Standards for retiring equipment

Gord

Gord

Location
Gibsons BC
Do clear standards/regulations exist for retiring gear?

I've heard lots of guidelines and 'best practices', but it seems that there have been a few fatigue/age related equipment failures lately that didn't contravene any known regulations.

One example was a Yale wire-core flipline that partially failed due to age/fatigue/rust. Anyone that has had one of these knows it's impossible to inspect the condition of the load-bearing wire-core within the sheathing.

Another example is the failure of rope bridges made with self-abrasive fibers. It's becoming very apparent that these fibers in some cases wear far more quickly than less 'exotic' fibers, and therefore should be replaced more frequently.

Does anyone know what (if any) rigging and climbing gear is tested to failure in an average-use, cycles-to-failure procedure?

Rope manufacturers lately have been highlighting the advantage and safety of using rigging ropes that are more dynamic rather than static higher strength lines. I think that another facet of this knowledge is choosing materials and making standards that account for equipment fatigue and wear.
 
I'm not a fan of dynamic rigging ropes. if I need control I'll take smaller pieces.

Touch wood...I've never broken a rope except when ground dragging debris, which sure isn't 'rigging'.

It would be somewhere between difficult and impossible to track the use/abuse of ropes. In order to do any sort of realistic testing every slam dunk drop would have to be recorded. Is anyone willing to fire up their phone to track the data?

Years ago Don Blair was asked when we should replace/retire ropes. His answer is the best yet:

The day before they break.
 
Well put Tom...
I guess when I think about it, I think of other life-related equipment that is used everyday and regulated for retirement/replacement/repair...
Take a bridge for example. Engineers have the math and science to build and design the bridge to hold up cars and trucks to drive on it and for it to last a determinate amount of time. Kind of the same as our ropes and hardware. But, every so often, even before the way early safety fix/replace deadline, a bridge fails... Now obviously its not that simple, but kind of the same thinking. We could set a 1 year mandatory replacement period on a carabiner or hank of rope, but my guess is failures would still occur. And mostly they wold be from miss-use.
I feel it all comes down to education, experience, and understanding of our equipment.
I guess I also kind of equate it with some of the accidents that occur in the industry. Even with all the regulation and safety standards that we have, there still are ignorant (and sometimes stupid) people out there not learning what they could about the work that they are doing.
 
Oh, and to answer your question. No, I am not aware of any regulations that pertain to gear and length of use (time periods or anything like that). The ANSI standards refer to inspecting for wear...
 
[ QUOTE ]
Do clear standards/regulations exist for retiring gear?

I've heard lots of guidelines and 'best practices', but it seems that there have been a few fatigue/age related equipment failures lately that didn't contravene any known regulations.

One example was a Yale wire-core flipline that partially failed due to age/fatigue/rust. Anyone that has had one of these knows it's impossible to inspect the condition of the load-bearing wire-core within the sheathing.

Another example is the failure of rope bridges made with self-abrasive fibers. It's becoming very apparent that these fibers in some cases wear far more quickly than less 'exotic' fibers, and therefore should be replaced more frequently.

Does anyone know what (if any) rigging and climbing gear is tested to failure in an average-use, cycles-to-failure procedure?

Rope manufacturers lately have been highlighting the advantage and safety of using rigging ropes that are more dynamic rather than static higher strength lines. I think that another facet of this knowledge is choosing materials and making standards that account for equipment fatigue and wear.

[/ QUOTE ]
Good questions, especially with the wire core lanyards. I am just replacing my last wire core I bought 5 years ago. It's important for us who work in the winters and they are subject to the snow & crap we get here. I take everything inside every night to dry. Might last a bit longer in other environments, I check all my gear every morning before a climb. Don't want to find out the hard way!
 
My question wasn't so much about gear that is easily inspected and/or gear that wears in apparent ways. A rigging rope that needs to be retired will have some typical features: significant nap, stiffness, more or less stretch than it originally had. If it was seriously abused it will have more notable defects, bulges, glazing etc.

I'm thinking more about the wear gear experiences that isn't noticeable. At what point does a harness get retired? Is it still safe after three or four thousand hours of use? Does a harness with this many hours on it necessarily have readily apparent signs of wear?
 
To paraphrase Denny Moorehouse..if the gear looks useable it is. Denny told me in more than one conversation that they've tested dropped gear, dropped by mountaineers/bigwall/S&R onto rock, not trees and turf. The gear would break within expected loads.

Visual inspections, with a trained eye, will show sure signs of wear.
 
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