UKH

Hi, I'm trying to order replacement picks for my BD Fuels. It seems to be bloomin difficult to find any BD picks in stock online.

I fancy trying some of the Krukonogi picks to see if I can get some more longevity out of them. I seem to smash through normal picks (probably bad technique!).

Has anyone been able to actually buy anything from the Krukonogi website? I get to the basket page but then there is nothing to click on to progress to checkout. I tried the desktop and mobile sites with no success. I've tried emailing them but not had a response after a few days. 

https://www.krukonogi-titanium.com

Any ideas?

Cheers, Al 

Plenty of options here at a reasonable price. 

https://en.kuzniaszpeju.pl/category/PICK/1/default/1/f_at_13_89/1

+1 for Kuznia stuff.

Isn't Krukonogi unattainable at the moment due to being Russian? 

I have ordered a bunch from them in the past. And indeed their armor-steel is a lot harder than stock BD pics.

The problem you might be facing is likely due to Kruko being based in St. Petersburg, and being cut off from SWIFT due to Ukraine. So in essence you can't pay 'em.

The below linked polish options is a good one though. They ain't as durable as Krukos, but still better than stock BDs... and also cheap. This is what I've mainly used on my Fusions (both models), albeit I still have some Kruko pics that I use from time to time.

Then there's the Bavarian (?) option, Berg Steille or something like that, IIRC their picks were actually the most robust, but so where their prices.

There might be a few more 3rd party pick manufacturers, which I can't now remember...

But the bottom line is, that at least for now, Kuzniaplzeju seems to be the best bang for bucks option.

The bergsport-steinle picks and also frontpoints are absolute jewelery for your gear but the prices are up there as you say. They don't seem to have BD picks available any more - a quick google shows everything out of stock on a sale page and they aren't listed on their website. I asked recently if they would consider doing limited runs of picks for other axes and the answer was a solid no.

On the Kruk picks, I once went to an engineering workshop to try and drill some holes through them to add some petzl pick weights to a pair of Grivels... After about 10min of trying we gave up as no matter how many drill bits we went through it was obvious that it wasn't going to be possible!

I saw Stas Beskin had some new stuff on his instagram from Krukonogi and according to VertiCall in Canada, some of their stuff does get out but I wonder if it needs to be bought/imported through a stockist and not purchased directly from them...

Thanks for the help everyone.

I have ordered some Polish picks. Went for the Mixt pro as I like the curved tip.

I like the idea of getting some Russian armour but I reckon you are probably right about the effect of the war. I couldn't find any north American suppliers with any stock either.

Cheers!

https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/123558071/where-to-get-kurkonog...

Some more info from one of the US importers.

Hi Ali,

Their site has always been buggy, war or not. But they do sell in Russia through many various retailers, for example (I cannot find Fuel pick in that particular shop, only a Fusion/Viper/Cobra one, I am not sure if that's compatible with Fuels but the Fuel one may be available through other Russian retailers). So a reliable way of buying Krukonogi products would be to buy stuff from a retailer and ship it to someone in Russia and then ask them to ship it or bring it to you in person. I bought some aid gear and pitons myself this way last year. You can message me for any details

Daniel

yeah, their commerce site is not the best... but it has worked pre-ukraine.

As for the BD pics... the great thing is that the pics all work for the technical tools... I recall even the orig. X-15 would work, albeit the pick angles might be a tad funny. The only BD tool, that didn't/hasn't wasn't compatible, was the Venom (non technical axe), and perhaps some other similar model from the old times.