This is a very light axe, but that has it's price. I used it for 8 days on a winter mountaineering trip in Scotland. The adze is slightly damaged, although it will take a very long time till it is broken. Little pieces of aluminium come of when you hit rock or other hard things. With a fine file you can make the adze smooth again. On my trip I took a complete bivouac gearkit and food for 5 days. I really didn't want to haul another pound of steel, so this is the best choice for trips where weight is the demanding factor.

Customer Service

They do not mail when you ask them. Or only after a very long time

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Ive owned my Nepal light for two years now and have found no major faults with it. It is a fantasticly light axe to be used by beginners and professionals. The rubber grip provides oodles of grip in wet gloves. I dont know if I like the welded adze though. Give it a try for yourself.

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Black Diamond, Stubai and Charlet Moser

Me and a friend purchased the Nepal Light several weeks ago and tried them during a week of spring climbs and skiing at Williams Peak, Thompson Peak and Mount Carter in the Idaho Sawtooth. The Nepal Light worked flawlesly, its lightweight was a blessing, never a thought about leaving it behind to save weight. We chopped footsteps and climbed in mixed snow and rock, without any damage to the axes, ..., well some scratches here and there ...

This well designed tool have its place in a ski-mountaneering pack, where it will be used generally in mornings climbs during the spring or some occasional winter climbs. But if I were getting into serious and frequent climbing I would rather have the Grivel forged steel axe.

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The Nepal Light is a good ice axe, but was almost too light for the liking. I prefer to have just a little more weight in the axe for general mountaineering. Plus, I would prefer an axe that will last for years standing up to the punishment of countless self arrests and banging into rocks beneath the snow.

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Other ice axes by Grivel that aren't as expensive, though a little heavier, are the noraml Nepal. For the price, I'd prefer this axe.