Locking Carabiner

Expert’s Picks: Locking Carabiner

How to Tie a Climbing Harness With Webbing

Climbing harnesses should be retired routinely just as ropes should. If your harness ever breaks or you need to rescue someone who is not wearing a harness, this method can help you in a pinch. You can make a seat harness using tubular webbing, which is something climbers should always have on hand. Learn five easy steps to quickly tie a climbing harness. read more
How to Make a Rapelling Harness

We have all done it, rushed out the door, grabbed gear, and when we get to the cliff realize that we forgot our rappelling harness. If you know how to make your own rappelling harness your day won't be wasted, and you can still have a thrilling afternoon at the cliff. Making your own harness is simple, and it is a helpful skill to know in emergency situation… read more
How to Make a Repelling Harness From Rope

Imagine this: You're on the second pitch of a climb, 100 feet off the ground, and you realize your harness is frayed and unsafe to use. If this happened to you would you know what to do? Would you be able to improvise and make a temporary harness to get to safety? Being able to make a harness is useful for emergency situations, and it's a skill every climber… read more
Rappelling With a Pirana

The Petzl Pirana is a device designed for rapid descents in caving and canyoneering. It can also be used by mountaineers and rock climbers, though its weight discourages its use by climbers. The Pirana looks like a modified figure-eight descender, with angled horns at the top and bottom that can be used in modified positions with the rope to slow the rate of… read more
How to Rappel With a Pirana

Rappelling devices come in a wide variety of styles, but the Petzl Pirana is a versatile unit that allows the descending climber to set up the device in three different configurations for different amounts of friction. This allows you to rappel with a lot of friction for slow descents, a moderate amount for standard descents or low friction for low angle rap… read more

Related Locking Carabiner Articles & Videos

When to Retire a Carabiner

A carabiner is your lifeline when climbing. Carabiners attach your rope to the mountain, they attach your belay device to your harness and they keep all of your crucial gear attached to you when taking longer climbs. Without a working… read more
Types of Carabiners

There are four basic shapes to a carabiner: oval, D-shaped, asymmetric D-shape and pear or HMS. While shape once defined a carabiner, modern safety codes and design features have altered the way carabiners are categorized. Carabiners a… read more
How to Make a Rescue Harness

Knowledge of rescue procedures can save someone's life in the mountains. Even on a routine hiking trip, a rock slide or soft cornice can trap a hiker with no climbing or rescue gear. It is a good idea to practice making an emergency ha… read more
How to Anchor Rescue Rope

The number-one principle when conducting a rescue operation is to preserve the safety of the rescuers above all else. In following with this principle, you should use the same principles to construct a rescue anchor that you would use… read more
How to Use a Carabiner

There are many types of carabiners and they have many uses, including contributing to the safety systems in rock and ice climbing, mountaineering, spelunking, and rescue techniques. Among other uses, carabiners can be used for belaying… read more
Rappelling Tips

Rappelling, the act of descending steep faces by sliding down a rope, is one of the most dangerous activities a climber can do. Many climbs can only be descended by rappelling. While it looks fun (and sometimes it is), climbers die in… read more
Homemade Climbing Harness

While you'll want a dedicated climbing harness in most situations, a hand-knotted harness can do in a pinch. Often called a Swiss seat, this tied harness is typically used in rappelling or belaying situations, since climbing in one fo… read more
How to Make a Climbing Harness

A homemade climbing harness won't replace a comfortable manufactured one, but knowing how to make your own webbing harness is a blessing when needed---like when your partner leaves his harness back at the car. This simple webbing harne… read more
How Do I Tie My Own Climbing Harness?

If possible, it's best to use a pre-made climbing harness for rock climbing and rappelling. The harnesses you can buy are carefully designed and more comfortable than anything you'll be able to make yourself. However, when it's necessa… read more
How to Make a Homemade Climbing Harness

Making a homemade climbing harness out of webbing yields a low-cost alternative to an expensive commercial version. The thin webbing used in making this style of harness cuts into your leg and waist during falls and long hangs, so don'… read more
How to Use a Belay Device Carabiner Pulley Rope for Climbing

Climbing is an inherently dangerous sport. Safety precautions involving specialized equipment and methods reduce the risk of injury or death. An important safety method is belaying. You can belay without a belay device, but today it is… read more
How to Improvise a Rappelling Device With Carabiners

You're three pitches up a long rock climb, getting ready to descend, when disaster strikes and you drop your belay/rappel device, watching it clatter to ground 400 feet below. You're stuck. How do you get down from the climb, short of… read more
How to Make a Safety Harness

Safety harnesses are needed for many outdoor ventures, especially rock climbing, ice climbing and mountaineering. Though it is always better to wear a safety harness that has been designed and manufactured by a professional company, if… read more
How to Tie a Body Harness for Rescue

Anyone who ventures into the mountains must be prepared for any circumstance, including the possibility of injury and the need for rescue. A necessary part of any climber's emergency skill base, a rescue harness is also useful for hurr… read more
How do I Choose Rock Climbing Rope?

Today's dynamic rock-climbing ropes are designed to withstand more stress than a falling rock climber can actually generate. Despite this fact, selecting the right climbing rope for your rock-climbing adventures can still be the differ… read more

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