Avalanche Shovel Weakness

That would really suck if you were frantically trying to unburry your friend before he ran out of oxygen and your shovel snapped in half.  Why do they even make junk safety equipment?   Oh, wait, I know it's to rip you off for your money without spending too much on product. Did your kit come with a beacon that doesn't transmit (or has limited range) too?  Makes you wonder, how well the bacon works.

I saw an avy shovel at The Salvation Army store earlier this week.  Odd thing to see in Central North Carolina so I picked it up and took a closer look.  It was collapsible and strung together with a bungie cord running through the piping much like a modern tent stake but fatter and aluminum piping. The tubing seemed strong enough as did the joint at the plastic scoop, but I could picture the tubes and sleeves wanting to separate while digging really fast because the bungie cord wasn't that strong.  Maybe it clung together more tightly when it was new.  Regardless, I view these things like the emergency jumper cables most people have in their vehicles.  Most are cheaply made with the notion that they are merely the most basic and inexpensive thing to have just in case but hardly ever used if at all.  Then there is the version that the tow truck driver carries that gets used several times a day, much better quality but costing five times more.  You get what you pay for.

I have a BCA Chugach Pro shovel.  Pretty much indestructible with an oval tube  rather than round, so it is much stronger at managing loads, although it comes at a bit of a weight penalty.  

With regard to the shovel Charles picked up, any plastic scoop shovel is next to worthless in heavy avy debris, or for that matter to dig out your car from icy slush.

My advise to the original poster would be to go to the Ortovox website, and click on Warranty.  They have a 2-year guarantee, and if you contact them, they may even cover your problem out of warranty.  The shovel should not break unless you are using it to lever snow and ice, rather than cut it away. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cirquerider 

With regard to the shovel Charles picked up, any plastic scoop shovel is next to worthless in heavy avy debris, or for that matter to dig out your car from icy slush.

 

 

Hahaha.  I "picked it up AND TOOK A CLOSER LOOK".  I didn't buy it.  ZERO need for that around here.  If I were to ski where one might be needed I would borrow,  rent, or purchase the gear there.

Quote:

Originally Posted by crgildart 

 

 

 

Hahaha.  I "picked it up AND TOOK A CLOSER LOOK".  I didn't buy it.  ZERO need for that around here.  If I were to ski where one might be needed I would borrow,  rent, or purchase the gear there.

Yeah, that's what people near me said prior to Snowmaggedon.      Turns out several feet of snowplow debris is stunningly similar to avy debris...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ghost 

That would really suck if you were frantically trying to unburry your friend before he ran out of oxygen and your shovel snapped in half.  Why do they even make junk safety equipment?   Oh, wait, I know it's to rip you off for your money without spending too much on product. Did your kit come with a beacon that doesn't transmit (or has limited range) too?  Makes you wonder, how well the bacon works.

Based on this review :   http://www.voile-usa.com/AvalancheVol86_54-60.pdf  it hardly seems an unusual occurence.