| Name: | Petzl Am'D Spinball |
| Category: | other locking |
| Locking Type: | manual |
| Locks: | double |
| Unlock Style: | press-and-twist |
| Sleeve Rotation: | 120° (unlocked) | 120° (maximum) |
| Shape: | asymmetric D |
| Material: | aluminum |
| Profile: | flat |
| Nose: | keylock |
| Nose Guard: | none |
| Rivets: | domed |
| Gate Shield: | relieved: blocked |
| Weight: | 71 g |
| Dimensions: | Length: 111 mm Width: 63 mm Gate Opening: 22 mm |
| Strength Ratings: |  28 kN |  7 kN |  8 kN |
| Other Markings: | Forged: PETZL Am'D Pat. | (ratings) CE0197 Injection Molded: (Petzl oval logo) SPINBALL PATENTED (fingerprint texture) Stamped: 031740 |
| Batch Marking Location: | spine-exterior-left |
| Collection Criteria: | ★ Mechanically Interesting ★ Historically Interesting or Iconic |
| Summary: | manual version of ball-lock |
| Description & Commentary: | The earliest version of Petzl's triple action button-locked carabiners. From the unlocked position, the yellow sleeve is manually rotated about 120 deg and engages a spring-loaded green button which protrudes through a hole in the sleeve. Depressing the button (or ball) and rotating the sleeve will unlock the carabiner. The rotation of the sleeve is entirely manual and not spring-powered, permitting the carabiner to remain in the unlocked position until it needs to be secured - much like a traditional screw lock carabiner. Most modern triple-action carabiners use two spring-powered locks (full autolocking), whereas the Spinball uses a manual lock (the spin) in conjunction with a single autolocking mechanism (the ball). Note that the plastic sleeve Ball Lock v1 and the metal sleeved Ball Lock v2, unlock after about a 45 deg rotation but the spin lock requires ~120 deg of rotation - which seems appropriate considering the manual aspect of this mechanism. I appreciate manual locking carabiners, climbing almost exclusively on them for recreational tree climbing. Even so, I prefer a metal-sleeved screw lock carabiner, as I expect it would be a bit stronger at resisting force on the gate face - I would be concerned about the plastic sleeve deforming under a gate face load. That said, this is one of my favorite carabiners in the collection, and I wish we could get a re-release using a metal sleeve and a lightweight hot-forged carabiner body. |
| Relevant Patent: | EP0826890A1 |