Finsterwalder Pin Lock Karabiner

Sold individually. The price is for one karabiner. Order two if you want a pair.

Options

• Adapters available for narrower paraglider risers

Finsterwalder Pin Lock Karabiner

The Finsterwalder PIN LOCK karabiner is compatible with conventional paragliding karabiners and is suitable for all paragliders and harnesses with webbing loops of 40 to 45 mm. Separate webbing chambers prevent shunt loading.

Featuring a long replacement interval, the PIN LOCK also offers a weight reduction of 40-60 grams compared to steel karabiners (80-120 grams per pair).

Overview

• Breaking load: 2,500 DaN*, certified fatigue endurance!
• Maximum allowable load for air sports 140 daN* per carabiner
• Replacement interval for solo use: 8 years, unlimited hours of usage
• Replacement interval for tandem use: 3 years, unlimited hours of usage
• Construction: Drop-forged Titanal* (alloy 7075 T6)
• Weight 80 g
• Inner height 40 mm
• Suitable for paraglider harness strap widths of 44 mm and wing riser widths of up to 25 mm**

* 1 daN (decanewton) = 10 N (newton) ≈ 1 kg

Lightweight and safe

Pin Lock carabiners are drop-forged instead of bent which results in increased material strength. The material of bent carabiners, in contrast, is weakened by inner tensions in the bended areas. However, the Pin Lock weighs a mere 80 g, i.e. only approx. half the weight of a steel carabiner.

Separate strap chambers

Separate strap chambers prevent the carabiner from twisting.

Handling

The risers are attached to the Pin Lock in a similar way as to conventional carabiners. The Quickpin lock features an automatic locking mechanism. It is designed in such a way that two different hand movements are required to unlock the carabiner: Pushing the release button and pulling out the bolt in the opposite direction.
Releasing the risers after landing is easier with Pin Locks than with snap hook carabiners. To ensure the proper connection between risers and carabiners in extremely strong wind conditions, the glider has to be attached to the carabiners before putting on the harness. This applies to both conventional carabiners and Pin Lock carabiners.

When used according to the instruction manual, icing problems can be reliably prevented even in extreme winter conditions.

Replacement interval

8 years replacement interval for paragliding mono use and 3 years replacement interval for hang gliding and paragliding tandem use with unimited flight hours.

Fatigue endurance is no issue for the Pin Lock with its force-fit and form-fit lock.In a dynamic fatigue test, the Pin Lock withstood 5,000,000 load cycles at 40-425 daN without damage.

Details

1. Quickpin

Self-locking ball lock pins are being used in aircraft construction already for many years. Several hang glider manufacturers incorporate our Quickpins into their A-frame corners and pilot hang-ins. In rehab technology, more than one million of our ball lock pins are in trouble-free operation.

2. Carabiner body

Unlike conventional carabiners, Pin Locks are drop-forged from Titanal* instead of bent from round steel rods and subsequently embossed. While bending tends to weaken the carabiner material, drop forging results in significantly improved material hardness. The strength level of the Titanal* used is comparable to that of high quality stainless steel. However, at only about one third the weight! Titanal* is also used for highly stressed aircraft and rocket components.

3. Safety cord

The safety cord of the Quickpin ist made of high-performance nylon developed by DuPont for deep sea fishing. The safety cord is replaceable and lasts for years when installed and operated properly.

Downloads

• Pin Lock karabiner instruction manual

*Titanal is a metal alloy composed of about 85% aluminium and the rest is zinc, magnesium, copper and zirconium. It's produced by Austria Metall AG or AMAG, the biggest company in the Austrian aluminium industry sector. Commonly used in high performance sports products, particularly snowboards and skis.