Ice Axe length

I don't recall a rule of thumb for alpine tramping ice axes. IMO it depends on what the end use is going to be. If your previous length never caused any issues particularly when self arresting, then that length was probably OK for you. I recall buying an axe in a shop and the vendor suggested the axe I was interested in was too long. My mate piped up and said he'd climbed Mt Cook with an ice axe that length (we are the same height).

One school of thought was to be able to tap the end of the shaft on the side of ye boots to help eject the snow as you walked along. So the length was relative to how easily you could do this with the axe held by your side. Before the days of anti-baling plates on ye crampons of course, but still good practice when wearing boots before you need to poon up.

The shorter ones are best suited for actual climbing, ie steep ice, roped up, front-pointing technical stuff. But for anything else I'd stick with the 'walking stick' length that works really well for most alpine style tramping. At that length it's useful as a tool for a number of purposes, whereas the shorter ones are still only good for steep climbing.

for general use, wrap your hand around the top. let the ice axe drop down your side and the end should be where your ankle is.

What @wayno said ^^

It really boils down to your torso length and the steepness of the country you are on. By definition an ice axe is needed on ground that is not generally flat, ie slopey. Thus, the question is how slopey (and how firm). If you are confident on gentler slopes, youll find the value of the axe really kicks in at the 30-50 degree slopes. Thats where the bulk of ice axe work is, and because you use the axe in the uphill hand, the ground height on that side is considerably reduced. Too long an axe in these conditions will force you into an uncomfortable unstable stance. The head of the axe wants be right at your side, about hip level or thereabouts. tldr: for a 6ft male of 'average' torso length 65cm is about right. The only real way to test this is to hire a couple of axes of varying lengths and try it.

Thanks for the feed back. I was put off by my climber mate. I will stick with the longer axe. Yes I neglected to say my height but I have short legs and a longer body. I still need to hit my crampons as the ice cream container tops fitted to my old Selewa crampons still ball up.

65-70cm seems to work for most people. Another consideration not mentioned so far - alpine tramping axes do spend time on your pack, especially going up through steeper bush, and the longer lengths can be a nuisance, sticking up more than necessary. But if you are accustomed to carrying an 85cm axe you will have worked that out already.

My pack used to be bigger in those days and I do remember it still getting in the way. I am not quite up to those trips anymore. The new axes are also about half the weight for when it is on your pack.