How to - $5 Rock Climbing Holds!

Have you ever wanted your own bouldering gym? Ever look into buying all of the holds!? Yeah, that can get pricey. We have completed our 3 part series on making your own inexpensive rock climbing holds. They look and feel like the professional ones at a fraction of the cost. We estimate that each hold uses $5 or less in material cost to make! That's awesome. Plus you get to make your own creations. Whatever design, size, or color, you can think of- it's yours. Check out our hold page to see our creations using this technique.

After searching the internet for how-to's and tips on making our own holds, we were left with bits and pieces of the process. We were determined to figure it out anyways. After trial and error, we learned the process and are  now successfully climbing on our own holds. We have decided to share our knowledge in one centralized location. With any luck, you can recreate our process and can soon be climbing on your own holds. Don't let the process scare you, it's really not very difficult.

We hope you enjoy and have great success with creating your own holds. If you do make some, please share with us pictures and stories of your adventure. If you have any tips or tricks from making your own holds, share those too. We're no experts and would love to learn anything that makes the process cheaper, easier, or generally better.

Start with Part 1 where you make a foam hold
Then create your silicone mold in Part 2
Finish by casting a resin hold in Part 3
(or you could always try the parts in reverse... I doubt it would work though...)

-Jonathan, Phil, Cameron

Homemade Rock Climbing Holds Part 3- Casting Resin Holds

Starting supplies for casting a hold

We're so close! 

It's time to begin the final stages of creating a homemade climbing hold. In the photo above, you can see the supplies you'll need (minus the sand). You can find the fiberglass resin at any hardware store. It is a liquid that when mixed with the fixer (included with the resin) hardens. It is typically used in boat or car body repair in layers on top of fiberglass sheets. The can above cost us 36 dollars and cast about 30 holds. Of course your mileage will differ based on the size of your holds.

Next to the resin we have acrylic paint. This is one method of adding color to the holds. Another way is by using dyed sand.

Adding about a teaspoon of acrylic paint will give you some pretty good color. We have found that different colors have different drying times. So when using mixed colors- better just leave it to set for extra long to be safe.

 

For a more vibrant color, you can use dyed sand. This is usually finer and we like the finish of these holds better. It is more costly. A bag of colored sand (found at a hobby store) will be about 5 bucks for a pound. The other fine silica sand we have used on the majority of our holds was 6 bucks for 80 pounds. We have not been able to find white fine grade silica sand locally. This is used in pool filtration systems and may be the best option.

We have also had success adding glitter to make "fancy" holds. Pretty!

Which ever sand you are using get about 2.5oz in a 5oz Dixie cup. You can measure how much sand a hold will need by filling the mold with sand and then pouring it into the cups. If you follow this method you will end up with a little too much (because of the added volume of resin). You can sort of cheat the amount down maybe 20%. None of this is an exact science, so don't sweat over the measurements. We typically have extra small foot holds that we use any left over mixture in so we don't waste it. Hopefully our pictures will help.

Now you can add the resin into the cup. We try to add 50:50 sand and resin. We use the artwork on the cups as measurements to stay consistent from cup to cup. 

Note: the sand is actually not giving the hold its texture. It is merely a filler for the resin.This saves on the cost of resin and can give color if dyed.

How to - Climbing Photography

I came across this video last night despite it being two years old. I have always had a fascination with photography and especially extreme sports photography. Seeing someone skiing backwards down a half pipe during the X Games with a camera strapped to their hand is extreme in its own right.

This video provides a little insight into how a photographer sets up and shoots on a big wall climb. The rigging, the preparation, and the equipment, certainly seems more complex and difficult than that of the actual climber! For once I'm glad the camera was turned around, so we have a glimpse into the work that goes into these amazing climbing videos. If you would like to see the result of the photographer's (Simon Carter) work, see the video below.

I myself enjoy photography, and plan to write about some amateur photo DIY projects in the future. However, I can assure you they won't be half as extreme as this. Let us know in the comments if you have any experience shooting good climbing photography. Have you tried using a GoPro or Contour camera? What about photography would you like to learn more about?

-Jonathan

I don't take any credit for either video. Check out nikonaustralia on YouTube for more.

