Questions about this item:
Cat G Does this come with the "alpine stopper" mentioned in the reviews?
DOUGLAS P I'm not quite sure what the "alpine stopper" is. Honestly, I really haven't used my trail crampons much. They have a moderate sized spike so that unless you're on glaciers you may find those long spikes trip you up (at least until you get the footing). I ended up with a pair of MICROspikes, and I would urge you to weigh your intended use and consider them (or the Hillsound equivalent). They provide nearly as much traction, don't snag and trip you up, can be folded and stuffed in small pack spaces, and are generally less lethal than full crampons. Also, here in northern New England, the last couple of winters have been low snow. With the MICROspikes, I have no issues with walking on bare ground (or rock) between icy sections. I'm not sure I'd do that with crampons. Good luck on your choice!
JERRY T Yes, the crampons come with the alpine stoppers. The Hillsound Trail Pro's work great. Several friends traded in other models for these.
JEAN R Yes, the Hillsound Trail PRO does come with the "alpine stoppers." I've not used the "alpine stoppers" as I've not had to wear the Hillsound crampons in deep snow conditions.
PAUL P Yes! It does come with apline stoppers. My friend and I both bought this product (Hillsound Trail Crampon PRO) for climbing on Mt Washington and he did not bring his alpine stoppers. He regretted it. He was still able to use his crampons but had to adjust his a few times. The strap on my set actually failed on Tuckers Ravine but they fit so well (size 13), I was able to use them on the decent without any difference in preformance! The strap cracked where it's rivited to the crampon but upon inspection looked like a defect and not caused by damage. Sunny Sports replaced them A.S.A.P and I have used them without problems! AS THE DISCLAIMER SAYS NOT FOR VERTICAL ICE CLIMBING! Used as it's intended and ror the price, I recomend buying this product! I also recomend buying thru Sunny Sports! They stand by their product and customers!
JOHN M These crampons work great & so easy to put on & take off. By alpine stopper if you mean the ball on the bottom that stops wet snow from sticking to the bottoms,
Yes they do have them. I would recommend them 100%.
ROBERT R Yes. It is included with the crampon.
RENE A Not sure what is the alpine stopper. It come with a system to block the position. It's a red plastic stopper.
The are really good : Easy to use, light, and low metal grip so it's easier to walk with.
BARRY D Yes the do come with the Red stopper as averted!
BOB P Yes, my crampons arrived with "alpine stoppers". They work great, too...but they'd be easy to lose.
Shopper How well did it work? Were you happy with it?
TRACEY W Actually most of the gear that is ordered is from me(Rick.) I am Tracey's husband and I have been doing this kinda stuff for around 30yrs(long distance backpacking, playing on mountains, etc.)
Sorry about the late response. For some reason this went into my spam inbox.
Anywho, onto the TC Pros.
I own 2 pairs(reg & XL being I wear a 12/46 boot) of them and I am very satisfied with them. The points are not as long as my full on mountaineering crampons. They work very well for their intended purpose.
Another plus is being they are steel the rocks won't eat them up as quickly as they do with Aluminum.
Hillsound CS is very helpful and there if you need them.
If you need this type of product for the price they are very hard to beat. The only other product that I believe to be comparable on the market at the moment is the Kahtoola KTS which is more expensive.
I am going to snag up a pair of the KTS Steels eventually and do a side by side on Trailspace.
If you have any more questions please feel free to fire away.
Happy hiking-Rick
JEFFREY G These are great - much better than mirco-spikes, reasonable cost v. crampons, fit light hiking boots easily
ED C This crampon worked great for my son; I imagine it would have worked well for my leather backpacking boots, as well. My son used these on his sorels; I adjusted them on the trail. EASY TO USE!!! Sunny Sports price on these made it a no-brainer to buy (they're not paying me). We hiked a 4000'er in the white mountains, and these things were great. They did everything my mountaineering boot/crampon combo did. I imagine they have their limitations, as Hillsound openly admits; NOT a technical/ ice climbing crampon. If you have a lot of kicking in to do, maybe not. For climbing fairly steep mountains with ice/snow, excellent. Beats micro-spikes; I also bought the 'Trail Crampon'. We switched to the 'Pro' on the trail, and the traction was much better. Hope this helps.
DOUGLAS P Hi: They definitely work however please be aware they are "crampons" and have teeth to match. I would be careful about using them where there isn't a good covering of ice and snow. Here in New England, we've had the mildest winter I've ever seen. Except at altitude, there has been precious little snow (bike riding all winter, in fact). I actually ended up getting a pair of microspikes for all those thinly covered-in-ice trails. I was worried the microspikes, with their elastic straps, would roll off on steep terrain. This proved not to be the case. In retrospect, I think the microspikes are more adaptable: they'll work on icy trails near home as well as at altitude. The trail crampons really need a good glacier to be effective. Realistically consider how you'll use your traction device. On the top of Mt. Washington the trail crampons are definitely the choice. On the approach to Mt. Washington, microspikes would be a whole bunch easier to use. Or like me, buy both!
JERRY T Wore the Hillsound Trail Pro crampons on a trip to Mt Adams, NH via the Lowes Path over President's Day weekend. Trail was ice and snow covered most of the way. Crampons worked GREAT. Never felt unsure of footing. Hillsound Trail Pro crampons worked as well as hiking partners name brands. Great piece of equipment. Great value!
JOHN M They worked great. Have used them several time's, from hiking to running.
Hardly knew I had them on. Don't think I'd use them on steep pitch's, but on
Flat or slight inclines they work fine.
JIM M Easy on & off, just set the length to your boot at home. Worked well in mixed conditions in the White Mountains on packed trails. Not quite full crampons, but much better traction than microspikes. On my first hike with the trail crampon pro I used them, microspikes, and snowshoes depending on the snow/ice conditions. The trail crampon pros were especially useful coming down the mountain. I'm very happy with the purchase.
