Climbing Carabiners: What Kind Do I Need?

Snap gate carabiners can also be divided into two groups, solid gate and wire gate. A solid gate carabiner has a solid bar which closes the gate which is about the same thickness as the rest of the carabiner. Wire gates on the other hand have gates which are made of wire. The differences between the two are fairly marginal. The first advantage of the wire gate is that it is lighter, a big advantage, especially when sport climbing. Wire gates are also less susceptible to freezing in winter than the solid gate carabiners. The third and probably most important advantage is that due to the gate having less solid mass it is less likely to seize open. A problem which once they have been used a lot is likely to occur with solid gates.

Screw-gate karabiners come in 3 main types. Firstly there are small screw-gate carabiners. These are light and strong and are ideal for using in belays where they will link just 2 pieces of kit and won’t need much adjustment. The second type is large screw-gate carabiners. These are used when using thicker ropes or if an anchor needs to accommodate 2 ropes. The third type is a HMS screw-gate carabiner. The difference between this and a large screw-gate is not very obvious to those not looking for it. For this reason large screw-gates are often used when a HMS would have done the job much better. A HMS gate has a flat top side. For this reason it often looks like a pear. This flat edge is designed to make belaying with an Italian (Munter) hitch much easier and cause less friction. HMS carabiners are also very useful if you need to attach 2 clove hitches to a single point in a belay.

So long as you are using a screw gate when you should be, not using the ideal one will not put yourself in danger. That said, knowing how to use each one to your best advantage will make your climbing both smoother and easier.