grayrock
Sep 25, 2004, 8:59 PM
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Registered: Jun 1, 2004
Posts: 46
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Thanks to this forum and web sites like:
http://www.atomikclimbingholds.com/
http://www.metoliusclimbing.com/How%20to%20Build%20a%20Home%20Bouldering%20Wall.pdf
http://www.indoorclimbing.com/climbing_walls.html
I was able to finely settle on a design and avoided what may have been mistakes.
http://www.rockclimbing.com/...tPhoto&PhotoID=40588
I settled on 3 panels; one adjustable and 2 vertical. The adjustable section is 8’X8’ with a 3’ vertical section below. The wall will lay out flat at 90 degrees horizontal.
http://www.rockclimbing.com/...tPhoto&PhotoID=40584
It is all 2X6 construction with ¾” plywood. I made a 5.5” grid and then chose every other intersection as a place for a T-nut; then staggering the selection on each successive row. I didn’t drill a hole exactly at the intersection but randomly offset the point and drilled the hole. A 5.5” grid and selecting every other one will give approximately 72 holes per 4’X8’ panel. Then when I looked at the hole pattern I saw some blank lanes so I just added a few more holes and ended up with 90 – 100 holes per sheet. The panel next to the adjustable section is 4’X11’. The 3rd panel is 5’ X 11’ with an adjustable crack. The crack is 2 2X10s. The wood panel to the right of the crack is mainly for footholds so when my feet get sore, I can still climb crack by placing my feet on the outside of the crack on the foot holds. That was just one of the many great suggestions I got from Kenny Matys of http://www.atomikclimbingholds.com/.
The other part of the crack panel is a crimp system wall.
http://www.rockclimbing.com/...tPhoto&PhotoID=40587
I found a rock that was bluish-gray and it has a white quartz seem in it. I tried to simulate that with the paint I chose (water based acrylic), but I was way off (too light compared to the rock) with the color. The adjustable panel has 70 grit sand sprinkled on it before it dried. The next section has 30 grit (what Home Depot calls fine grit – but it’s course) and the 3rd panel has no sand at all. There is no sand in the crack.
There were so many differing opinions on whether to use sand or not, I had to find out for myself. There is more black rubber marks on the no-sand wall than the others. That doesn’t mean that my footwork was better on the sandy walls than the crimp wall, it just means that with sand it tends to come off a bit and then doesn’t leave any marks.
My current opinion (which could change with time) is that I am loosing just as much rubber on the plain wall as the sandy walls. If you were using the sand idea as a bad idea (a con) because it wears your shoes out faster, I think you can throw that one out. I also like how sand tends to keep the holds from spinning; they grip better. So far, I like the sand. You can see the streaks in the paint where while the paint was drying, I just got a good hand full of sand and began waving my hand over the panel.
I like the corner too. It allows me to practice stemming and lay backing.
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