Buckingham Gaff Gauge for Shaping Spurs

The Buckingham gaff gauge is a profile template you hold against your climber gaffs while sharpening, so you file them back to the correct shape and know when they are worn too short. It takes the guesswork out of spur maintenance.

Why gaff shape matters

A gaff that is filed too thin, too blunt or at the wrong angle can roll out of the bark and drop you onto your lanyard. Most cut-outs trace back to gaffs that were sharpened by eye on a grinder until the profile was gone. A gauge gives you a fixed reference every time.

Sharpen with a fine flat file on the outside faces only, checking against the gauge as you go. Never use a bench grinder, which can overheat the steel and ruin the temper. More spur parts are in replacement gaffs and parts.

Know when to retire a gaff

Every sharpening takes a little length. When the gauge shows the gaff is short of the minimum, replace it rather than squeezing out another week. Short gaffs don't penetrate far enough to hold on thick-barked trees.

Check gaffs before each climb and after hitting anything hard, like wire, nails or rock. Follow the manufacturer's instructions and ANSI Z133 for spur use and maintenance.

A gauge also makes it easy to keep both feet matched. If one gaff is noticeably shorter or thinner than the other, the spurs will bite differently and you'll feel it on every step. Sharpen them together and replace them as a pair.