UKC

Blue Ice Choucas II Harness Update

© Blue Ice

A customer recently contacted us after running into a problem with the safety buckle of the Choucas II Harness.

We contacted both the APAVE (the certifying body that verifies our quality system for harnesses andcertification of harnesses to conform to the norm 12277 for mountaineering harnesses) and the ENSA (Ecole Nationale de Ski et d’Alpinisme) an independent laboratory that tests at least one harness of every batch we manufacture. No one sounded alarmed and they both agreed that the harness fully responds to the norm.

Blue Ice Choucas II Harness

We spent two days running a series of tests with an independent expert from the ENSA laboratory in Chamonix. We concluded that the webbing can slide in the buckle only if the following conditions are met simultaneously:

1. The harness is oversized and the buckle is placed under the belay loop or the rope,

2. The webbing is loose in the buckle and there is no tension in the belt,

3. The user must pull gently on the belay loop or the rope perpendicularly to the buckle and purposely keep pulling sidewise.

Following this observation, we ran a series dynamic fall tests not required by the norm. For these tests, we choose the most unfavorable scenarios:

1. A possible falls sidewise,

2. With the tying in point positioned (and secured) on the safety buckle.

In both scenarios, the webbing never slid in the buckle proving that an accidental slippage of the

webbing cannot happen during a fall even when the most unfavorable conditions are met.

Finally we tested both the strength of the webbing tale and a fall with the harness opened to its

maximum. We observed that:

1. The webbing tale does not come out of the buckle and that the system withstands the force required by the Certification norm,

2. Even with the harness fully opened and the test dummy turning upside down during the fall, the test dummy never escaped from the harness.

We invite all of our customers to check the fit their Choucas II harness, in a safe environment, to double check its size, fit and the correct geometry of the belt when fitted. (Please note that in some cases, even the smallest size might not fit you).


If a Customer needs any assistance with this, please refer to the retailer from which the harness was purchased, where advice and, if necessary, smaller harnesses can be tried on to verify correct size.


For more information Beyond Hope



This is part of a long saga - the full story of which is here: http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=621074&v=1#x8107823

Product News at UKC presents climbing, walking and mountaineering equipment posts that will be of interest to our readers. Please feel free to comment about the post and products on the associated thread.
Loading Notifications...
Facebook Twitter Copy Email