Homemade Rock Climbing Holds

Rock climbing is a recreational sport that can improve balance, endurance and agility. Not everyone has ready access to a large natural rock or climbing center, so some enthusiasts make their own climbing walls. These walls have handholds that climbers use for support and leverage as they climb higher. If you plan to build a climbing wall, you can make your own holds using a single commercial hold as your mold.

Things You'll Need

  • 1 commercially-made climbing hold
  • 1 block of clay, 6x6x12 inches
  • Sharp knife
  • Box of 3/8-inch washers
  • WD 40
  • Electric fan
  • Mask with a respirator
  • Gloves
  • Fiberglass resin
  • Fiberglass resin fixer
  • Acrylic paint
  • Play sand or fine silica sand
  • Sandpaper
  • Electric drill with 3/8-inch mason drill bit
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Instructions

    • 1

      Slice off the top of the clay with a knife and scoop out the amount you will need to accommodate the commercial hold you are copying. Insert the hold into the clay, keep it there for a minute, then remove it. This is the mold for your climbing holds. Smooth the inside of the clay mold so it will not be rough to the touch.

    • 2

      Put a washer on top of the indentation made by the commercial hold's bolt-hole peg, which would be around the middle of the mold.

    • 3

      Put on gloves and a mask, preferably one with a respirator or ventilator. Find a large, well-ventilated area to work in to avoid inhaling fumes from your can of WD-40. Outdoors would be best. If you are indoors, set up an electric fan to blow the fumes away from you. Spray the inside of the mold with a generous amount of WD-40.

    • 4

      Mix the resin and fixing agent according to the directions on the container of the fixer. Do not use less than the suggested amount. From this point on you will have to work quickly because the resin will start to set in 15 minutes. If you want to add coloring, use acrylic paint and do it now. Add paint into the mixture, a little at a time until you get the color you want.

    • 5

      Make your climbing hold mixture. The proportions are 60% sand to 40% resin. Add the sand a little at a time and stir as you pour. It is important that each grain of sand be in contact with the resin. If you feel the mixture is too loose, add a bit more sand.

    • 6

      Pour the mix into the mold and make sure to fill it to the very top. Allow the resin mixture to set for at least 3 hours, but do not allow it to sit much longer than that. The mixture should be warm and pliable.

    • 7

      Remove the mold carefully from around your new climbing hold. Sand off any rough spots or irregularities.

    • 8

      Get your drill. Drill down past the washer that you placed earlier until you reach the starter hole made by the bolt-hole peg.

    • 9

      Leave your climbing hold to cure for a few hours or overnight.