Review Date
June 8, 2003

Overall Rating
 1 of 5

Value Rating
 2 of 5

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by: STW(Unregistered User) ,  Climber , from New England, USA

Price Paid:  $175.00 at climbing shop

Summary:
These Switchblade crampons never worked for me. I'm glad they're history. I never felt like I got great sticks with these. The narrow dual points didn't work very well at all in any ice conditions. After a while with these, I switched over to my BD Sabretooths. Even though these are supposed to be more general-purpose/alpine crampons, I found them to climb vertical waterfall ice better than the Switchblades.

To top it all off, they were difficult to fit to my boots.

I dumped the Switchblades for some Trango Harpoons. A huge improvement - especially in the mono point configuration. Now I'm using Grivel Rambocomps. These are the best waterfall ice crampons I've ever experienced.

The Switchblade really is a weak crampon. There are lots of better alternatives on the market. The Mako (which replaced it) was not much of an improvement. However, the latest 'Bionic' crampon from BD looks like they've finally started to get it right.

Customer Service:
no problems

Similar Products Used:
BD Sabretooth. Trango Harpoon. Grivel Rambocomp. Others.

Review Date
December 22, 2001

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Reviewed by: Bill McConachie(Unregistered User) ,  Climber

Price Paid:  $139.00

Summary:
Used almost exclusively in monopoint mode on water ice, mixed, and alpine in Calif, Colo, Alaska, and Canada. Experience about the same amount of snow balling up under my Switchblades as do partners with their Grivel Rambo crampons -- seems like less than my Footfangs or my IceInvaders. Fit is perfect for my boots. The front points on my Fangs were too short and sheared out frequently(!). No such issue with my Switchblades. Metal rusts if it’s been exposed to water, so I dry, sharpen and lightly oil my crampons (wipe them with some WD-40) before putting them away ready for use. For tuning 'em on multiday trips I bring a file, file card, and a small can of WD-40; on multiday climbs just the small file. Haven’t tried any new crampons lately, but the Trango Harpoons and the new Black Diamond Bionic crampons look esp. intriguing.i

Customer Service:
Outstanding

Similar Products Used:
IceInvaders, Footfangs, Chouinard Messer-step-ins, Chouinard rigids, SMC and Salewa flexibles i

Review Date
February 23, 2000

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Reviewed by: Jonathan(Unregistered User) ,  Mountaineer , from Manitoba, Canada

Summary:
They work great and bite the ice really well. They do rust a lot though. The snow balls up on them a fair bit in wet snow conditions so they are better for steep ice rather than glacier travel. If you are doing lots of glacier travel get the plate thing that keeps the snow from sticking.

Review Date
February 23, 2000

Overall Rating
 3 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Reviewed by: Jeff Martin(Unregistered User) ,  Climber , from Pleasant Hill, CA - USA

Summary:
I own 2 pair of Switchblades (1 for me, the other for my girlfriend) and 2 major issues stand out. First, BD should automatically ship them with anti-bot plates. From the moment you step into them, they become quickly packed with snow. A real drag when you're feeling frisky on those summit attempts...Secondly, the "rust" factor is almost immediately apparent. When I opened the box in my local REI store, they were "pre-rusted" (for my convienience I guess...) Simply wire-brushing the rust, then a light coating of Tri-Flow was all that was needed to recover.

Moving beyond the shortcomings, the Switchblades are a stout, sturdy crampon that won't leave you guessing. Infinite adjustability to your shoe size (mine are 13's with plenty of adjustment left over) interchangeable front points (I run duals, while my girlfriend sticks to mono's)and replacement bolts/nuts/parts are "hardware-store" available. No need to special order a simple bolt or nut..

Overall, A good crampon for those of you who want a solid platform to climb sketchy ice, but keep them covered with a silicon/teflon based lube to prevent rust, and get yourself a set of anti-bot plates or you'll feel like a 6 inch-platform-wearing disco king!!

Customer Service:
Black Diamond has a Customer Service line?? Why?? All of their products are top quality..

Review Date
January 28, 2000

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 3 of 5

Reviewed by: Brian Barwatt(Unregistered User) ,  Climber , from Blacksburg, VA

Summary:
I bought these on sale because I read some good reviews about them in Climbing magazine. There a little heavy and rust very fast. They have worked great for me so far, I have done some routes in and around Mt. Washington with them but I have also used the Sabertooths, Rambos and the other basic crampon by Grivel which all performed equally well.