Ring Failure

For those who may have purchased a ring, either Aluminum or Steel, or a product that incorporates a ring from a dealer that carries products from Anchor Bridge Ropeworks please be advised that all of the rings bear the marking "made in Italy". These rings are currently not marked with the strength rating (25 kN), but all future rings will be labelled as such. These rings are made by Climbing Technology (http://www.climbingtechnology.it/)in Italy and are fully tested by APAVE of France prior to shipment.

Anyone that would like a copy of that testing information, feel free to contact me and I will email the testing results for every batch that I have imported.
 
I certainly mean nothing against Sherrills, I'm going there today, but this Kong crap has GOT to go. I just got word that Kong sourced these from a company called 'King Snap', and that ISC is sourcing from this same company. Until I hear otherwise, ISC is off my list too.

If you're a manufacturer of parts... MANUFACTURE the damn things, stop sourcing just because you can make a few extra dimes... or stop calling yourself a manufacturer and cop to the fact that you're just a middleman outfit inserting yourself into the supply chain and driving prices up.

BOYCOTT KONG!

This is unacceptable and no recall can fix it. It costs more to ship one of these back than to buy a new one. KONG has NO business selling life support gear. They screwed the pooch.

Or you can stand around, do nothing and let the rest of the life support gear business go to China or wherever where the production quality WILL fade at every possible opportunity.


What really sucks is that Bonatti was a great manufacturer with many decades of experience... now they just suck.
 
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I have it from a knowledgeable source that the ring was NOT a Petzl product but rather added to the bridge of this 4th generation climber's saddle. As described to me it fits the description of the ring we are recalling and many an arborist supplier has peddled.

As some may know I posted a voluntary recall August 8th, within hours of hearing of a previous incident. Attached here is the latest version with better photos. If someone has the described ring (non-colored, polished aluminum ring without inscribed load rating) who didn't buy it from us, send it to us anyway and we'll provide a free replacement. These need to be off the street and fast.

Tobe Sherrill

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Thanks Tobe !

I also had assumed that it was NOT a Petzl ring based on the lack of any markings.

Interestingly the climber told me that the ring was "PRE-INSTALLED" when he bought the harness (Petzl SRT)from a supply house.

Who installed it ?

I also have a Petzl SRT which did NOT come with a ring installed on the bridge
 
Paul,

In my limited experience ..........
None of my 22+ KN Al rings have load ratings.

Most of mine are from CT (Climbing Technologys) and are at least marked "Made in Italy".
I know where they came from.

But you make a VERY good point for all future comp's !

Greg
 
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If no load markings.

Just wondering, if this should have been caught during equipment check?

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ITCC rulebook, rule 2.2.2 states:

.....If equipment is not clearly labeled to provide an industry standard mark, it is the competitor's responsibility to provide evidence to the head judge that the equipment is manufactured to meet the accepted standard for that piece of equipment and its application. (2007)



I don't think it is unreasonable for a gear inspector to ask the competitor where the non labeled hardware was purchased and for that inspector to accept the hardware based upon the fact that it was purchased at a recognized arborist supply shop.

I'm not aware of too many inspector's that carry around electron microscopes which may or may not have been able to detect the flaws in this particular piece. I would venture to guess that the ring was inspected for visible faults.

If the competitor had a piece of paper that stated the strength rating of this particular piece would it have prevented the failure?
 
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If no load markings.

Just wondering, if this should have been caught during equipment check?

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ITCC rulebook, rule 2.2.2 states:

.....If equipment is not clearly labeled to provide an industry standard mark, it is the competitor's responsibility to provide evidence to the head judge that the equipment is manufactured to meet the accepted standard for that piece of equipment and its application. (2007)



I don't think it is unreasonable for a gear inspector to ask the competitor where the non labeled hardware was purchased and for that inspector to accept the hardware based upon the fact that it was purchased at a recognized arborist supply shop.

I'm not aware of too many inspector's that carry around electron microscopes which may or may not have been able to detect the flaws in this particular piece. I would venture to guess that the ring was inspected for visible faults.

If the competitor had a piece of paper that stated the strength rating of this particular piece would it have prevented the failure?

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Rich, I heard that this competitors gear DID NOT get inspected???
 
Norm, I wasn't there but I would find it very hard to believe that the gear wasn't inspected at all......


Due to the work of you and many like you, the overall professionalism of the TCC's has greatly increased over the last 10 years , especially in regards to safety. Considering the caliber of the volunteers involved with running the Michigan comp in particular it would be hard to imagine that they would let a competitor pass through with Zero inspection......but like I said, I wasn't there.

I know this climber personally, and while he has many friends among the TCC circuit it would amaze me if anyone would give him a free pass on his gear...
 
Correction on recall date-

I did not post the "official" recall notice August 8th as Mr. Frybrain (me) eluded to above, rather it was posted August 26th as my trusty associate Mark Boozer reminded me. I was thinking about the thread started August 2nd titled "Broken aluminum ring"

...what a frickin' nightmare for us all.
 
