Carabiners

Tower Climbing Carabiners

Which carabiner is right for you? Let’s outline the carabiner features so you can pick the best hardware for the job. First, we are going to look at ANSI standards. The ANSI Z359.12-2009 standard for carabiners requires that a carabiners major access point have a strength of 5,000 pounds. The gate face, sideload, and minor access strength must be at least 3,600 pounds.

Next, we will outline the different carabiner gate mechanisms. The three main styles are screw-lock, twist-lock, and auto-lock.

Screw-Lock:

The screw-lock operates by unscrewing the sleeve down the gate to open. This gate will not auto-lock, as the sleeve has to be manually tightened after the gate snaps shut.

Twist-Lock:

The twist-lock is a double action gate that quickly opens with a simple twist and pull movement.

Auto-Lock:

The auto-lock is a three-stage design as it requires 3 different motions to open. First, you pull the sleeve down, then twist, then pull back to open. Some carabiners only twist one direction, while others can twist left or right.

For more information on how carabiner gate mechanisms work check out our knowledge base.

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