RONALD W I purchased these crampons this winter and have used them on several occasions for trails that were extremely icy and slick. I am 100% satisfied with them. When I walk with them over ice it is like having velcro on your feet. They give complete confidence and do not slip at all. They are reasonably light weight and attach to my hiking boots with very little fuss. I would definitely recommend them.
ROBERT R Yes, it worked as intended. If you are in deep snow, make sure you have the alpine stoppers in place otherwise the straps will loosen when snow builds up under the buckle. If you take a look at the review there is more information. I like them better than a microspike. Good Luck!
GREG R its march 13 2012 now, we are still in phoenix az. going to Moab ut for a month then back to Banff AB, for the summer. plan to use them their(i have 4 other pairs), this is the first LIGHT/fit any boot pair i have owned, i have front bail and rear bail models , but none for ligther boots(full boots, but no rear lock in slot), so when i do minor , maybe ice routs, i have had to carry bigger crampons, and wear heavy weight boots. ugh, so that is why i got these, but did not try them yet, i do not think they are for hard core mtns, but they look like they will work for the light wook i want them for.. (i am a ice climber and a mountaineer, as well as a scrambler, hiker and canyoneer), sorry i can not help more, i have a house in Canmore ab(for last 6 years) and winter in US southwest(in a RV)
THOMAS M simple to adjust. used over NEOS boots to climb Big Slide Mt in Adirondacks. Grabbed into icy spots with no slipping and snow did not ball underneath. spikes are smaller than standard crampons but did perfectly for trail hiking.
THOMAS S Easy to set up. Work very well. Only issue is when using a "softer" boot, especially in the toe-box they did cause some irritation. Had to loosen a bit but could feel the straps. Nice overall idea though as an alternative to microspikes.
Jay B Will these fit on a Merrel Thermo 6 size 15 boot? I presume XL... but some only go to 12 or 14... Thanks in advance
DOUGLAS P Jay B:
I use my standard size Hillsound Trail Crampon PRO on my size 11 Cabelas All-Leather Mountain Hikers (similar to Bean's Cresta Hikers). Note these are a rather substantial boot, not glorified sneakers. There remains just a small amount of length adjustment, so Hillsounds claim of up to size 12 for these rings true. Hillsound claims their XL model can fit up to size 15. Based on my standard size experience, I would trust them on it.
Be aware, of course, these are not technical crampons. My intention is to be secure crossing rime covered feldsimeer, for which they seem quite adequate. No ice walls, thank you very much!
Jay B Thanks Doug... My interests also do not include ice climbing... yet!
Know thy limits and live to hike another day!
Cheers!
ROBERT R The Hillsound website says the XL goes to 15 (this program for answering questions won't allow me to enter a url)
www (dot) hillsound (dot) com
I wear an 11 and 1/2 and I bought the xlarge. There seems to be plenty more adjustability left in the bar.
Shopper I have size 11 boots. What size of Hillsound Trail Pro Crampons do I need- Regular or large?
JEFFREY G I have two pairs of these - they are that good..
I purchased the regular first and they fully adjust up to size 12 hiking boots. When I hike with my wife she adjusts them down to a size 8 hiking boot.
I have a pair of large and they adjust down to the size 12 hiking boot, and up to fit my size 12 sorel winter boot..
Zack W The Regular corresponds with size 12 for men. Enjoy it! Zack.
Shopper How to choose size to fit my hiking boot?
CHUN YUN C There is size specification on Hillsound's official website.
PAVIC N I will select the hiking boot half size large than city shoes.
Hillsound's Trail CramponPRO is a proven winter traction device for snow and ice traveling over diverse terrain and in severe weather conditions. The integral design of the Pro version has taken the known benefits of traditional ice crampons and combined those elements with an ease of use and flexible mobility to surpass the comfort of conventional crampons. Although it resembles the shape of ice climbing crampons, this Pro version is designed for walking and hiking under extreme winter conditions, not for technical ice climbing. Made from heat-treat S50C carbon steel, the 10-point Trail Crampon PRO weighs only 680g per pair, making it ideal for glacial travel and icy or snowy approaches. Utilizing simple ratchet buckle bindings, these crampons can be fastened to most footwear effortlessly. The X-shaped polycarbonate harness system minimizes pressure points often found in many conventional crampons.
- Plate Material: Heat-treated S50C Carbon steel
- Weight/pair: 668g(R) 704g(XL)
- Size: Regular (up to M's US 12)/XLarge (M's US 12 to 15)
- Tensile Strength: 1,383N
- Compresive Strength: 18,120N
- Rockwell Hardness: 45HRC
- 1-year guarantee
- Under License US D544940 - EC 203609-01
| Weight [with packaging] | Regular: 1.85 lb, X-Large: 1.9 lb |
2/1/2012 4.0Great universal crampon By tomS from alstead, NH About Me Environmentalist - Comfortable
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
- Easy to Use
- Good Design
- Lightweight
- Backcountry
- Climbing
- Day Trips
- Great gen winter crampon
- What Is Your Gear Style:
- Comfort Driven
- Was this a gift?:
- No
1/15/2012 (5 of 5 customers found this review helpful) - Alpine Stopper
- Anti-balling plates
- Compact
- Durable
- Easy to Use
- Good Design
- Lightweight
- Needs an allen wrench
- Rachet buckles
- Backcountry
- Backpacking
- Condensed snowpack
- Day Trips
- Hiking
- Ice conditions
- Ice or snow covered trail
- Winter travel
- What Is Your Gear Style:
- Comfort Driven
- Was this a gift?:
- No
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