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tammctavish

Reviews

Gully Adze

Petzl
Petzl Gully Adze Ice Axe
6

Ultralight, Ultraversatile

Pros
Good performance
Very lightweight
Good plunging
Cons
No interchangeable head
Familiarity
I’ve used it a bunch

I purchased this axe when I found my Summit was a little long for skiing. I looked at the Ride, which was lighter, but ultimately decided to sell my old Sum'tecs and replace them with the gulley. The New Sum'tecs were a little pricey for my tastes and I wanted to lightweight. I also feel like the Sum'tecs lack rubber handles and get too cold for proper ice climbing.

The Gulley is a good alternative to the Ride with even more functional options. As a skimo ice axe it is just as good. The little handle slides perfectly, adn i seasy to adjust one handed. The axes plunges well, and feels stable.  The bend in the shaft is ideal, and provides a litte relief when daggering. 

On ice the gulley is not ideal as it doesn't have much intrinsic swing weight, but then than isn't really what it's meant for. You do hav eto muscle your swings a little more, but also guard from over driving the tool lest it get stuck. Either  way it's still a extremely capable ice and alpine axe, and  lags only slightly behind more purpose built options. As a northwall hammer, the Adze is perfect. 

If you're mostly ski mountaineering with a bit of technical climbing this is an ideal tool. If you wanted to climb more alpine then having some tape at the base would be a good idea for comfort and to keep the cold off. 

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Summit®

Petzl
Petzl Summit® Ice Axe
6

Best All Round Mountaineering Axe

Pros
Versatile
Bent shaft makes sub technical climbing fun
Durable
Lightweight
Cons
Head is a little thin, so plunging can be a bit uncomfortable after a few hours.
Familiarity
I’ve used it a ton

The Summit has been my go to mountaineering axe for general mountaineering. It's perfect for a broad range of activities. I have used it in the past for skimo, but my 66cm was a bit awkward on my pack. 

Arresting, and walking with this axe is very comofrtable. The lightweight is awesome, and makes carrying it for long days comfortable. The axe plunges smoothly, and much better than axes with rubber handles. For daggering or steeper climbing the bent shaft is perfect, though I don't have the largest hands. I've tried climbing with it on WI3 for practice as well at crags and it is acceptable, though not my first choice. 

For an all round mountaineering axe this is an excellent choice.

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Leopard FL

Petzl
Petzl Leopard FL
6

SkiMo champions

Pros
Lightweight
Durable for Aluminum
Extremely Packable
Comes with Sack
Adjustable
Versatile system
Cons
Expensive
Familiarity
I’ve used it a ton

The Leopards are an amazing crampon, and are an awesome part of the Petzl system. The little bag allows me to throw them into a running pack, jog up to snow line and keep moving quickly with speed. Skiing the scooped shape makes them even more stable on snow. Spring, Summer and fall they get loads of use, and have become my most used crampons just because they work so well in such varied terrain. 

The work great on my TLT 7 ski boots, and my Salomon Slab runners. There is a god strapping technique that I learnt from Eric Carter that is worth looking into if you're using these with soft boots. I've used them on my Synchro boots too by swapping parts with other Petzl crampon pieces. While my crampons are also pretty old, the fact that this system can be swapped with the new Irvis front pieces is a really awesome option to have.

 

 

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Ange S

Petzl
Petzl Ange S Full View
6

Snappy little number

Pros
Smooth
Clears debris easily
Very long lifespan
Guides clip in well
Cons
Small Opening
Pricey
Familiarity
I’ve used it a ton

The Ange S and L are staples on my Alpine and Trad rack. They are one of the best biners on the market if a bit pricey. Even 5 years of use they continue to snap perfectly, consistently like they did the day I bought them. 

The nose is a little large, but it needs to be as the large hole that the gate sits in also allows it to clear snow easily. I rather like this as I do a fair bit of ice and mountaineering, so it's nice not worrying about snow clogging up the system. It also is a motth system that doesn't snag which is rather appreciate as the narrow gates would make clearing a snag awkward. 

The little plastic on the bas eof the wire is an effective guide that slides rope, or wire swiftly and easily into the gate where it opens. It's just snaps on easily, especially compared to other biners like the Minis or the Hoowdires. 

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