Homemade Rock Climbing Holds Part 2- Creating the Silicone Mold

A completed tub of silicone climbing hold molds

Now to create a silicone mold out of your foam hold.

Note: Some terminology I may use:

-your foam mold is considered a "positive" which will be used to make a "negative"

-a "flange" refers to the excess silicone that comes around the base of the mold

You will need to secure your foam mold onto some foam board. This foam board can be found at any craft store or super center for about 3 bucks a sheet. Cut a section of foam board that is at least 1/2" larger on all sides than your foam mold. This will leave enough room for a suitable flange. 

To secure the foam hold to the foam board, you can use a few different methods. One way is by punching toothpicks through both the foam board and foam hold. Or, you could use glue to secure the hold. We have found that a combination of toothpicks and glue gives a solid bond that won't come apart as you are applying silicone.

The stickers were an attempt to create a raised spot with no texture on the finished hold

It worked. Now we need to find dinosaur stickers!

After you have secured the foam holds to the foam board, you are ready to begin mixing your silicone.


Remember in part 1 where we said to wear a respirator and gloves? Yeah still do that...

See more after the jump...

Homemade Rock Climbing Holds Part 1- Shaping the foam

Above: All items necessary to make silicone climbing hold molds

Lets begin!

Wait! A caution before we begin: Molding a hold can be very messy and rewarding. The foam is very nasty and wants to be in your lungs. Wear a respirator or at least a mask to keep from breathing it. Eye protection is also encouraged cause it is quite a trick to get foam particles out of your eye.

Okay lets begin! After purchasing all of the items in the above picture, find yourself a well ventilated room or work outside through the whole process if possible.

Start with a foam block. The ones we are able to get at Michael's come in roughly 9" x 4" x 3" blocks. A pack of 6 will cost you $4.50 and you can find various quantities at Walmart or any craft store.

Note: You are looking for "Dry Foam" meant for artificial flowers, not "Wet Foam" meant for real flowers. There are various textures of foam (white tends to be rougher). We prefer the green shown above because it gives a nice finished texture without being painful. It also gives the closest feel to professional holds.

If you would like to make a hold that is larger than a single block, there are various spray adhesives you can buy to stick multiple blocks together. We have used Elmer's Spray Adhesive with some pretty good success. An 11oz bottle will cost about $6 at Walmart or any craft store.

Fair warning: the seams may leave lines in your finished hold.

Tools! Because we have an art teacher among us, we used many tools meant for molding clay. They worked awesomely for creating textures, smoothing lines and the like. DO NOT feel like you need to go buy a bunch of specialty tools to cut and shape the foam. Look around you, I'm sure whatever you have within arms reach will work just fine. A paper clip, a pen, a pocket knife, a guitar pick, your finger will work just fine.

Now's the fun part. Just start cutting. If you have a shape in mind, or if you're going to decide as you go, just begin. Think of holds you have used in a gym, or features you've enjoyed on real rock and mimic those shapes. I have enjoyed making holds that mimic body parts: a tongue, a hand, a toe, teeth.

General rules: Any given piece of the foam should be about 1/4" thick for strength. Your back edges (the ones that are up against the wall) should be pretty sharp. Leave a solid flat back to the hold so it has a good amount of surface area in contact with the wall. Make sure you leave enough space for a bolt and washer, or for screws to mount your hold. Negative space (like you would have with a pocket hold) is fine and should mold with little issue.

See more after the jump...

The Homegrown Beta

When we first began, out backyard gym was nothing more than an old woodworking shed and some excess plywood from an eagle scout project. As we began to build, we decided to invest more time, effort and money to make a more functioning bouldering gym. It will also serve as a proving grounds for our homemade climbing holds. As we worked, we looked online for inspiration and guidance. Through many disjointed articles, videos, and some trail and error, we have built a pretty fun and functioning bouldering wall as well as some surprisingly good homemade holds. Now that we have something to show for our work, we are creating this blog as a place for DIY rock climbers like ourselves to learn from our experience. We plan to walk you through our gym construction, creating your own holds and other related information with enough detail to recreate what we have created. Hopefully this will become a destination for others hoping to learn and share the homegrown approach.

-Jonathan, Phil, and Cameron