Black Rapid Strap carabiner choice?

Garnett

Garnett

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Sam
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Does anyone know where you can get this sort of carabiner/clip?

20080630-4159-5D-EE.jpg

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I've read the stories about the more common carabiner failing and cameras being dropped. This fits with my view of where the weakest point is in the strap design.

The carabiner in the pic above looks a much better option.
 
I don't know where you would get that carabiner from. Which part of the black rapid carabiner have you heard fails? I've heard of people putting a key ring between the two parts (in case the swivel fails). To be honest I trust a d7000, grip, 300mm f4 and 1.4TC on the strap. That lot weighs 2.5-3kg. I keep my right hand gently gripping it just in case anything did break and to ensure I don't knock it against something. I looked at the competitors copies of the black rapid strap and felt they were not as well made, some looked like they would break straight away.

Looking at that carabiner I wouldn't trust it more than the black rapid one. It only has a piece of clear plastic tubing to stop the carabiner from opening, the black rapid has a screw lock. The camera screw loop doesn't look that strong either, a piece of very thin bent metal compared to the black rapid hardened screw in flush mount.

Have you contacted black rapid with your concerns? Camera insurance is good for this type of damage occurring, not sure where you stand if you have modified the strap though.
 
THIS is what I use, plus the split ring safety feature as mentioned above.
 
Rob, the carabiner pictured is from the Black Rapids website, here.

The one more commonly shown is this one:

ConnectR-2

http://cdn.blackrapid.com/img/product/cr2-02.jpg

It looks the same spec as the carabiner on the Capa copy I have.

A quick google will throw up the reports of the BR carabiners failing. They fail exactly where I thought was the weakest point in the setup.

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I've read about the split ring solution, and seem a few different versions with cable ties.

The swivel is there for a reason though. If the clip can't swivel you run the risk of torque being applied to the tripod screw.

This wouldn't be so bad where the setup includes an "L Plate" like the Q-Strap. If the screw works loose, the L-plate comes loose and it is obvious before the screw undoes completely. In the BR version the first you'll know is when the camera falls to the floor.

I'm currently looking at climbing swivels:

swivel.jpg


Not cheap at £31 but one of those, a carabiner for £5-8 and a Q-Strap should produce a much stronger setup than currently available, and for about the same outlay as a basic BR strap.
 
Ive seen photos like this before we're it's broke at that point, how common this is i don't know. I suppose it also depends on how much you use the strap (pro wedding tog v amateur/hobbyist). Unluckily this is the weakest point of the of the overall design. I don't use the 'safety' key ring idea at present but i'm think of doing so. I'm not too concerned about the connector unscrewing due to a small reduction in rotational movement if a key ring was added. It would still allow a degree of rotation just not allow it to turn 360. For the screw connector to unscrew due to reduced rotation wouldn't you notice the strap becoming twisted first? I do tighten the connector before every use and use the carabiner as a lever to tighten it more than hand tight. I cant find a weight limit the BR strap can take as overloading the strap could probably cause this type of failure. The non screw lock carabiners can easily become snagged and unclip then your camera detach. Is this BR clip from an older design (2008), did they change it due to a previous issue?

My safety plan is:

1. Check tightness of connector on before and during every use
2. Gently grip camera/lens whilst it's hanging on strap
3. Use key ring as safety connector.

I think its up to everyone to decide what they feel comfortable with, ultimately you have to trust it or you wont use it. Designs do evolve over time so I'm interested to see your final design when you do make it.
 
That swivel is massively over-specced for what you want it to do! The krabs I climb on are rated at 21Kn and i've taken some big old falls on them... Have you thought about looking at a chandlers for better but not ridiculous swivels/karabiner combos?
 
Thanks David.Actually there seem to be some decent priced fishing gear that should do the job.
 
Hey Doug. Which part are you referring to? The carabiner is, I suspect, from my research, as tough as the BR. The stitching connecting the webbing to the shoulder pad looked fine, but I cut it of and replaced the webbing so that it's one continuous loop of webbing with no reliance on stitching at all. This removes one potential weak point the Q strap and the BR strap share.
 
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