Aluminum 2D617	Stainless Steel 4D617

Overview

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Aluminum 2D617
(#1158)

Front	Rear

Technical Details

I acquired this eight from We’re Not Scared Safety in 2008.

The Climbing Technology 8 is forged from aluminum alloy and then soft anodized. Mine is 172 mm. tall, 172 mm. wide, and 16 mm. thick. The rope hole is 66 mm. high and 76 mm. wide. The top center thickness is 13 mm. The shaft length and width are 47 mm. and 41 mm., respectively. The auxiliary hole is 30.5 mm. high and 15.3 mm. wide. The eye measures 34 mm. by 40 mm. The ears are 33.9 mm. long. My Climbing Technology Ltd. 8 weighs 246 g.

The front of my Climbing Technology 8 is printed with a strength test icon (not a rigging illustration!) with "△" above and "▽" below, all above "40 kN," the Climbing Technology Ltd. logo, "Made in ITALY," and "0107."

Comments

The Climbing Technology is a typical example of a forged aluminum rescue eight.

The eye and ears are larger than they need to be. The belay slot is a reasonable size for a Sticht slot, and insetting part of the slot into the useless portion of the upper rope hole reduces the length of the eight. Still, like all rescue eights, this one is too large and heavy for a normal climbing or caving eight - there are much better devices, including some eared eights, that are smaller.

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Stainless 4D617
(#1170)

Front	Rear

Technical Details

I acquired this eight new on eBay from Derek Nichols in 2008.

This eight is forged from stainless steel. It is 171 mm. tall, 160 mm. wide, and 12 mm. thick. The rope hole is 66 mm. high and 75 mm. wide. The top center thickness is 12 mm. The shaft length and width are 47 mm. and 48 mm., respectively. The auxiliary hole is 28 mm. high and 29 mm. wide. The eye measures 36 mm. by 44 mm. The ears are 30 mm. long. This eight weighs 536 g.

One side of the eight has "KN40 CT" in raised forged letters on one ear and "Made in EEC" on the other, also in raised forged letters

Comments

This a typical example of a forged steel rescue eight with ears. Although solid, it is far too heavy for my taste. I don't know of any practical reason for the sub-pentagonal auxiliary hole; apparently, it is just for show.

For a long time I was not certain that the "CT" marking indicated Climbing Technology. This eight was not listed in their on-line catalog at the time that I acquired it, and it did not match their other eights. Later Climbing Technology catalogs confirmed its identity.