and maximize showshedding characteristics.

Certain circumstances and situations will make one or the other more suitable or, maybe, the only option. You now have an open basket into which you can put your crampons. Notice how I’ve left a bit of a lip at either end of the basket for sturdiness. Place your crampons inside the basket and adjust how far apart the milk bottles are, so that the crampons fit in easily. Make sure you can get them out over the lip. The crampons have a narrow one-piece strap and small square clasp, but ergonomically moulded to help you get your fingers around it in gloves. There is a metal bar at the base of the toe bail for extra support and anti-balling plates equipped. The Petzl Lynx have 14 points in total, giving lots of traction in steep snow or ice. Finally on fit: once you’ve brought both boots and crampons, size up and adjust the crampons to the size of your boots before going out into the snow. That may involve taking the central metal bar out of the crampon and turning it around if you have small feet. There will be instructions with your crampons. Otherwise, adjust the length of the bar to make a snug fit to the sole of the boot. And after a while, cut the strap so there is only a palm’s width of excess. Saves you having a trip hazard wound around your ankles. The Best Crampons For 2023 Take the second zip and attach it towards the far edge of the fabric (see LHS of picture). This distance is judged by the width of your milk bottle basket. I measured this roughly off the basket after I’d sewed the first zip in. Ensure that both zips are facing in the same direction. DIY Crampon Bag Step 7:

Hopefully, your milk bottles and jeans are almost looking like a crampon bag by now! To tidy up, I hemmed over a few loose ends and attached a ribbon between the two zips. That way you can pull one thing and undo both zips at once. This is much easier when you’ve got gloves on. Wash your milk bottles! And dry them properly. You can see, if you look closely in the picture, that mine isn’t quite dry. Cut along the dotted lines in the picture above. This will remove the handle from the milk bottle and the top section that is not flat. Repeat this with the second milk bottle. You should end up with something like the picture below. Concerning your stuff bag or case, bigger is almost always better. In most cases, the material used in protective cases is soft, and any excess can be squeezed or scrunched up. Once you’ve done that, THEN insert the basket for the final time. You need to sew along the open edge (facing camera in the picture above) to join it to the inside. The zip should now have one side snugly between two pieces of jean fabric.

Next, cut the “top” section of the milk bottles off, as in the picture below. From now on we’ll refer to “top” as the front-most side facing us (furthest away from the table). These binding types usually align with the crampon rating, that is how flexible the crampons are. Typically, C1 has strap-on, C2 has semi-auto and C3 has automatic. But the rating will also take into account how much flex there is in the crampon itself when you walk. This has everything to do with whether your crampons will fall off. If your boot are much more flexible than the crampons, you’ll essentially end up walking out of them as the boot pops out of the fitting. So really, you want to pair your boots and crampons well. Next up, with the right sides facing outwards, sew the other 2 end caps on to the outside of the basket. Note that you don’t have to do the sewing with the milk bottle basket in place – it just helps to illustrate where the pieces should be added on. Steel crampons / swappable bindings to fit semi or auto / Lynx has modular front points / Sarken has T-shaped fixed front points / Transport pouch included / anti-balling plates / all parts can be replaced separately / front section can be swapped out for other disciplines. BUY NOW: PETZL.COMPetzl's Fakir Crampon Bag is made with durable material and has a reinforced, semi-rigid bottom panel that prevents those shorp points from getting through and damaging your kit. With useful straps inside the bag to keep things organised and secure this is a great design. Crampons come in varying formats and sizes (and we have a great guide to choosing the best crampons for your needs). The most common configurations are 8-point, 10-point, and 12-point models. When buying spike protectors, it’s crucial to ensure that the protectors will have enough spike covers for the number of spikes on your crampons. point crampons / Removable front and rear attachments interchangeable with other Simond systems to upgrade to C2 or C3 / Steel with polyester bails. BUY NOW: DECATHLON.CO.UK

If the fabric doesn’t reach up the sides then you are going to need some bigger trousers! DIY Crampon Bag Step 5: Repeat this for the other inside piece, on the other end between the zips. Put it inside the milk bottle basket to test. It should look something like the picture below. Having a little extra room, moreover, will let you throw in additional sharp items when need be and stow your crampons easily with cold fingers. Step Two: Decide on Internal or External Storage The strap is segmented – in one piece but stitched in place around one end of the heel bail – and is wider than many on the market, making it easier to handle with less dextrous gloves. The clasp is round with a nice big pull tag that similarly makes taking the crampons on and off very easy. These crampons have flexible anti-balling plates included as standard. Full Specifications Perfect for preventing damage when carrying or storing your crampons. The Fakir provides a practical solution for those sharp crampon spikes and any other sharp pieces of kit you might need.

You Will Need:

Take your crampons and place them on top of one of the legs of your old jeans. Your jeans should be wide enough to fit the crampons on with a bit of space around the edges. This was fine, in my case (although only just because they were slightly skinny jeans) but if you have big feet you might need bigger trousers. Maybe there’s a correlation between foot size and jean size?! Crampons are some of the most effective tools for moving around the UK’s mountains in winter – because how often do we get deep coatings of soft powder? Windblown snow is the norm, often with a hard, icy top layer. Sometimes you can get away with using the edges of your winter boots, but you’re unlikely to get far without a pair of crampons. Especially as terrain gets higher, steeper and more technical. The strap is very narrow and fits the clasp snugly. This makes for a very secure fit, although it can be a little fiddly to put on while wearing big gloves. The strap is one continuous piece from clasp to tip and is woven through the bails. The crampons have anti-balling plates as standard and also come with a flat crampon bag with velcro closure. Double rows of holes in the asymmetrical rod allows for easy fine-tuning of crampon length to your boot. Full Specifications So, I set to it with some imagination. After using my construction for a year, I’d like to share it with you. Here’s how to make your own crampon bag… You Will Need: