TITANIUM WALKING CRAMPONS R2
These are a huge upgrade to my original Ti Walking Crampons (R1) that I made last year. Revision 2 takes the TWC's a few notches up in terms of usability and complete amazingness! It took me a while to get the design right, but the finished product has several benefits over Revision 1. First and foremost, they are slightly lighter at 5.5 oz for the pair. I could probably shave a little more weight off but I need to do some significant testing before I go down that path.
I noticed on the original TWC's that there was some flex in the middle due to the weight of the person being supported only by the 4 side teeth. I decided to eliminate that by bending the front and back teeth the full 90 degrees as opposed to R1 which had only 45 degree bend. This helps to reduce the stress on the side teeth as all 8 points of each crampon sit on the surface at the same time.
I added adjustability for width by using a design similar to that of many other crampons in the market. A simple slot with a stainless steel carriage bolt riding in it provides ample size variations.
A significant change is the integrated tri-glides (tabs) that are bent upwards 90 degrees. This was a great idea given to me by Rod Lawlor on the BPL forums. The straps can now be fed through these slots, adjusted, and tightened by pulling on one end. I had planned to fix one end of the strap using grommets or screws, but after trying them out, they hold solid so I don't think they are required. One huge benefit of this is that you are no longer prone to buckle failure and the straps can easily be changed if they wear or break.
The bend radius on each tooth is slightly smaller. I had to do some testing to get it just right without material failure. This tighter radius creates a greater strain hardening effect than before and actually increase the strength and stiffness of the teeth. To sum it up, the teeth are now stronger.
The tooth geometry has changed slightly to improve grip on both up and down hill terrain. This was achieved by using an asymmetrical triangle on all 8 teeth of each crampon. The front and back teeth have identical contact points along a line drawn from the front to the back, however, the tooth geometry differs in that they are mirror images of each other along said line. This means that you will have to push through a greater area of snow, slush, or ice in order to slide forward or backward, thus increasing grip.
Description: I had these ones cut on a waterjet from a plate of Titanium 6Al-4V. A CNC hydraulic brake press with segmented tooling was used to form the bends. The stainless carriage bolts were purchased from a local supplier and the straps are from a fabric supplier. These measure 5 1/4" long and are adjustable in width from 3" to 5". The teeth are 0.8" long measuring from the top deck of the crampon to the ground. The strapping is 1/2" wide.
To adjust the width of the crampon, the nuts under the crampon must be loosened. This will allow the two pieces of the crampon to be pushed closer together or pulled further apart. Once it is fit to your specific shoe, the nuts are tightened and the crampon is locked in place. The straps work like any other crampon. They must be loosened, slid over your shoe and then tightened by pulling on the loose ends until snug.
Weight: 5.50 oz (156 grams) per pair.
Notes: I'm definitely trying to bring these to market and move this from my R&D section to my Product section. However, I'm going to need some time to test them and work on building some tooling in order to reduce manufacturing and material costs.
