[tregiffian]

I have heard a Lancashireman confess to using chemical assistance on Yorkshire limestone. Is this a widely known technique or unique to the red rose gang??

[dave]

Chipping you mean?

[tregiffian]

Actually spraying acid onto the polished holds to get better friction on the `weathered` surface.

[shark]

I have heard a Lancashireman confess to using chemical assistance on Yorkshire limestone. Is this a widely known technique or unique to the red rose gang??

I've never heard of it being used. Was he having you on? Or are you having us on?. If not sounds as dodgy as pof.

[Adam Lincoln]

I have heard a Lancashireman confess to using chemical assistance on Yorkshire limestone. Is this a widely known technique or unique to the red rose gang??

This rumour is meaningless without names!

[dave]

Actually spraying acid onto the polished holds to get better friction on the `weathered` surface.

As I said, chipping. Deliberately altering the rock via an artificial means.

[andy_e]

You'd probably need quite a bit of strong acid to do any serious damage, so I doubt this is true...

[GCW]

This is bollocks.

The rumour appeared after Mr Lincoln bleached his bouffon, then went climbing.  People assumed the avid acrid jam was some form of hold improver, as opposed to its true purpose as a fanny magnet.

[Will Hunt]

Actually spraying acid onto the polished holds to get better friction on the `weathered` surface.

As I said, chipping. Deliberately altering the rock via an artificial means.

Does hold repair and gluing stuff back on come under this definition?

[Fultonius]

Actually spraying acid onto the polished holds to get better friction on the `weathered` surface.

As I said, chipping. Deliberately altering the rock via an artificial means.

Does hold repair and gluing stuff back on come under this definition?

I wouldn't say so - done well it's just returning it to its former glory - especially if it's a well known classic.

[dave]

Hold repair etc is generally done remedially to avoid a route falling apart or being rendered unclimbable.  Etching away polish would just serve to make something a bit easier for a few people in the shortterm. It would be no different to making a crimp a bit bigger cos you can't hold it.

[Will Hunt]

It would be no different to making a crimp a bit bigger cos you can't hold it.

I don't agree. If it was applied only on highly polished routes in the interest of restoring the rock to its original friction condition I think it would be more like

just returning it to its former glory

especially if the route is friction dependent.
I happen to agree that it shouldn't be allowed but for the reasons that spraying of acid on holds would be: an unsustainable treatment for polish in the long run; very hard to get right and to accurately control what the the final result would be; and is environmentally unsound.

[rodma]

Acid etching sounds like fucking cheating to me.

If others can get up the problem and you can't, then it's you that needs acid etched, not the rock, or something. 

[Wipey Why]

The rumour appeared after Mr Lincoln bleached his bouffon, then went climbing.  People assumed the avid acrid jam was some form of hold improver, as opposed to its true purpose as a fanny magnet.

Did it work?

[AndyR]

You'd probably need quite a bit of strong acid to do any serious damage, so I doubt this is true...

I think a light spray of 10% HCl would probably do the trick, followed by a quick wash with water to get rid of the residual clay - would take the sheen off without removing very much rock.
There have been mutterings of its use since I can remember (say, mid 80's)....

[Johnny Brown]

Its mentioned in Fawcett on Rock, though with respect to restoring the holds at your local breeze-block-and-stone climbing wall, rather than the crag. I wouldn't call it chipping personally, it would seem like a lesser evil than drilling holes all over the place.

[Bubba]

Somebody did actually use something like this at Minus Ten in the 80s. Obviously it's effects didn't last all that long....

[griffer]

there is a route in north wales on the limestone, where this was used and it made a mess of it, i would not recommend doing this. The acid was not fully cleaned off and it ran down the crag leaving a stain and a smoother hold than was probably originally there.
what a mess and what a twat

[tomtom]

a funny one this as in a bzarre way its restoration as will pointed out. But really sparimg acid is ultimately destructive. a more creative but harder way would be to grow new limestone by drizzlimg caco3 over said hold. Or more creatively emgging the help of some lurcal biofilm....

ps soz for typos. reply on kindle... wank keyboard

[tregiffian]

The miscreant Mancunian admits to mild HCl which chimes with the post above.   

[iwasmexican]

not that i have any knowledge or experience of the subject, but surely there is nothing wrong with using this for something like removing shoe rubber, as long as its done properly?

[dave]

Why the fuck would you need, or even want, to use acid to remove bootrubber? Is everyone on crack this week?

[Bonjoy]

I’ve heard the idea put about before but never heard anyone own up to doing it. Totally pointless and damaging waste of time and effort I reckon. Climbing on limestone involves using polished footholds, it’s not a problem and it doesn’t need fixing. The polish happens so quickly you’d have to regularly repeat the process (I’ve seen polish appear on new route footholds after only a couple of sessions). Obviously this repetition would artificially speed up the process of erosion. The run-off would leave bleached streaks down the rock beneath the ‘repair’. And when do you stop, when the foothold has been dissolved away, or do you carry on etching until you have an inset foothold in the same location?
Comparisons to the sealant treatment of soft eroding holds are very weak. Yes they are both chemicals, so what? Like saying person A protects his hands by applying a chemical based barrier cream, therefore it’s sensible for person B to wash his hands in drain cleaner.

[tomtom]

Why the fuck would you need, or even want, to use acid to remove bootrubber? Is everyone on crack this week?

Ouzo and Raki actually that's what I'm on. Though ouzo would probably be a worthy solvent for boot rubber..