Some of us old schoolers still use drop forged steel for all our primary support locking connections exclusively.

I'm glad there were no deaths because of these life support equipment failures.

Use of leather cambium savers is a good way of avoiding rings and stuck climbing lines altogether!

jomoco
 
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Norm, I wasn't there but I would find it very hard to believe that the gear wasn't inspected at all......


Due to the work of you and many like you, the overall professionalism of the TCC's has greatly increased over the last 10 years , especially in regards to safety. Considering the caliber of the volunteers involved with running the Michigan comp in particular it would be hard to imagine that they would let a competitor pass through with Zero inspection......but like I said, I wasn't there.

I know this climber personally, and while he has many friends among the TCC circuit it would amaze me if anyone would give him a free pass on his gear...

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I inspected his gear. There was no evidence of a crack. I inspected the ring visually and by touch. There was no obvious cracks.

Personally, I will never allow another climber to pass with an unmarked aluminum ring. I will not accept sale through an arborists' catalog as proof of integrity.

I witnessed episode after the fall. He fell from between 15 and 20'. His hitch was on a limb that was at least 20'above the ground, but I'm not sure if it sprung there or was moved afterward.

I do not like aluminum, and will discuss with my partner whether we will allow aluminum rings at all in the work environment.
 
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We had him checked out at the local ER and he was back in time to see the tail end of the Masters.

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Not quite. I was just a separate event volunteer judge. I know the climber and saw him after the fall. He looked a bit woozy. I asked him if he wanted to go to the ER and drove him. There were no "official" checks to the ER. I think that a trip to the ER should be mandatory after a fall like his, not left to his discretion.

Also, the first thing the nurse did after hearing him say "neck pain" was to fit him with a neck brace.

I think that the protocol for emergency care was a bit lax. I think that in all the excitement, the ring took precedence over the climber.
 
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I do not like aluminum, and will discuss with my partner whether we will allow aluminum rings at all in the work environment.

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I like aluminum and used three rings today for various purposes.

All of our rings are CT rings. We are removing all Kong rings from use. Two climbers had Kong rings on bridges and I had one on a secret weapon. The CTs we have around are NOT stamped. When they are new you can read "Made in Italy" but after several uses that wears off. What type of verification can be offered to an inspector? A receipt for rings purchased?

Might have to switch to ISC rings.
 
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Might have to switch to ISC rings.

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It's not verified but I'm told that ISC sources parts from the same band of sh|tbirds that Kong does, King Snaps. Unless they prove otherwise, I won't touch another ISC or Kong product.

My favorite snaps are by CT (Climbing Technology). My steel FS rings are by them too, I think. They were marked 'Made in Italy' but no rating. Bonatti gear used to be made in Italy but it sounds like they're nothing but a parts aggregator now... driving prices up and quality down.

This is life support gear, for that reason it comes at a premium price. When a company sends it's manufacturing to Taiwan or someplace with the cheapest possible labor, unscrupulous business practices and questionable quality are GUARANTEED. They don't just cut corners sometimes, they do it at every conceivable opportunity. That's what we've learned from China in the last few years. Quality is something they do only when somebody important is watching.

Folks, this is where we have to draw a line. If you buy gear from these companies you're part of the problem. They will always do this crap unless there are real consequences. We can't afford to have manufacturers constantly trying to slip unsuitable gear into the supply chain.

At this point, even though it's rumor, I'm including ISC in my rampage. They are welcome to prove me wrong and nothing would make me happier. But any company sourcing from the Pacific Rim should be immediately suspect until they prove otherwise.

Anybody remember Jap Crap? Ok, maybe most of you young bucks don't...
After WWI anything made in Japan was highly suspect in terms of quality... because it was almost invariably of poor quality... recycled battleships and all that. Americans would hardly touch the stuff. Then, some smart Japanese Manufacturers hired an American quality guru Dr. W. Edwards Deming to help them turn it around. And turn it around they did, even beating us at our own game for a time in the not so distant past. So change IS possible, but it won't happen unless we make it clear that crap quality is absolutely unacceptable.

WE HAVE TO DO THIS! If we don't, we have no room to complain.


I hope that climber sues the living crap out of Kong. Class action would be better. Put'em out of business for good.



Excerpt from the Deming link...

Dr. W. Edwards Deming is known as the father of the Japanese post-war industrial revival and was regarded by many as the leading quality guru in the United States. He passed on in 1993.

Trained as a statistician, his expertise was used during World War II to assist the United States in its effort to improve the quality of war materials.

He was invited to Japan at the end of World War II by Japanese industrial leaders and engineers. They asked Dr. Deming how long it would take to shift the perception of the world from the existing paradigm that Japan produced cheap, shoddy imitations to one of producing innovative quality products...
 
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