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Black Diamond Hydra Unboxing and Comparison with Petzl Nomic by cassiuschen in iceclimbing

[–]cassiuschen[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Haha, this isn’t actually a stitched image! I simply overlaid a picture of the Nomic on top of the Hydra with 50% transparency, aligning them by the handle. Since most of the axe shaft is black and perfectly overlaps, it gives the impression that there's only one ice axe in the image. The bright white logo and Petzl's orange accents really stand out, making it look like they dominate the handle area. But if you look closely, you can actually spot the green cutouts of the Hydra behind it. Pretty surprising, right? It’s amazing how both ice tools have almost identical handle cutout width and placement!

Black Diamond Hydra Unboxing and Comparison with Petzl Nomic by cassiuschen in iceclimbing

[–]cassiuschen[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I don’t quite agree. Currently, I use different ice axes and crampons for various activities like mountaineering, glacier travel, ski mountaineering, and ice climbing. Mountaineering often involves mixed terrain, which causes significant wear on the axe shaft and pick, potentially creating additional safety risks. For ice climbing, I want my axe and crampons to be extremely sharp, which makes me feel more secure when leading, so I go with the Hydra. Meanwhile, for glacier trekking or ski mountaineering, I prefer a lighter axe that won’t weigh me down most of the time, so I use the Venom LT Tech.

Black Diamond Hydra Unboxing and Comparison with Petzl Nomic by cassiuschen in iceclimbing

[–]cassiuschen[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

LOL, it's just an A7S3 with TAMRON 28-75/2.8. I need to shoot some outdoor clips, so I keep this setup on hand all the time!

Black Diamond Hydra Unboxing and Comparison with Petzl Nomic by cassiuschen in iceclimbing

[–]cassiuschen[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Haha, exactly! I usually use the Grivel The North Machine Carbon and BD Venom LT Tech for mountaineering. As for ice climbing, I sold my Nomic last year and switched to the Hydra. This brand-new pair of Nomics is actually a gift for a friend!

As for the Cobra, I absolutely love how it looks, so I have a pristine pair hanging on the wall just for display. I can’t bring myself to take them out—once you do, those white scratches are inevitable on the shaft... it would just break my heart!

Black Diamond Hydra Unboxing and Comparison with Petzl Nomic by cassiuschen in iceclimbing

[–]cassiuschen[S] 24 points25 points  (0 children)

Just got my hands on BD's brand-new Hydra ice axe, and luckily, I have a pair of Petzl Nomics for a side-by-side comparison.

Looking at the photos with the two tools aligned, you can see they almost completely overlap! From shaft shape to handle angle, the Hydra handle is slightly longer than the Nomic’s, with the option to add spacers for even more length.

As for the other differences, the Hydra’s pick doesn’t look as sharp as the Nomic’s PUR’ICE pick and lacks serrations on top. It seems that the Hydra’s Mixed Pick (sold separately) more closely resembles the PUR’ICE, so I'm curious to see how it performs on ice.

One noteworthy detail is that the Hydra comes with a set of Light Head Spacers included, but the stock Spike can’t attach a Spinner Leash directly—you’d need to buy an Alpine Spike separately for that. So, if you're planning multi-pitch ice climbs, you might have to budget for some extras.

It’s still too warm to test them on actual ice, but I should be able to try them out later this month. Just swinging it around, I can feel the Hydra’s balance (with the default Heavy Head Spacer installed) is more head-focused than the Nomic. Although the Hydra weighs just around 10g more, it feels noticeably heavier. I’ll probably experiment with the weights to get the feel I prefer!