whats happened to the forum at treebuzz? all i get is a blank page for the forum, evryhting else works thoguh.

It appears the the Buzz Board is down over the weekend. They will get it going by Monday, I am sure.

------------

Can anybody tell me if any of these carabiners from this company can be used for anything else besides storing my keys? http://www.liangdianup.com/carabiners_1.htm

Some of them are pretty big but what are the requirements for a beener so that it can be used for rope work / climbing?

How can I learn about the history of carabiners? And if I am searching to buy some wholesale carabiners does anyone know of any other words that would be used for carabiner? I have heard of the word crab ring or something like that but not sure if it fits. Help?

Oh yeah, if that _link_ above does not work then here is the home page for the site www.lducompany.com I think they have them under camping or tools or something like that.

True story:

While shopping at a local Home Depot (wearing a Fire-Rescue t-shirt) I was approached by a younger person with a couple of brightly colored carabiner-type things in his hands. The kind of things pictured in Tibets' post's _link_. The kid (20's) asked me if I new anything about rope rescue. I said I did, and he proceded to ask me how much weight I thought his "carabiners" would hold. "Those are not meant for climbing!" I said. "Oh, I'm not climbing on them." was his response. I was relieved. Then he looked me straight in the face and said, "I'm rappelling". " "

This should tell you everything you need to know about these carabiners.
"Your Connection For Wholesale Items From China"
Ouch - Operators are standing by! (I wonder if it refers to 9-1-1 operators!)

China is not known for selling "high quality life safety gear" that you can trust your life with.

Making key chains that is another story all together.
Cheap key chain junk that is Ok to buy from China!
IMHO