By Sam Shank
Updated 4/2003
I first got the idea for making holds out of concrete from Petro-Grips. Please note that Synrock is NOT concrete. It has a compressive strength of about 30,000psi, and the concrete that I describe can get at best 10-25,000 psi. I ordered 2 sets from them, and was very pleased with the texture, shapes, and durability. So I decided to try to make some of my own holds out of concrete.
I will describe the concrete process in this page, and show you some of my molds and discuss some of my mold making methods. More info on this can be found at other locations.
Concrete is much cheaper than plastic, is easier to work with, and seems to have a nicer feel as well. When your hand touches it, it's cool. It doesn't heat up like plastic, and it has a feel very much like real rock. If your wall is outside, (like in an unheated garage) and you live in a cold climate (like me, in Cleveland, OH) your holds will get COLD in the winter. Very cold. If you plan on climbing on your wall in the winter have enough plastic holds so you can alternate and keep your hands warmer. Or you can just heat your space.
If you have made some holds out of concrete (or even plastic) and would like to trade, email me and we can arrange something. Shipping isn't that cheap (I sent 6 holds from CLE to SFO for about $12) but it's cheaper than buying them, and easier than making your own. I will soon have an updated photo page where you'll see my newer designs and better pics of the holds I have.
About Concrete and Ingredients
About making the holds and pouring the molds
See some photos of my trip to the Rushmore Needles in early July, 2000.
See some photos of my trip to North Carolina, Jan 2001.
PDFs for sheet goods layout (woodworking)
Please NOTE! This is a work in progress and is very rough in the layout right now. If you have suggestions for layout or otherwise, please let me know. I just wanted to get the info out there so people could start using it.
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