Wiregate carabiners: Wiregate carabiners use a loop of stainless-steel wire for a gate. You’ll likely pay a little extra for this feature, but it’s a nice upgrade. ![]() This keeps the carabiner from hooking and catching on your harness gear loop, bolt hangers and other slings, any of which can be quite annoying. A keylock carabiner has a smooth notch where the nose of the carabiner and the gate interact. ![]() Some straight- and bent-gate carabiners are also keylock carabiners. As the name implies, straight gates are perfectly straight from the pivot point to the end.īent-gate carabiners: These have a concave gate that makes clipping a rope quick and easy, and for this reason they are reserved only for the rope-end of quickdraws. Straight-gate carabiners: Common on many quickdraws, these carabiners have solid straight gates that are easy to operate. Because each quickdraw has two carabiners on it, a quickdraw could have a combination of straight, bent and/or wiregate carabiners. The three primary types of gates on quickdraw carabiners are straight, bent or wire. That superlight quickdraw might be awesome for multi-pitch adventures where every gram counts, but not so awesome on a single-pitch sport climb at the crag, where weight is a lower priority. Features that make a quickdraw great for one type of climbing might not make it so great for another. ![]() But, this type of quickdraw will also be harder to clip than a heavier one with large carabiners and a stiff sling.Ĭonsider also the type of climbing you do and your priorities. For example, a quickdraw with tiny wiregate carabiners and a flimsy sling will barely weigh anything, helping keep your gear rack light and nimble. Your choices involve tradeoffs in weight, strength or ease of use. When you’re shopping for quickdraws, you have three main considerations:Īdditional considerations: Subtler quickdraw features like carabiner size and shape, sling width, sling material, weight and strength can also be important, especially as you become more experienced. Once you have rock shoes, a harness, belay device, locking carabiners and a helmet, your next logical gear purchase is a few sets of quickdraws.
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