Nearly lost a finger last week from a rope lock failure

I was up in a big red oak in Portland, setting a redirect line for a limb walk, when my rope lock just let go. The whole line slipped about 10 feet before I caught it with my hand jammed against the crotch. That was the moment I realized the lock was worn down from years of use and I never checked it. I got down, swapped the part, and now I inspect every lock before I tie in. Has anyone else had a similar close call with gear that seemed fine?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_piper23d ago

OH MAN that is TERRIFYING. I actually just read in a climbing gear blog that rope locks are one of those parts that wear out way faster than people think because of internal friction you can't see. A worn lock can look totally fine on the outside but fail under load, so it's smart you're inspecting them now before every climb.

jamesfox23d ago

There's a 2019 incident report from the Access Fund that documents a rope lock failure on a single pitch at Stone Fort. Guy was only 15 feet off the ground when his lock let go mid-clip. Landed on a boulder and broke his ankle. The report noted the lock had visible surface wear nobody thought was an issue. What gets me is the forensic analysis showed the aluminum had work-hardened from repeated micro-movements, basically turning brittle inside. So even if the outside looks clean, if you've been using the same lock for two seasons with regular falls, the internal grain structure can change completely. Visual inspection only catches maybe half the real problems.

mia74816d ago

Keep a logbook for your quickdraws and mark the month you started using each lock. I started doing this after a buddy had a wiregate snap on him at the New, and now I retire any lock that's been through two full seasons of outdoor climbing no matter how good it looks. The micro movements thing is real, I've cut open old biners before and seen the discoloration inside the nose where the metal got stressed. Even worse with rope locks because the gate sees so much side loading from the rope rubbing against it. If you're projecting hard and falling a lot, honestly swap them out every season instead of waiting for visible wear.