Titanium has long been considered desirable for ice screw fabrication due to its high strength and lightweight. With strength comparable to high-quality steel, and weight not much more than aluminum, titanium is ideal for replacing the relatively heavy steel screws on the market. Until recently, however, its elevated price discouraged serious manufacturers.

Ushba, working with one of Russia's state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities under the direction of a leading physicist/engineer/climber, has developed a new proprietary titanium alloy, Ti-Spec, that is considerably stronger than previous Ti alloys. While retaining the light weight that has become titanium's trademark, the new Ti-Spec alloy offers an increase in strength which is nearly double of that found in previous Ti screws (65 ksi/450 Mpa for Ti-Spec compared to 35 ksi/240Mpa for generic Ti)!

These screws are machined with an ideal thread ratio/depth for ease of placement and excellent holding power. The teeth are cut at an aggressive angle for good bite. The thin wall titanium tubes are very strong and displace a minimum amount of ice. The hangers are designed for easy clips, and for use as crank-handles during placement. The hangers can be angled out for improved clearance when placing in tight quarters, and they hang straight for hassle-free, low-profile racking. NEW! Ultimate Screw w/ Crank (17 & 23 cm).

Screws come in 17cm for hard, good ice and 23cm for alpine or thick water ice. Each screw is designed to be used as is, or with the Ushba Cam Ti-Off device.

The resulting screws are strong, easily placed with one hand, and much lighter than their steel counterparts. In fact, even when an Ultimate Screw is fitted with a Cam Ti-Off, it is still 20% lighter than the best steel screw… They are reasonably priced and destined to bring Ti ice screws to the forefront in their genre.