So a higher open-gate or minor-axis rating isn't necessarily a bad thing, but once again, all biners sold are going to meet the minimum requirements.ĬHOOSING THE RIGHT CARABINER FOR YOUR CLIMBINGĮven within the climbing and mountaineering carabiner world, how do you know which model or style to choose? Black Diamond alone manufactures over 30 different styles of carabiners. Now open-gate and minor-axis strengths for most carabiners are much less (about a third) than closed-gate, and are in the ranges that can actually be seen in the field. Does it matter? In most cases, likely not. Is a 24kN carabiner stronger than a 20kN carabiner? Yes. Though in theory loads at the belay can reach 20kN, this is extremely rare and likely caused because something didn't go right. There's a big difference.īottom line: Climbing gear shouldn't be used in industrial applications-it just isn't designed, rated or certified for those types of loads and applications. So a 20kN carabiner actually breaks at that load. However, climbing gear is always rated to the load at which it will actually break. This means that you can load the connector safely to 10kN - and that it won't actually break until a minimum of 40kN. For example, let’s say a steel industrial connector is marked with a SWL of 10kN and is certified to an industrial standard which requires a safety factor of 4. However, if a connector is marked with it’s SWL, it will have a safety factor included which could be anywhere from a factor of 4 and up. The steel connector on the left in the photo below has an MBS of 45kN - if it sees a load of 45kN, it will break. Industrial connectors are usually made of steel, are much heavier, are often much stronger, certified to different standards, and are sometimes rated differently than aluminum climbing carabiners.ĭepending on what standard an industrial connector is certified to, and it’s intended application, it may be rated to either it’s Safe Working Limit (SWL) and/or it’s Minimum Breaking Strength (MBS). What many people may not realize is the different ways that recreational gear is designed, tested and rated compared to industrial equipment. We're not as intimate with the loads, the uses, misuses and abuses of these other applications. The simple answer is that we are climbers and mountaineers, we know climbing and mountaineering, and we design, test and certify our gear for climbing and mountaineering. Just as all of our instructions say, our gear is "For Climbing and Mountaineering Only." But why? ![]() The official answer is always no, not recommended. I get lots of random calls from arborists, fire departments, rescue workers, marinas, yachting folks, Jeep guys and warehouse personnel wanting to know if it's okay to use our carabiners for their particular application. We'll start off with a quick word on basic carabiner use because we get this question all the time. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN INDUSTRIAL AND RECREATIONAL CARABINERS This month we'll attempt to distill the basics of carabiner usage to help you figure out what's the right choice for your type of climbing. As with almost anything, it's always prudent to select the right tool for the job. ![]() What biners should I use on my slimmed-down alpine rack as opposed to my daily sport cragging kit? As with most pieces of climbing gear, there is a certain amount of inherent versatility, but often certain products are better suited, and more often than not designed specifically for certain applications. ![]() ![]() With dozens of companies making untold numbers of carabiners these days, it can be a real chore to navigate through countless different models to choose the one that's right for your type of climbing.
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