Hopefully my final comment on BD stainless

Is it just me or is it really hard to get a simple and straight forward answer in any public forum?



I posed this question on the BD website (and on the Super Topo thread) and added the bold insert here on the "recall":



Dane Burns @ Cold Thistle

17 Apr , 11:52PM

"In the Fall of '10 or early winter of '11 BD obviously made an inline change and added 30% or more material to the front point area on the frame of the Sabers where they have been breaking.



We have been calling them Gen I and Gen II for clarity's sake.



As late as last Fall () you could still buy Gen I Sabers at retailers online and in person.



Was there ever a recall internally of the Gen I crampons and replacement with Gen IIs. (the answer is yes in at least one retailer's case) If you own Gen Is will BD replace them with Gen IIs prior to a failure?Thanks for the reply."



The BD answer is here:

http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en-us/journal/climb/all/qc-lab-gear-doesnt-last-forever--crampons



and reprinted here:



18 Apr , 4:04PM

"@Dane Burns As previously stated in our QC Lab post on the Black Diamond Journal and in Peter Metcalf's post on Supertopo.com, our designers and engineers always look for opportunities to improve designs through in-line adjustments. These iterative design tweaks are part of any BD product, be it a carabiner, crampon, ski boot, headlamp or trekking pole. And, as stated previously as well, we stand behind all of our products, including all stainless steel crampons."





Looks to me like they are standing behind the crampons. Swapping Gen Is for Gen IIs should be easy asBD really does stand behind the product. Here is their warranty info:



http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en-us/customer-service/warranty-repair



North America:

Black Diamond Warranty and Repair

2084 East 3900 South

Salt Lake City, Utah 84124

801-365-5555

warranty@bdel.com



The EU:

Black Diamond Equipment AG

Christoph Merian Ring 7


4153 Reinach, Switzerland

p: +41/61 564 33 23

f: +41/61 564 33 24



service@blackdiamond.eu



Here is how you tell the difference:









"Interesting observation from a picture. 2nd gen Saber on the left and 1st generation Saber on the right. Serac's look to have added the same amount of material to the forward rails. Difference across the flat, in the same area as the breaks above, has gone from .53" to .70". Or if my numbers are correct, a 38% increase in material to the rails. The center bar on the front points went from .50" to .62" or 24%."