Difference between revisions of "AY Honors/Rock Climbing/Answer Key"

Revision as of 18:07, 5 November 2007

This article is about the rock climbing tool. There is a pair of mountains known as the Piton Mountains.

In climbing, a piton (pronounced Pee'-ton, also called a pin or peg) is a steel spike that is driven into a crack or seam in the rock with a hammer, and which acts as an anchor to protect the climber against the consequences of a fall, or to assist progress in aid climbing.

Pitons were the original equipment for protection and are still used where there is no alternative. However, the repeated hammering and extraction of pitons damages the rock, and climbers who subscribe to the ethic of clean climbing eschew their use as far as possible. Today, pitons have largely been replaced by nuts and cams, although they are often still found in place on some established climbing routes.

There are many different styles of pitons available. The most common are:

Lost Arrows - A tapered piton that performs well in medium sized seams.
Knifeblades - Also known as Bugaboos, a thin straight piton, perfect for thin, deep seams.
Angles - Made of steel sheet bent to a 90 degree angle; perfect for larger seams and cracks, where the steel actually deforms as the piton is placed.
RURPs - Short for Realized Ultimate Reality Piton, this small piton (size of a postage stamp) is useful for thin, shallow seams. It is not a strong piece, and is mainly used for aid climbing, although it can feature as protection on extreme free routes (e.g. Rurp The Wild Berserk (E6 6b) at The Brand, Leicestershire, UK.
Bongs - A very large piton, used in large cracks. Largely made obsolete by the SLCD.

References

"The Brand, Leicestershire, UK".

fr:Piton it:Chiodo da roccia pl:Hak (wspinaczka)

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-{{otheruses|Nut (disambiguation)}}
+:''This article is about the rock climbing tool. There is a pair of mountains known as the [[Pitons|Piton Mountains]].''
-[[Image:7nuts_and_tool_on_carabiner.jpeg|thumb|300px|A selection of nuts and a nut removal tool.]]
-In [[rock climbing]], a '''nut''' (or ''chock'' or ''chockstone'') is a metal wedge threaded on a wire, used for [[protection (climbing)|protection]] by wedging it into a crack in the rock. Nuts come in a variety of sizes and styles, and several different brands are made by competing manufacturers.  Most nuts are made out of [[aluminum]].  Larger nuts may be threaded on [[Dyneema]] cord instead of wire, but this has become unusual.  Nuts are related to, but not interchangeable with, [[Hexcentric]]s.
+In [[climbing]], a '''piton''' (pronounced Pee'-ton, also called a ''pin'' or ''peg'') is a steel spike that is driven into a crack or seam in the rock with a hammer, and which acts as an anchor to [[protection (climbing)|protect]] the climber against the consequences of a fall, or to assist progress in [[aid climbing]].
-The very smallest nuts are known as ''micronuts'' and may be made of [[brass]] or other metal.  They typically have their wires [[solder]]ed into them, instead of looped through drilled holes in the nut.  They are most commonly used in [[aid climbing]], and their value as protection (ie arresting a climbers' fall) is generally considered marginal due to their relatively low breaking strength, and the tiny amount of surface area (the HB 0 measures about 4 x 7 x 2.5 mm) in contact with the rock, though this may be offset somewhat by placing several of these nuts at a time if possible.  Other names used include ''RPs'' (the brand name of the first commercially available micronuts) and ''brassies''. They are available from several manufacturers in a variety of styles.
+Pitons were the original equipment for [[protection (climbing)|protection]] and are still used where there is no alternative. However, the repeated hammering and extraction of pitons damages the rock, and climbers who subscribe to the ethic of [[clean climbing]] eschew their use as far as possible.  Today, pitons have largely been replaced by [[nut (climbing)|nuts]] and [[Spring_loaded_camming_device|cams]], although they are often still found in place on some established climbing routes.
-[[United Kingdom|British]] climbers in the [[1950s]] were the first to use nuts as climbing protection.  Too poor to afford [[piton]]s, they picked up old machine nuts from along the side of railway tracks, climbed with them in their pockets, and used them as artificial chocks.
+There are many different styles of pitons available. The most common are:
-In [[1972]], when [[clean climbing]] was becoming an issue in the [[United States]], [[Yvon Chouinard]] began manufacturing chocks made specifically for rock climbing, with the familiar wedge shape still in use today.  Climbers like [[Henry Barber (rock climber)|Henry Barber]] and [[John Stannard]] helped popularize their use, especially after it was discovered that a nut was lighter and generally easier to place while climbing, as well as being at least, if not more, secure than a well placed piton.
+[[Lost Arrow]]s - A tapered piton that performs well in medium sized seams.<BR>
+[[Knifeblade]]s - Also known as Bugaboos, a thin straight piton, perfect for thin, deep seams.<BR>
+Angles - Made of steel sheet bent to a 90 degree angle; perfect for larger seams and cracks, where the steel actually deforms as the piton is placed.<BR>
+[[RURP]]s - Short for Realized Ultimate Reality Piton, this small piton (size of a postage stamp) is useful for thin, shallow seams. It is not a strong piece, and is mainly used for [[aid climbing]], although it can feature as protection on extreme free routes (e.g. Rurp The Wild Berserk (E6 6b) at The Brand, Leicestershire, UK.<BR>
+Bongs - A very large piton, used in large cracks. Largely made obsolete by the [[SLCD]].<BR>
-Nuts may be generically referred to as ''wires'' or ''stoppers''.  Stopper is a brand name of nut made by Black Diamond Equipment Ltd.
+==References==
+* [http://www.leicesterclimbs.f9.co.uk/ThebrandR.htm "The Brand, Leicestershire, UK"].
-[[Category:Climbing equipment|Nut]]
+[[Category:Climbing equipment]]
-[[de:Klemmkeil]]
+[[fr:Piton]]
-[[fr:Bicoin]]
+[[it:Chiodo da roccia]]
-[[it:Nut (alpinismo)]]
+[[pl:Hak (wspinaczka)]]
-[[pl:Kostka (wspinaczka)]]
-[[pt:Nuts]]
-[[ru:Закладка (альпинизм)]]