Used this on a climb of Early Morning Couloir on North Sister in the Oregon Cascades. Worked well for steep snow. The ice was in good shape just below the summit and it worked beautifully for the pitch of ice climbing, well-balanced for swinging. Caught a crampon descending the steep snow slope to the south and it self-arrests well. Great tool for these mixed conditions with minimal technical ice climbing and lots of snow. My other axe was a longer, straight axe which was too long for the steep snow and didn't swing well when the snow got steeper or while climbing the ice pitch.