Titian Ice Screw

I found them hard to put in the ice. They seem to NOT want to go in all the way. With the last third the way in sometimes needing two hands. They almost always seem to crack the ice and don't release the ice easily when removed. For a leave behind back up they might be fine. They certainly are very light and are as cheap as they come. If you want some thing cheap to anchor your dog, sled or your ice house these are a great choice unless you don't want to struggle putting it in...

Of course they get five stars for the peice you WANT to leave behind ;)

I did not find this screw that difficult to place, though I used it mainly on plastic ice and have less experience in hard frost conditions. To me the main problem is breaking strength - in particular of the hanger, which must be weakened by the bend. Anyone got info on that?

Agree that the low price makes it good for leaving behind on a retreat. As such it is much better than the cheap stainless steel screww from Camp I used to carry with me - that one was difficult to place.

This review should be viewed in the light that I have only ice climbed two seasons, and hence do not have a life time of experience with the gear.

Updage Feb 2005:
Now have more experience. Still OK to place. Have not fallen on them, and hence cannot say more about strength. However, I have developped the following system: Racking large number of steel screws such as BD is expensive an heavy. Instead I carry 2-3 BDs for first (most important) placement or two and in scary places. I then carry 4-5 titaium for the rest. This saves almost half a kg. (titanium screw is 84 g in 17 cm BD express is 166g).

I think for $13 you won't find a safer or or easier product to use, it's one of the few "recycleable" products mountaineers won't cringe much to have to leave behind. If you are in a pinch and need a way off of a route theres only a few other products that are less expensive to get you off of the climb safe. This product has met a perfect nitch in this industry and I am totally satisfied with the few that I own.