Piton: Types, History, Placement, and Where Climbers Still Use Them

A piton is a metal spike that a climber hammers into a fissure in the stone to create an anchor. One end is a blade that bites into the seam, and the other is an eye where you clip a carabiner. For most of the twentieth century, pitons were the main form of protection in rock climbing and mountaineering, and today you still meet them on old routes, on big wall aid lines, and in winter mountaineering. This article explains how pins function, the main designs, their history from malleable spikes to hardened alloys, how climbers set and extract them, and why the clean climbing movement changed the sport.

What is a piton?

Think of a piton as a steel wedge with a hole in it. The leader picks a blade that matches the width of the seam, pushes it in by hand as far as it goes, then drives it home with a hammer. A good placement rings with a rising pitch as the blade tightens, and the eye ends up close to the surface. The rope then runs through a quickdraw clipped to that eye, exactly as it would with modern gear.

Unlike chocks and cams, a pin is not simply wedged. It deforms slightly and holds by friction and tension inside the crack. Different types of rock behave very differently here: limestone, granite, and sandstone each take pins in their own way. That is why it can grip shallow, flaring, or hairline seams where nothing else fits, and it is also why it damages the stone. If some of this jargon is new, our glossary of essential terms explains words like pin, pro, and placement.

Main types of pitons

Pitons come in many shapes because cracks come in many widths. The classic designs, several of which Black Diamond and a few other brands still make, include:

• Knifeblade: thin, flat, and straight, for narrow seams deep enough to take a long blade. Bugaboos are a similar but slightly thicker model.
• Lost Arrow piton: a tapered horizontal blade for thin to medium fissures, probably the most versatile peg on an aid rack.
• Angle: a sheet folded into a U, V, or Z profile that fits wider gaps, roughly from finger to two inch width.
• Bongs: the largest models, made from aluminum sheet and named for the sound they make when struck. Cams have mostly replaced them.
• RURP: the Realized Ultimate Reality Piton, a blade the size of a postage stamp created by Tom Frost and his partner from the Valley in 1959 for incipient seams.
• Beaks: hooking pegs with a downward tip that can be set with light taps in very thin features.

Climbers also separate soft pitons from hard steel ones. That single difference shaped the whole story of the tool.

A short history

Malleable pins in the Alps

The first pitons appeared in Europe in the late nineteenth century as simple bars with a ring attached. Around 1910, the Austrian guide Hans Fiechtl introduced a one piece design with the eye forged into the blade, a pattern that later makers kept refining. Early European pegs were malleable and bent to the shape of irregular limestone fissures in the Dolomites and the Eastern Alps. They were difficult to extract, so parties often ended up leaving them behind. Many classic Alpine faces still carry rusty fixed pegs from that era, a living record of how mountaineering and mountain travel grew up. Alpine climbing still relies on some of them today.

Hardened pegs in the Valley

California granite is far denser than limestone, and its long parallel splitters destroyed the old pegs. John Salathé, a Swiss born blacksmith living near San Francisco, forged blades from hardened alloy in the 1940s. His pegs could be driven, extracted, and reused many times, which made it realistic to climb steep faces over several days. He used them on pioneering ascents in Yosemite Valley, and a famous line on El Capitan, first climbed in 1961, was later named in his honor. Our guides to the Valley's granite and El Capitan tell the story of that golden age.

Yvon Chouinard and his forge

In 1957, a young climber from Southern California bought a secondhand forge and taught himself to make pegs. He moved to chrome molybdenum alloy, and his designs, including the Lost Arrow and the RURP made with Tom Frost, became the standard rack for long aid ascents in the 1960s. His small company, Chouinard Equipment, grew into the leading American maker of climbing hardware. Those durable pins helped parties tackle the great granite faces of California and beyond, from the Nose to the towers of Patagonia.

Scarred splitters and a new ethic

Success came at a price. Because hardened pegs were so easy to extract, parties pounded them in and out of the same placements on every ascent. The repeated blows widened the cracks, chipped the edges, and left permanent scars. On popular lines in California and at crags like the Gunks, some seams became visibly deformed.

British leaders had already been protecting cliffs with wedged pebbles and then machine nuts threaded on slings, a technique that later spread to the roof cracks and slabs of North America. In 1967, Royal Robbins returned from England with manufactured chocks and made the first ascent of the Nutcracker using only wedges. In 1971, John Stannard coined the phrase "clean climbing," and in 1972 the Chouinard catalog published essays by the founder, Tom Frost, and Doug Robinson. Robinson's piece, The Whole Natural Art of Protection, became a manifesto for leading without a hammer. The company's own bestselling product was suddenly the thing it urged customers to stop using, and across North America chocks displaced pegs on most free lines within a few years.

