Spurs unified with boot

moss

moss

Been here much more than a while
Location
Carlisle, Massachusetts, U.S.
I retired a beat up pair of Asolos and decided they still had a life. I attached a pair of spurs directly to the boots with heavy duct tape. Did a take-down today and they worked great, very comfortable. The attachment is super solid, everything held up nice.

A few details required to make it work, I wanted the laces fully functional so I flipped the tape sticky side up and placed it over the laces down to the toe, then wrapped the tape over that. Before wrapping the tape I stuffed the shoes hard with crumpled paper so the fit wouldn't be changed. A tight squeeze to get them on but the fit is perfect and very comfortable on the tree.

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-AJ
 
Looks legit with the black duct tape. Maybe try it with a pair of those old pumps. No messin with laces, just slid your foot in and pump em up. Joking aside I would imagine they performed pretty good for you. Maybe you should look into patenting a shoe that locks into the stirups like a bicyclists lock into pedals.
 
tc262 said:
Looks legit with the black duct tape. Maybe try it with a pair of those old pumps. No messin with laces, just slid your foot in and pump em up. Joking aside I would imagine they performed pretty good for you. Maybe you should look into patenting a shoe that locks into the stirups like a bicyclists lock into pedals.
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It's occurred to me that one of the reasons spurs suck is how tight you have to crank the footstrap to keep them on your boot right. The other thing I don't like is putting them on in a tree, don't have to do it much but when I do... *&!#$%!! So this was an experiment to test unifying the spur and boot. I used Gorilla tape which is more robust than the the standard stuff. I imagine the ideal product would be like a plastic roller blade boot with the spur integrated. The spur would bolt on to the boot so you could mix and match shoes sizes, replace the spike etc. I don't have 3 grand to spend to start a patent, have at it ;-)
-AJ
 
moss said:
Short vid of the first use of the DuctSpurs, dead white ash removal
-AJ
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I want to say "go home; you're drunk." But I actually feel that this is a natural progression from shoes and then spurs with a low strap.

Someone please make a plug and play version of this. I don't like climbing in duct taped boots. Feels weird.
 
SomethingWitty said:
I want to say "go home; you're drunk." But I actually feel that this is a natural progression from shoes and then spurs with a low strap.

Someone please make a plug and play version of this. I don't like climbing in duct taped boots. Feels weird.
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It's all in your mind, feels great and it only cost two rolls of duct tape and a half hour fabrication. The strength of laminated materials is impressive.

The point of this is to prove a concept, duct tape is an excellent prototyping material when used smartly, not drunkenly. Ok who wants to take this to the next level?
-AJ
 
Nice thinking around the issue of pressure points and cool proof of concept.

Check out www.bontcycling.com for carbon shoe inspiration. I have a pair of these and they are amazingly stiff (historically that meant uncomfortable) and comfortable.

Also
for a pro cyclist making his own carbon shoes.

I can see how some type to connection to a boot would take spurs to the next level. Like the cycling pedals and their cleats, a click in to the boot would be awesome.

Love these ideas even though I don't use spurs.
 
If you are really serious about a total custom fit try this.
Make a mold of your foot and leg with shoes on. It will be a two step process, plaster can work. Once you have the mold of your leg, fiber glass the gaff on. When it is sufficiently strong cut it in half's, remove from the mold and hinge the bottom and a couple of over center type locks up the leg.
You'll rock in those and impress every customer. I'm sure you do anyway.
PS, if you want you could embed one of my new SAKA knee ascenders, just the ascender, it even has a threaded mounting hole which my be useful.
 
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moss said:
It's occurred to me that one of the reasons spurs suck is how tight you have to crank the footstrap to keep them on your boot right.
Click to expand...
Hi moss. I think that is a very neat way to approach this problem your having, extending the life of the boot for your purpose. I think that this may be a problem that could be mitigated by choosing a boot more properly setup for spur work.These boots you've wrapped are the asolo nuetrons? My friend loves those for pruning and occasionally short term spur work. I also wear an asolo boot at this time for work on gaffs the model is pumori.The heel isn't too tall as the boots are not heavy as a "linesman" style boot ,which in my opinion for how I climb are too bulky for me. This way I can still due work in them without spurs in comfort with better finesse. I chose this particular boot due to the heel that keeps the stirup in place well so as I don't need to crank down the straps to an uncomfortable feel. Just enough to keep movement minimised,yet non restrictive to movement of my foot. I run the Buckingham shank with caddilac pads and nylon straps and they conform to my legs extremely well. A good boot seems as much importance as the spur it's matched with. Again, I'll reiterate cheers to you for your innovative thinking.
 
Treetopflyer said:
Hi moss. I think that is a very neat way to approach this problem your having, extending the life of the boot for your purpose. I think that this may be a problem that could be mitigated by choosing a boot more properly setup for spur work.These boots you've wrapped are the asolo nuetrons? My friend loves those for pruning and occasionally short term spur work. I also wear an asolo boot at this time for work on gaffs the model is pumori.The heel isn't too tall as the boots are not heavy as a "linesman" style boot ,which in my opinion for how I climb are too bulky for me. This way I can still due work in them without spurs in comfort with better finesse. I chose this particular boot due to the heel that keeps the stirup in place well so as I don't need to crank down the straps to an uncomfortable feel. Just enough to keep movement minimised,yet non restrictive to movement of my foot. I run the Buckingham shank with caddilac pads and nylon straps and they conform to my legs extremely well. A good boot seems as much importance as the spur it's matched with. Again, I'll reiterate cheers to you for your innovative thinking.
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Yep, that makes tremendous sense, yes it sucks running spurs on a nearly heel-less boot. My boots are on the lighter side, "Asolo Drifter" model with a minimal heel. It's likely I'll never buy a heavier boot for spur work, I'm very far from being a takedown specialist, but when I'm on spurs I want them to work very well. I think what you get from a light boot merged with a spur is a very nimble feel without sacrificing stability and comfort. With the prototype there is a slight forward and backward pivot over the arch/stirrup, the foot mobility I think you're referring to. Thx.

Edit: Dammit why am I doing so many takedowns lately? And... I need to get the Cadillac pads.
-AJ
 
tc262 said:
Maybe you should look into patenting a shoe that locks into the stirups like a bicyclists lock into pedals.
Click to expand...

If you could put the support bar bit that goes under the boot on a clip like you're saying, but make it swivel (perhaps limited to, say, a 15 degree range-of-motion), I think you could have a real winner there. Being able to lift my foot with my toe pointed down could add extra strength to attempts to pull out a stuck gaff, as well as the ability to move around in a tree without gaffing anything in sections not being removed. I have a hard time not messing up the tree with gaffs on if I'm trying to get to one localized section because I can't flex my ankle much...that would be a boon to me, at least. Of course, the proof would be in the pudding, but it sounds good on paper.
 
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