Anybody recommend crampons which fit the Scarpa Cumbre well?

Yep...

Grivel G14, the seem to be almost made for them.

I agree Scarpa themselves recomend the G14, although the G12 will also fit well

Sorry I meant to include that Scarpa and Grivel as companies are tied togethor and the boots and crampons are mutualy designed. So a Grivel is by far the best choice for a Scarpa boot.

They are also imported and dealt by the same firm in the UK , the Mountain boot company, so the place that sold you the boots should also be able to sell you the crampons.

Generally, I'd add that if you're buying crampons, you should always take the boots along to the shop to make sure the fit is good. Some boots, Scarpa's original Freneys for example, only take a few crampons well (on account of being asymetrical, however that's spelled).

Ok now i'm confused, i took my old style Manata's into Snow and Rock to fit some crampons and Black Diamond Sabretooth's seemed to be the best fit ?? Can either Guy or Jon shed some light on this before i part with my hard earned, (all be it with 30% discount ;o))

Cheers Matt

Opps should say Scarpa Manta's !!

Matt

I've never used Mantas with a BD sabre tooth so I can't help I'm afraid.

I have just got some Mantas and have fitted them with Grivel G12's and they fit superbly.

However, if the Mantas are an old model ( shiney leather or Nubuck?) then other makes may well fit well.

Sorry if that is no help ! if you are still unsure then give me a call on Monday with the exact model of manta you have and I will give Scarpa a ring and ask which crampon they would recomend! But there must be someone on OM who has used this combination.

Thanks Guy,

Mine are the shiney leather model.

John, probably a lot of crampons will fit your boots well, since they're a fairly standard shape. Fitting crampons to boots is not quite as fiddly as fitting boots to feet, so you do generally have a bit of choice, depending on budget and intended function. The only reservation I have about G-14s is that the point positioning is not perfect, but this won't matter to you unless you're climbing above the lower grades.

If you want to save a bit of money, Charlet S-12s are being discontinued so you can pick them up cheaply at the moment. I think you'd find them marginally better than G-14s for most purposes, the only exception being steep water ice, and Charlet have a reputation for making the most robust crampons around. Other crampons worth a look are the Camp XLC and Black Diamond Sabretooth. The only type of crampons to avoid (unless you're a dedicated ice climber) are the fully-rigid pure technical models, which can ball up in general use even with anti-ball plates.

You may have a choice of fitting. The hybrid style is faster and more reliable than a front wire bail and often easier to get a good fit with. You will also need anti-ball plates.

Matt, if Sabretooths fit your boots well and are suited to your purposes, then get them. If you ask Scarpa, they will recommend a Grivel crampon, since that's what they're paid to do, but that doesn't mean other brands can't do a good job. As long as the crampons fit well enough to be secure and comfortable, then you can afford to take other factors such as price, availability and functionality into account.

I've got a pair of original Frehney's about 4 months ago(End of season bargain - £80 a pair!) and haven't got crampons for them yet. I know not much will fit them, apart from DMM Terminators but I don't want a large Austrian with crap catch phrases on my feet. What else will fit my lovely blue boots?

I have Freneys too, and Charlet S-12s and M-10s fit them fine. Grivels don't, but this is partly because the bar won't angle enough on smaller sizes (I'm a 5). Larger sizes need less 'bend' so you may do better.

Somewhere at the back of my mind is the information that Grivel is about to introduce, or may already have done, an aftermarket curved connecting bar, which will make their crampons more compatible with curved soles.

I use DMM Terminators on my original Freneys btw, and apart from the occasional cliched phrase in guttural, Austrian-accented English - 'Hasta La Vista, baby' and I''ll be back' for example - they've been great, though I've used them mainly in mono-point mode for pure water-ice climbing rather than for general mountaineering.

As Joan says, the Charlet models also fit, but as per usual, you best bet is to put your boots on a lead and take them for walkies to a good climbing shop. Something like the BD Sabretooth for example, is a good all-round crampon, but I have no idea if they fit or not.

Matt

I've played with a pair of shiney leather Mantas over the weekend ( the old style ) and found that the G10 & G12's both fitted very well, also tried a Camp Green Ice model which was also good but I found the Charlot equivilant of the G12, the name of which escapes me now I'm at home, was a terrible fit on the old model you have, but not too bad on the new !


And Joan, I agree it is not always the case that in house and company ties means the best fit, however having tried a range of crampons on the new Scarpa range I did find that the most positive fit was indeed the Grivels.

I tried Grivels, Camp, DMM's and some Cahrlot ones but like Jon says best bet is to go along to a good shop with the boots and play. If the shop doesn't want or like you doing this, then go to one that does !

Thanks Guy !!, I may well go for the Black Diamonds as they look shiney Lol

Is that a 90 truck cab i spy in your picture !! Sold my 110 V8 back in July and traded it in for a Discovery ;o) I love my land rovers LMAO

Wrong forum Harmsworth...lol

If the BD's fit mate I would stick with them, rather than MAKE a set of Grivel's fit.

Matt
The BD's do look good don't they !

It's a 1982 90 not a truck cab though, its the last of the two tone 90's before the defender and single colour bodies came out.

All restored and resprayed and now I'm looking for another one to renovate :)

Just reading back through this and Land rovers aside, we seem to have become confused as we are looking for two seperate sets of crampons

One for a Scarpa Cumbre and One for a Scarpa Manta, hence some confusion .

Guy, Damn if i'd known you could have restored mine for me ;o)