I've found that nail, skewer, and blade-like (folded sheet metal) stakes often don't hold well in the soil in my area, and it occurred to me that an auger or corkscrew style anchor might work better. I made a six inch long corkscrew out of 1/8" 6Al-4V titanium rod and found that it worked well. It becomes entangled with rocks and roots, I guess, and pulling it straight out can't be accomplished without pulling up a lot of earth. It weighs 0.28 ounces, or 8 grams (the BPlite 1/8" skewer stake weighs 0.21 oz, for comparison).

I think my dog would attest to the holding power of that kind of stake - this is the kind of anchor that we used to use for his yard line, until he figured out that he could unscrew it by running around in circles. I bet it would be great for a tent or tarp, at least until they get smart enough to run around in circles. :)

How did you manage to get the corkscrew shape?

I wrapped it around a screwdriver while heating with a little propane torch and gave it a sharp tip with a dremel grinding disk. I was amazed at how tenaciously it held in the ground. In harder soil I found that it really does have to be unscrewed to be removed.

I think this is a very innovative concept for backpacking tarps.

How do you get it into the ground? Hammer, screw or a combination of both? And if you have to screw it into the ground, is it any easier or harder to get into rocky soil than a straight stake?

you better sell this idea to Vargo quick!
i would pay for a set of these... think you could make 4 of them for me?

Colin, that is a great idea!

I've never seen anything like that!

They would probably hold amazing in comparison to a standard straight one of the same weight.

Nice one Colin! You better patent that quick!!

Here's a way you could simplify it - instead of making the square bend at the top, you could just put the eye at the top of the straight section and use another stake (through the eye) to get the necessary torque to screw the stake into the ground (roughly the same idea used in disposable corkscrews).

i am thinking that you could use the 1/16 ti rod for this. The corkscrew should increase the strength and the holding power is awesome as all have stated. I've always wanted stakes made from the 1/16 but this is the first design that i would consider because the rest would bend and pull right out. Great idea!!

-Tim

That's a really good idea, Devin. It would probably save less than a gram to put the eyelet right at the top, but it would pack more conveniently.

I've had some PMs about making these for people, but I think I might not really have time for it. My workmanship is imperfect, anyway. I encourage anyone who is interested to just order some rod and experiment.

Art, I did find that straight stakes are easier to use in very rocky ground. They can be hammered in between the rocks, whereas the corkscrew has to be screwed in. It works well in hard ground, but I had it jam when I tried it in a rock crevice.

I'm interested in seeing how 1/16" rod might work, Tim. That's a good idea.

Edited by ckrusor on 11/02/2008 22:23:44 MST.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=8223665 should be made in Ti.

any chance this has been tried in 1/16" rod yet? Does anyone know where i can get some 1/16"?

i know i could google it, and i will if i have to, but i was hoping to save some time because someone already knows the best place/price)

-Tim

McMaster-Carr surely has it. No idea if it's cheapest or anything like that.

Moontrail has a spiral type stake in Ti
http://www.moontrail.com/accessrs/a-stakes/titanium_pigtails.php

I ordered some 1/16" and some 3/32" 6Al-4V titanium rod from TitaniumJoe (via Ebay) and made several slightly different corkscrew-style stakes with each diameter rod. I've been too busy to post pictures (I'll try to get to that this weekend), but I found the 1/16 rod a little too flexible. It might still work better than nail stakes in some very soft soils. The intermediate diameter rod (3/32") worked better. I'll probably make a batch of stakes from both the 1/8 and the 3/32 for myself.

That "pigtail" stake at Moontrail is interesting. It has a much larger corkscrew, and just a single turn. And they're cheap! I guess some testing is in order.