"Mr Jo Macdonald" wrote:
I got the impression that some people were saying no shackles release reliably unless you hook them to a steel ring while others were saying the Wichard 2673 works fine with a plastic coated chicken loop or plain rope loop.
Some will not release reliably from ANYthing (even a big, thick ring) under load. The 2673* pictured below has been reported to stick on some tubing-covered loops, & also on some o-rings, but not on a plain line loop (which is what I've been using for quite a while.
*pretty much agreed by the majority to be the safest of all snap shackles, along with the 2773, & other Wichards with an identical mechanism, due to it being the only tip-pivot model with an exposed mechanism which can't jam with sand. By the way, it IS stainless steel (forged), I always ride in salt water, have never rinsed mine, & the very slight rust on some parts does not hinder the function at all.
As far as I could gather the general consensous of opinion was that the side release snap shackle (below) only releases reliably from a metal ring and then probably after applying a lot of force to release it
Pretty much, but it's the PIVOT being at the side which hinders release under load (ALL shackles RELEASE from the side, even if the trigger is centered).
So, does the Wichard 2673 release reliably from a chicken loop?
Yes, as long as there's no TUBE on the loop.
I have tested a Wichard 2673 on a chicken loop under my body weight (maybe not enough) and it releases every time easy.
Not "maybe", DEFINITELY not enough weight. Consider this: While riding fully powered with the kite & your butt both nearly skimming the surface, & the board railed over very hard, the lines are nearly touching the toe side of your board, nearly parallel to your legs, which feel about ready to collapse under the load. That load must be around 4 times your body weight, because each leg can support twice your weight, since you can walk carrying a person of equal weight. Nothing usually breaks when you're riding like this, but stuff DOES break when you get slammed & dragged hard by an out-of-control kite. That means there can likely be more than FOUR TIMES YOUR BODY WEIGHT on the shackle, when you need it to release.
Some shackles might be dangerous with steel rings, I thought someone said even the Wichard 2673 can catch on a steel ring but this trigger shackle below has a bloody big hook on the end when it's open, just waiting for a metal ring.
That's right. I was the one reporting that a local rider told me his 2673 caught on the very same ring which released reliably from his side pivot shackle. Somebody else reported on the Yahoo group that a ring had caught on a Wichard Trigger Snap Shackle as shown below.
Obviously the most important thing of all is to test your own particular settup and make sure it releases reliably.
Absolutely, but you need to test it with no load, & 4 times your weight, & a few in-between loads, AND try to MAKE it stick, in order to be fairly certain that it will release when you need it to.