Best Ice Picks

With ice cube trays, and even refrigerators that make ice cubes, you’d think that an ice pick isn’t a very useful implement. However, there are ice picks for use in the home. Also, there are hard drinks that require ice chips instead of ice cubes. An ice pick is a handy device to break up a large piece of ice into smaller chips. You can even try your hand at sculpting ice into different shapes!

But that’s not all. If you’re an outdoor enthusiast who likes ice fishing, you need some way of cutting a hole in the ice. There are special ice picks for that. And it’s also a good idea to have retractable ice picks on hand in the event that you tread on thin ice and fall through. A pair of ice picks can help you extricate yourself from the freezing water by providing you with a means to pull yourself out. And there are special ice picks which allow you to climb up walls of ice if you go hiking or mountain climbing. (You can also check out other MSN buyer guide product pages, for other winter weather implements.)

We’ll go through some of the entries in the MSN list of the 10 best icepicks, taking note of what features are there in each type of ice pick. That’ll help you decide on one that is suitable for the job you intend.

What Types of Ice Picks Are There?

There are ice picks for food preparation, as well as ice picks for the outdoors. We’ll go through some of the variations among them.

• Food grade ice picks: There are ice picks for use in the kitchen, or for use by bartenders.

  • There are simple ice picks, with a steel shaft and wooden handle, such as the Harold Import Co. Ice Pick with a cover. You can use it to break up a large block of ice by first engraving a line in the ice where you want to cut. You then employ the point of the knife to press downwards. It should crack the block of ice along the seam that you have created.

Harold Import Co. Ice Pick with a cover

• • With an anvil: Another form of ice pick has an “anvil” to it as well. For example, there is the Linall 7” Stainless Steel Ice Chipper. It is a Japanese-style ice pick, made from Grade 304 stainless steel. The anvil allows you to tap on the ice to break it along the lines that you cut with the point. Also, the anvil gives you added versatility to sculpt spherical pieces of ice!

Linall 7” Stainless Steel Ice Chipper

• • There are also three-pronged ice picks, such as the BSAH Stainless Steel Ice Chisel. A pitchfork ice pick gives you more manageability when chiseling a block of ice until you make it into a spherical shape if desired. You can also use a chisel ice pick to make ice shards. This is handy for mixing an icy drink in a cocktail shaker.

BSAH Stainless Steel Ice Chisel

• Ice picks for the outdoors: There are also more heavy-duty ice picks for winter adventures. These include ice picks for extricating yourself after falling through thin ice, and ice picks for ice climbing.

  • For thin ice emergencies: There are ice picks that come in pairs, attached by a cord which you either wear around your neck or through the sleeves of your coat. They can be used as a rescue device, in the event that you tread on thin ice and fall through. With the ice picks, you can go to the edge of the ice, and manage to get a grip on the ice around the hole that was just created. The ice picks will give you enough traction so that you can pull yourself out. These are usually retractable ice picks: the blades of the ice pick are covered with a soft rubber sheath, to keep you from stabbing yourself accidentally. But, when you push down the picks on the ice, the rubber sheath retracts back and the metal blade sinks into the ice. An example is the Frabill Retractable Ice Pick.

Frabill Retractable Ice Pick

• • For mountain climbing: There are ice axes, such as the Petzl Glacier Ice Axe. It’s almost 20” long and helps you grab hold when trying to ascend a steep slope. You can use it to cut steps in the ice or to penetrate hard snow.

Petzl Glacier Ice Axe

• • Although they’re not strictly ice picks, there are also ice scrapers. They are used to clear ice off from your windshield on a frosty winter day. An example is the Zecval Ice Scraper.

Zecval Ice Scraper

What Do Customers Say About Using an Ice Pick?

Depending on the type of ice pick, customers were pleased with certain aspects:

• Advantage of spherical pieces of ice: With a little dexterity, ice picks can be used to make round pieces of ice. You may wonder why a bartender would go through so much trouble to create a spherical piece of ice. That’s because a sphere is the most economical shape to pack the biggest volume of ice while exposing the least amount of surface area. An ice cube has more surface area than a ball of ice of the same mass. That allows it to melt more quickly when put in a drink. So, bartenders who want to cool down a drink longer without watering it down will prefer a spherical ice shape.

• Other uses: An ice pick doesn’t have to be used only for shaving off pieces of ice or ice sculpting. It can also be used for separating frozen foods. You can use it to break off pieces of chocolate into small squares. Also, you can use it as an awl, to make holes in leather.

What Features Should I Look For in Ice Picks?

Certain features will make a certain make of ice pick more effective. There are nuances in the shaft and in the handle that help you get the job done.

• Stainless steel shaft: An ice pick with a stainless steel shaft will be more rust-resistant. It will also be more durable against thick blocks of ice, being able to create fissures in the ice without bending or snapping.

• Length of the shaft: It’s recommended that an ice pick should have a metal shaft of at least 5 inches long so that it will penetrate a block of ice properly.

• Features of the handle: You’ll find that ice picks differ in the construction of the handle. Some have a silicone grip handle. The advantage is that the handle won’t get cold as the shaft comes in contact with the ice. But, the Mumiao ice pick has an aluminum handle with “knurling”--a diamond pattern for a better grip.

Mumiao ice pick

• Foldable ice picks: If you’re using an ice pick for ice climbing, it’s best that it’ll be foldable for greater portability. An example of a foldable ice pick is the IceScreen MIlitary Portable Folding Shovel and Ice Pick. It’s 16” in length when fully extended, and 6” when folded.

IceScreen MIlitary Portable Folding Shovel and Ice Pick, both extended and folded

• Advantages of an emergency ice pick: Wearable ice picks that are for getting you out of a hole in the ice can have several useful features. For example, they can have brightly-colored handles, so that you see them more easily in poor light, such as the Eagle Claw Ice Safety Picks. Also, they can be constructed so that they always float to the top. That’s important if you fall into a hole in a river or lake that has frozen over. You’ll want to be able to find the ice picks quickly.

Eagle Claw Ice Safety Picks

Wrap Up

We’ve seen the wide variety of ice picks on the market, either for use with food in serving drinks, for ice climbing and hiking and even for emergency situations, as in instances when you’ve fallen through thin ice. It’s readily seen that an ice pick is a handy implement, and usually doesn’t cost more than $10. Check out the MSN top 10 ice picks, and you’re sure to find an excellent choice!