I was just thinking. I need to get a nice big strong one, so that I can clip my bag to something if we're out in public no one can grab it & go.
I keep several in/on my EDC bag. They've come in handy for attaching water bottles, baseball caps, water shoes when at the beach or on hikes, bags with other items. At the beach I also use one to hang my bag off a table or big umbrella to keep it from getting wet or all sandy. I think they're worth their weight.
I EDC an Omega D Carabiner on a belt loop. I have a dog chain as a keychain running from it. This allows me to use my keys to unlock a door and then drop the keys when my other hand is full. They simply fall to my side. Also, my wife often asks me to carry her purse when she has been carrying it for an extended length of time. I no more want to carry it than she does, so I just clip it to my carabiner for a hands free problem solution.
Army habit - I may never need to use the improved weight-bearing capacity of a climbing carabiner, but it's nice to know I have the option. Civilian side, I've used it to secure shopping bags and just about everything else to my backpack. I could have done that with a cheapie "for keys only" carabiner, but I prefer the peace of mind factor. As a side note, you can get heavier duty, but not climbing grade, carabiners in the hardware store. A middle ground compromise between price, performance and weight. -Trevor
I always carry 1 locking and 1 non locking carabiner attached to all of my bags. There are times when you need it.
My father taught me to box when I was 6 years old. I have 5 older brothers, and my dad wanted me to survive childhood. First lesson was to never hit someone once they are down. It was very tempting though.
Don't use the one I have on my bag too frequently but when I do it's usually for the above to free up hands a bit or to be able to carry a bit extra.
A carabiner to hook the bag(s) to the grab handle of my backpack and 550 cord or tent cord to make an improvised lash to secure the bags, more or less, to the backpack. You might look silly as heck, but it gets the groceries home. -Trevor
I just got a nice big strong carabiner in the mail that locks by screwing the clip part together. Pretty nice.
Because when the zombonis are coming, you can use it to zipline down the conveniently located, downward sloped power line of the building whose roof you are on. :laugh: My wife carries one for her keys, and it is an improvised fist load.
I carry a full-size carabiner for sentimental reasons similar to CatherineM (No, I didn't almost fall out of a helicopter!). One of my buddies gave me the biner to hang my helmet bag and camelback behind my seat in the helicopter while flying on cruise. Carry it on my hiking backpack.
The obvious use is to secure things you can't afford to lose. The technical use is rappelling. You don't even need a figure eight, just tie a Munter hitch into your biner and lock that onto your harness. Mind you, paracord which plenty of you carry, will provide you with almost no friction, so don't go rappelling down overhanging terrain or the laws of physics will take care of you. Having said that, the Munter hitch does provide more friction than a figure eight, so WCS... instructor belt, cord, biner and a simple knot may get you out there. If you want to try it out, get a 10mm rope, find a gentle slope, and be safe. The practical use when out there is to tie you pack to a tree at night. Don't let your pack get moist by leaving it on the ground. Wrap some rope around a tree, clip in a biner, and attach the pack.
I have one for my keys to hang inside the backpack. Fast deployment when needed. I also have my torch/laser on it + whistle + a small case with cotton and 2-3 match sparks.
I get the feeling people are talking about all different strengths & sizes of carabiners here. I wasn't clear with my original question, which was about carrying a climber's carabiner. What made me wonder about the climber's carabiner I was carrying, was that I only carried 350-lb test cord (pretty thin) and only a short length of it (25 feet) so I started to wonder why I was carrying a climbing carabiner, were there any other uses for it? After this thread, I'm not carrying the climbing 'biner anymore. I just have a couple of the small "organizer" style carabiners for securing light loads (under 50 lbs). I don't expect to be flying in helicopters with open doors.
Then why not carry the kitchen sink? It's probably more useful. No, I don't think EDC is about carrying everything you possibly can. I think it's the difficult process of finding a balance of what you're most likely to need, while carrying as little as you can. My current goal is to make my GHB lighter, not heavier.
I carry a pair of full size carabiners, mostly to attach misc. things to my bag like gloves or shoes. I also climb so I don't really like the idea of having a non load bearing gear mixed in. If you haven't found the need for one, there's a great reason to lighten your load. If you want UIAA spec and small size, check out the Metolius FS mini.
I just got a climbing biner in the mail along with 50' of 550 cord. I got the climbing biner in case i ever needed to help someone that was stuck i had a clip that could safely clip them.