The next leap came around 1980 with spring loaded camming devices, covered in our history of the cam. The firm closed in 1989, and former employees formed Black Diamond, which still sells pegs alongside modern equipment.

Where pitons are still used today

Pitons are now niche, but far from extinct. You will meet them in four situations:

• Hard aid on a big wall: thin seams still require knifeblades, arrows, beaks, and occasionally a RURP, so many teams carry a small selection of chromoly pegs plus a driver.
• Winter mountaineering: on frozen faces, verglas and ice can choke a fissure where cams slip, and pegs make cheap, reliable rappel anchors on long mountain descents. See our guides to mountain gear and ice tools and crampons.
• Fixed pegs on older routes: many classic multi pitch lines still have pins left from first ascents decades ago.
• Exploration: on expeditions in remote ranges, some mountaineers still carry a few blades for emergencies and retreats.

On most modern free lines, however, local ethics expect you to rely on chocks and cams. Pounding new pegs into an established climbing route, especially on popular splitters, is considered destructive and is often banned.

How to place and remove a peg

Placing

Setting pins is a climbing skill to learn under the guidance of an experienced mentor. The principles are well established:

1. Pick the right width: ideally, the blade slides about half to two thirds of its length into the crack by hand before you start striking.
2. Look for constrictions and solid stone. Avoid flakes, expanding blocks, and loose rock, which a driven blade can pry apart.
3. Strike firmly and listen. A rising, ringing tone usually means the blade is biting; a dull thud often signals hollow rock or a poor fit.
4. Place the eye toward the direction of loading. If a long blade bottoms out, tie it off with a sling at the surface to reduce leverage.

Removing

To extract a peg, the second taps it back and forth along the axis of the seam until it loosens, then pulls it out with a cleaning tool clipped to a sling so it cannot fall. Pins are removed this way on every repeat of an aid line, which is exactly what scarred so many placements, so it should be done gently and only where the practice is accepted.

Trusting fixed gear

Treat every fixed pin with suspicion. Rust eats old pins, freeze and thaw cycles loosen the stone, and you cannot see how deep the blade goes. Back up old pegs with your own gear whenever you can, and never rely on a single one for a belay. Our guides to trad leading and jamming technique explain how to build solid belays with removable gear.

Pitons versus chocks, cams, and bolts

Each kind of gear has its job:

• Pegs: fit seams too thin for any other protection and hold in icy fissures, but require a driver, take time, and damage the stone.
• Chocks: light, cheap, and leave no trace, but need a constriction.
• Cams: fast to place in parallel splitters and the backbone of a modern trad rack, as seen at Indian Creek.
• Bolts: permanent, drilled anchors that define sport leading and many rappel stations.

For a broader overview of these disciplines, start with our beginner's guide to rock climbing.

Training for old school lines

Climbing lines protected by fixed pegs tend to be steep crack systems, long multi pitch days, and remote mountain faces. If you want to climb them, plan your training and equipment around their demands, and climb in a style that suits them. They call for endurance, solid jamming, and fingers strong enough to hang on while you clip a rusty eye or set a backup. Anyone who wants to follow them benefits from structured training for every level, specific endurance work, and progressive hangboarding. A quality hangboard lets you build finger strength at home without wearing out your skin, and our warm-up guide helps protect your tendons before long days on rock.

Conclusion

The piton is one of the most important tools in the history of the sport. From Hans Fiechtl's malleable spikes in the Alps to the hardened blades and chrome molybdenum designs of the 1940s to 1960s, pins opened the big faces of California and the Alps. Their success also scarred the rock and pushed the community toward chocks, cams, and the hammerless ethic that defines modern trad. Today, pegs remain essential for aid, alpine climbing, and winter terrain on alpine faces, and you will still clip old fixed ones on classic lines. Learn to recognize the designs, set them carefully where they are accepted, and never trust a fixed pin blindly.

FAQ

What are pitons used for?

Each one is hammered into a seam to create an anchor. The rope is clipped to it for protection, it can form part of a belay or rappel station, and aid climbers hang on it directly to move upward.

Are pitons still used today?

Yes, but mostly on aid walls, winter outings, and as fixed gear on older lines. On most free terrain, chocks and cams have replaced them, and placing new pegs is often discouraged or banned.

Who invented pitons?

Simple spikes were used in Europe in the late nineteenth century. Hans Fiechtl popularized the one piece pin with an integrated eye around 1910, and John Salathé and the founder of Chouinard Equipment later developed hardened versions.

What is the difference between soft and hard pitons?

Malleable pegs are made of iron or mild alloy and bend to fit irregular seams, so they often stay fixed for good. Hardened pegs keep their shape, can be removed and reused, and suit dense granite well.

Are fixed pegs safe to clip?

Not always. Old pins may be corroded or loose. Inspect them, back them up with your own gear when possible, and never rely on a single fixed peg for a belay.