anyone use gecko II spikes?

Kathy_Holzer · Feb 12, 2005

hi guys.
i've been climbing on steel buckingham climbers for 10 yrs, mostly with the "super wrap" monster velcro pads. i have a job coming up where i need two climbers in spikes and my new guy isn't ready to buy his own so i was thinking i'd get a 2nd pair. seeing as i'm not getting any younger (just had the big 40), and i'm buying a new pair anyway, i was thinking of switching to lighter spikes - aluminum or titatnium. the geckos look pretty wild and are the lightest in sherrill's catalog so i thought maybe some of you guys could give me some feedback on them..? or other alum/titanium climbers?

it looks like the weight savings isn't huge but most of my biners are alum vs steel so what the heck.

thanks,
kathy

Mark Chisholm · Feb 12, 2005

Kathy, that's a tough call for me. I have both and like them both. I really don't have a favorite. I try them both from time to time and no real difference. I can't be sure but I don't think I gaff out as much in T2s.

Anyone else?

stevebullman · Feb 12, 2005

i'll let you know next week, my carbon geckos should be here by then

Cliff_Towle · Feb 12, 2005

i bought the geckos II last fall & wouldn't have any other climbers. very light-weight, easy to cinch up super tight, hardly notice they're on. definite good choice.

TreeDr · Feb 12, 2005

Back in the day.... I used aluminum Bashlins with Buckingham velcros by choice. Never favored the Kleins.

But that was back when 3 guys and a bull rope could take down any tree.

Kathy_Holzer · Feb 12, 2005

thanks for the feedback guys. i'm wondering what the bruise/chafe level is like on the shins. can't seem to get my gaffs to be slip-less around my skinny calves. it helps to wear socks w/ the feet cut off pulled up high (cheap padding) but after a full day in 'em i tend to have a bruise or a little roadrash thang.

mark, you mean the geckos slip less on slippy bark? or are more aggressive on really hard dead wood (madrona here, maybe oak there)?

steve, yeah, let me know what you think.

cliff, cool. i was hoping to get that reaction from someone. what do you think of that angle on the actual spike? looks really different than what i'm used to - ever step on your other foot with them or anything?

keep it coming!
thanks,
k.

Mark Chisholm · Feb 13, 2005

Kathy,

If anything, I gaff out (slip) a bit more in Geckos. Don't know why? Maybe angle?

Why don't you try to put some padding (like karate pads) under the gaffs?

Greg · Feb 13, 2005

I have the gecko II's and like them. I think you'd really be happy with how snug you can get them and they don't wander around much. My old spikes with the Plain jane leather pads used to chaff the heck out of my calves, but not at all with the geckos. The angle of the spike makes you climb a little differently than the standard style, takes a little getting used to. I am a person who likes change and trying new things, if you are the type of person who likes to keep things the same go with the T2's, the geckos are different and require some adjustment on your part.
Greg

Kathy_Holzer · Feb 13, 2005

mark,
ok, got it. sounds like the geckos are less aggressive in the bite they take, or require more stomping to set well (and therefore more jerking to pullout?). as for pads, never tried that. seems like it would get pretty bulky. maybe i'll try that, though the sock trick usually does ok.
thanks,
k.

Mahk_Adams · Feb 13, 2005

Kathy;

To eliminate the chafing you could replace the 'super wrap monster Velcro pads' with either the Bashlin 'Steel Shin Cup Pad' (available from Sherrill)or the 'Aluminum Leg Pads' (available from Bailey's). Either one will hold the top pad in place so that it doesn't move around on your calf. If you do try one of these you will have to make sure that they are compatible with whatever shanks (aluminum or Titanium) you purchase.

It looks like the top pad of the Geckos would also stay in place, but I'm not sure. I tried a pair of Geckos a couple of years ago and one of the screws that holds one of the gaffs either broke or came out, causing the gaff to rotate around the remaining screw. I remember my leg slipping out from under me, but I don't remember how they felt before that happened. They were a demo pair so I just returned them and haven't tried the Gecko II's yet.

Mahk

Oxman · Feb 14, 2005

Back in the Euc days of the 80's, a half blind climber with coke-bottle lenses named Kenny had his own solution to the shin barking that comes from from standing in spurs all day. We were doing a palm skinning contract for the City of San Bernardino, California.

Palm skinning is all knife work, using a hook bladed carpet knife in each hand to slice away the dried leaf bract from the stem. This results in the trunk looking clean as a whistle. We had about 525 palms in the street right-of-way, and a few in the parks. Some of these Mexican Fan Palms had over 20 feet of skirt to be skinned, which involves hours of standing relatively motionless in the hooks. A 12" mill bastard file is kept handy in the upper spur strap of the right leg to resharpen the blades frequently.

There were six climbers on our crew, and we would leapfrog down the street. Kenny couldn't see beans, even with his glasses on. Since the next tree was frequently 2 or 3 blocks away, he couldn't see it, and would wait for a ride.

As a sick joke, one of the climbers driving to his next tree in a pickup truck raced up to Kenny just after he had come out of a palm & taken off his spurs. He slammed on the brakes in time to stop before hitting Kenny, but not without running over one of his spurs that was lying on the ground.

We were sitting in the coffee shop on the main drag, and coincidentally, I noticed a classified ad for a pair of used spurs in the newspaper. I called and found they were Klein spurs, and were being offered by the caretaker of the Hotel California, which was right across the street. The glory days of the Eagles hit song were long gone and the place was closed up, awaiting funding to be turned into a retirement home.

I went over and met the old gentleman, who had used the climbing gear to trim the fronds from the double row of Coco Palms lining the front walkway. He took me inside the dusty, dark expanse of the lobby, up the spooky curved stairway, and to a former suite that was converted into a storage room. I inspected the spurs, and reported back to Kenny at our motel.

The pads were always a weak point, so Kenny came up with his own unique solution. He took the pink, u-shaped bathroom rug from in front of the toilet, and cut it into two pieces. Each carpet half was l-shaped, and he duct taped them onto his new spurs as supplemental padding. It seemed to work pretty well.

I'm not necessarily recommending this as a universal improvement to Gecko's, or any other type of spurs. If you do decide to try it during the break-in period, perhaps new carpet would be better than what is currently found in the bathroom.

By the way, the Hotel California never reopened. It was dozed, and the land is now part of the downtown park. Another historic buiding was saved, and incorporated into the park's community center as part of the heritage of this Franciscan Mission town. Kenny got contact lenses, and retired to Mexico to become a preacher.