UKC

I lent some nice new QDs to a mate and told him specifically which end to use for the rope which he's ignored and scratched up the rope end using it to clip into bolts. Can I use a generic sandpaper to get rid of the sharp bits to avoid trashing my rope?

In reply to lewismansell: If there are now sharp bits after a couple of uses bolt clipping then I'd dump the krabs and buy some good quality ones.

In reply to lewismansell:

Make him buy you new ones after he ignored your instructions and made your gear unsafe to use?

In reply to lewismansell:

A light touch with a half round needle file works best. Failing that wrap something like 400grit emery paper round a pen and file with that. Or use something heavy smooth and round like a screwdriver shaft or another krab spine to tap/rub the burrs down.

I'm sure someone will be on shortly to castigate me for giving deadly advice but that's what I do with mine when they get nicked and they don't snap in use nor shred my rope.

An alternative is switch the krabs around so the best ones are kept for the rope end, something else I periodically do.
jk

In reply to Frank the Husky:

I have climbed lots on smooth Portland staples and never scratched my DMM Alpha quickdraws, then done a single day at Cheddar on Petzl hangers and put multiple small but sharp grooves in them. The winner in the battle between sharp steel hanger edges and relatively soft aluminium is pretty obvious... I would keep the quickdraws (and either file or sandpaper away, trying not to wear away too much of the anodising in places the rope wouldn't do it anyway) and dump the mate...

In reply to lewismansell:

Just tape the damaged crabs as a reminder to use them on the gear end.

If you value gear more than mates, the give the damaged ones to your pal and ask him to replace them

In reply to lewismansell:

Is this for real? Gear that's used properly acquires an honourable patina of age and use and signs of wear and tear. You can't keep it pristine and the ageing is good anyway.

In reply to lewismansell:

+1 to jkarran's advice.

In reply to Frank the Husky


Quality doesn't matter if it is misused. Which this gear was.

If i bought the best rope i could and cut it because of my bad rope work would you offer the same advice?

In reply to Rigid Raider:

I would take a few minutes to watch this if were you.

http://dmmclimbing.com/knowledge/carabiners-and-potential-rope-damage/

In reply to lewismansell:

If you lend gear to a friend, unless there's a clear understanding that they are literally unable to buy their own (e.g. in poverty) there is a pretty implicit assumption that if you break it or misuse it you replace it.

I'm sure it's only one or two of the biners that need replacing.

That said - a rounded file followed by some wet and dry would be fine as long as you make sure you clean off all debris /metal shards well before using them.

In reply to jkarran:


This when rubbing the burrs is a process called honing. We use it on scratches on the engine intake (lip skin) of aircraft. Not with a screwdriver, but with a honing ring although the process is the same.

In reply to allarms:



The quickdraw was used the "wrong way round", but I'm not convinced that's misuse. Your implication here is that the two krabs are made out of different meterial, one softer than the other. I don't know anything about the materials so can you explain the metallurgical difference between the two?

The comparison with a cut rope is irrelevant in this context.

In reply to Frank the Husky:
Although the krabs are the same, many (most?) people try to keep track of a bolt end and a rope end on their sport draws. The bolt end picks up a lot of small dints and burrs, but it doesn't matter because they are always used to clip bolts. The rope end stays nice and smooth. If you get burrs on the rope end they greatly speed up the rate of wear on the rope sheath. In extreme cases, they cut fibres and damage the rope quite quickly.

The needle file advice is good, as is the advice to rotate any particularly dinged up ones onto the bolt end. Even a small needle file will remove aluminium faster than you expect, so be cautious.

Edit: The DMM page linked above gives a clear explanation, and the video shows how the rope can get damaged in a severe case.
http://dmmclimbing.com/knowledge/carabiners-and-potential-rope-damage/

In reply to chris fox:


Interesting, is that repairing damage or dressing up marks after the lips are spun/formed?

I started out with planishing as it describes the process reasonably well (while being strictly inaccurate) then burnishing then thought I'd stick to plain descriptive language.
jk

In reply to Frank the Husky:


Check the video linked above. A carabiner will deform over a bolt and cause burs. This is normal. It becomes misuse when you use the QuickDraw back the other way.

Simply using the damaged ones as bolt ends after doesn't help much if you have specific shapes on either end - alpha clip and alpha sport carabiners or example that make up the alpha QuickDraw.

Your implication here is that the two krabs are made out of different meterial, one softer than the other.

No it isn't.


If you watch the video I would argue it is actually quite relevant.

In reply to lewismansell:


Clip the QD to something, take about 5 feet of old rope, clip in into the krab, take hold of an end and in each hand and applying firm pressure pull it back and forth through the krab a few times. You'll be surprised at how quickly the burrs vanish.

In reply to jkarran:

It's for dressing out scratches/damage. I'm on shift tonight, if i remember i'll take a photograph as i am sure there's at least one of the aircraft that i'll work on tonight thats had some honing work carried out and whack it up on flickr.

In reply to JayPee630:

Totally agree. If you use borrowed gear carelessly and damage it you should offer to replace it. Having replaced them, the OP's mate could then file off the burrs on the now-his damaged krabs and carry on using them.

In reply to lewismansell:

I used a dremel on my burred gear, it worked well.

In reply to jkarran:


You'd be surprised how many aircraft are flying around with a similar solution to this; to repair stressed skin damage.