[SA Chris]

Anyone got any guidelines / advice for using volumes on bouldering walls. There's a homemade 45 deg one at the new transition wall, and I'm not convinced it is put to best use.

[account_inactive]

Percy is the man to speak to 

He loves em.  I heard on the grapevine that the new Bristol venture was infact not a wall, but just 1 million volumes bolted together under a roof!

I'm not sure how useful they are with regards to training apart from relieving boredom and creating more realistic and varied problems.  However on a commercial wall they can be used to spice up an otherwise dull blank panel

[dave]

personally i'm not a fan of volumes. I don't see the point of building a lovely flat plain wall then ruining it by sticking a bloody great pyramid in the middle.

They can work well at the climbingworks on the numerous potentially dull vertical sections to keep it changing for the punter demographic, but on steep sections i recon they're better left alone. I don't recall ever turning up at the Tor or cuvier and finding it plastered with tetrahedra.

[Paul B]

well said. They would ruin a 45 deg board. I accept not every problem in the world is a perfect 45-50 deg bit of rock with slightly in-cut crimps but similarly a lot of problems don't involve massive great big lumps everywhere...there needs to be a bit more balance with these things.

[webbo]

i'm with dave on this.they've taken them off the moon wall at rock city and its better for it.they had a coating of textured paint on them,great for leaving several layers of shin skin on.

[Nigel]

They should be banned. On training boards anyway. If you're on a 50 degree board on holds that feel small then 2 even two dimensions is pushing it. It can get very confusing. They have a place to placate the masses at the Works, where you can kid yourself that by smearing on a piece of sandpaper whilst laying off some emulsioned ply your outdoor technique will improve. Why isn't there a smiley for chinny reckon?

[Fiend]

They have a place to placate the masses at the Works, where you can kid yourself that by smearing on a piece of sandpaper whilst laying off some emulsioned ply your outdoor technique will improve. Why isn't there a smiley for chinny reckon?

LOL!

I do you you've remembered that you're not actually allowed to criticise The Works on here...

[Jaspersharpe]

  Have to agree. I'm not a fan of volumes at all. They look as if they will make for more interesting problems but actually just make a bit of a mess. Can see why Percy is big on em at The Works though as it's a good way of freshening up the wall without major rebuilding and when the majority of customers are after this kind of thing it makes commercial sense. As long as they don't end up covering the whole place in em.

[jfw]

they make me nervous - i have a fear of popping off and rattling down them - or becoming impaled!

[Teaboy]

I accept not every problem in the world is a perfect 45-50 deg bit of rock with slightly in-cut crimps

I get the impression you'd think the world was a better place if they were! 

[Paul B]

I accept not every problem in the world is a perfect 45-50 deg bit of rock with slightly in-cut crimps

I get the impression you'd think the world was a better place if they were! 

- for me and a few others definately...

Can see why Percy is big on em at The Works though as it's a good way of freshening up the wall without major rebuilding and when the majority of customers are after this kind of thing it makes commercial sense.

[steven82]

I agree i hate volumes they make me nervous i just get the image of slipping off and damaging myself. I dont get the obsession with making indoor walls more like outside. to me its just a seperate thing as is grit to limestone or granite or slate thats what makes climbing so much fun all the different aspects and indoors should just be about power and pulling hard and no fear of damaging tender areas..

[SA Chris]

I stabbed myself brutally in the upper forearm with it, which left my whole arm numb, then tingling and ached for about 2 days, effectively ended a good session. The main reason why I asked, but didn't want to swing opinions.

I have suggested it's a bad idea, but it's still there.

[BenF]

well said. They would ruin a 45 deg board.

Agreed on the whole, however we've been considering putting a small wedge shaped volume low down on one side of our pretty wide 45 board (thus not messing with most of the baord).  The idea being that you could create a little roof allowing you to do cragx style starts, use minging slopers on the short vertical frontside and also if there was room utilise backhand undercuts on the underside.  Pete Chadwick suggested it having used similar things on some boards in Yorkshire, Ste Dunning's board is one I think.

[Monolith]

Agreed on the whole, however we've been considering putting a small wedge shaped volume low down on one side of our pretty wide 45 board

Have we!?I thought we concurred that volumes on 45+ boards make you weak?

[BenF]

Have we!?I thought we concurred that volumes on 45+ boards make you weak?

Yes, I have the evidence on my mobilephone voice recorder.

We did concur that illconsidered volume use was wank, but the low roof idea has been discussed several times.  However I seriously doubt whether we'll ever do it.  Better to make more holds really, but still an interesting idea methinks.

[Paul B]

well said. They would ruin a 45 deg board.

Agreed on the whole, however we've been considering putting a small wedge shaped volume low down on one side of our pretty wide 45 board (thus not messing with most of the baord).  The idea being that you could create a little roof allowing you to do cragx style starts, use minging slopers on the short vertical frontside and also if there was room utilise backhand undercuts on the underside.  Pete Chadwick suggested it having used similar things on some boards in Yorkshire, Ste Dunning's board is one I think.

whats the difference between a crap undercut fored by a bolt on and a crap undercut formed by a shitty hold on a 90 deg bit of ply? I can't see that theres anything apart from creating a lump on your board. I know some indoor problems with lots of horrible backhand undercuts and there isn't a volume in sight.
 

[a dense loner]

fuckin volumes, nearly as ridiculous a concept as anti-hydral

[saltbeef]

I do you you've remembered that you're not actually allowed to criticise The Works on here...

if its constructive then anything is fair game. volumes main goal in life is removing a nipple when you grease off. nothing more. the training board at the works is laughable. its not steep enough, and the holds are wrong.