Home wall fanatics – be sure to check out the latest gear for indoor ice climbing training, Dry Ice Tools. DRY ICE Tools are Indoor Ice Axes used by looping stiff rubber straps over the holds used in rock climbing gyms. The climbing motion is exactly the same as in ice and mixed climbing. Now you can prepare for the upcoming ice season, in your gym, without worrying about injuring someone or puncturing the pads with sharp points raining down from above. Dry Ice Tools made their first appearance at last years Michigan Ice Fest and they are coming back…..and buying you beer! That’s right not only will the guys be donating a pair of tools for our now famous raffle, they are also throwing down for a keg of beer!
This fall, DRY ICE Co-Owners George Fisher and Ben Carlson revealed their latest innovation, the DRY ICE Kronos, the world’s First Wooden Handled Technical Ice Climbing Tool!
Kronos
The Shaft
The DRY ICE Kronos uses non-impregnated, densified beech wood laminate developed especially for a wide range of industrial applications including motor sport, aerospace industries, as well as for neutron shielding in the nuclear industry. The grade specially produced for the these industries is constructed to the highest density possible using thin veneers producing a dense, stable, high strength laminated board with excellent wear resistance.
The DRY ICE Kronos handle material offers high stability, increased strength, stiffness and improved life when replacing hardwood, and on the other hand, reduced weight, shorter machining times, is non-sparking and non-conductive when replacing metals. Kronos handles have half the strength of steel at only one fifth of the weight. The Kronos shaft is CNC machined in 2 parts allowing us to machine ‘islands’ inside the handle halves that fit into the faces of the custom designed pick. These two parts are then bonded together using Aerodux 185, a 2 part epoxy adhesive used in the aeronautical industry for, amongst other things, bonding the wings to light aircraft. The pick islands then dovetail into the pick to transfer the energy from the pick strikes directly into the shaft rather than through the stainless steel hardware. There is a 0.3mm gap between the islands where the pick is inserted. This clearance means that the pick is pinched by the wood shaft distributing the force evenly and avoiding stress hotspots.
It will be great to have Dry Ice Tools back for the 2015 Michigan Ice Festival….be sure to stop by Sydney’s and check these tools out!
