Do bolts damage carabiners?

We are told so, but the wear on my bolt-side carabiners look more like smooth dents rather than sharp burrs that will rip my rope to shreds. Granted, my carabiners are relatively new. 

I can understand keeping your rope-side carabiners pristine if you’re taking 30 sport whippers per weekend, but for alpine draws, I’d rather keep each carabiner the same color for less faff.

Right now, the statement “you have to clip the same carabiner to the bolt each time” feels quite similar to “never ever mark the middle of your rope using a sharpie” and “if you drop your carabiner it will develop invisible cracks.”

Request: Can you show me some pics of bolt-side carabiners which have developed serious damage?  I’m happy to change my mind and learn more.

Thanks in advance 

It doesn't really matter, but will wear your gear slightly faster. Because of that it is best practice, but not a hard rule. For quick draws it is a bit more of a real rule since keeping the bolt carabiner captive increases the chance of it unclipping or getting into a compromised orientation.

I'm a punter who doesn't try hard particularly much on lead and so doesn't fall a huge amount. I have had to file down sharp edges of biners before. I don't have any photos. 

I think for the average punter this isn't a super critical point, but what does it cost to have a rope side biner and a pro side? I'm failing to see the advantage to having the same color biner on both. If I did that I would want to inspect my carabiners semi regularly which I don't have to do because I don't do that. The "less faff" doesn't seem that much less faff to me. 

Also curious to hear from those that fall a lot. 

Heh, do what you want. Fall on the burr, shred the rope, traumatize your partners, whatever. Oh, but don't give me your double burr ended slings to fall on. That's my life, not yours.

I don’t want to worry about which end is up on alpine draws. Same color carabiners reduces my internal brain speak forcing me to “fix it” before I lead the next pitch. I.e. actual faffery - in a setting where it matters, on the wall or mountain. Falling happens rarely enough that burrs are unlikely to develop. Inspections can happen after a severe fall on a bolt, piton, or nut when I’m at home in my garage. Ok the other hand, regular usage on the rope end for every carabiner wears out the minor burrs before they get really bad.

My sport draws matter which end is up because bolt interaction is its primary use. Burrs are expected and the rubber keeper rope end is half of why clipping them instead of an alpine is so nice. Putting them upside down would be worse and less practical while climbing. 

If you dont whip it doesn’t matter at all. What’s the obsession with biner color I don’t get it?

Echoing an above statement, I don't see a lot of risk in having the rope run through a "bolt side" biner. However, I'm good to my gear and it takes zero effort to keep them separated, so that's what I always do. 

I've seen some grim looking gouges on bolt end biners and definitely some sharp points that would at best knick the rope. Sadly, no pics.

It's really more of a mundane reality of sport climbing than it is some myth, people just hear the rule and fail to either be provided context or they don't think about it hard enough and accept it as gospel. 

As others have said, it really matters only if you fall, if your taking lots of whips on ur alpine draws it might make a difference, but if ur not, the scrapes are just cosmetic. 

A similar "rule" is no metal on metal, I'm sure there's a few people on here who remember the time before Quickdraws, where you just used to biners cliped to the gear. 

I have seen some pretty bad burrs too.

I keep them separated. Silver for bolt, red for rope. Peace of mind is easy... and nice.

Alex Fletcher wrote:

Inspections can happen after a severe fall on a bolt, piton, or nut when I’m at home in my garage. 

That sounds like more faff than just remembering to rack, say, silver biner on top, red on bottom (which is my system — never even have to think about it now). If you can remember which way to rack your sport draws, why would it be hard to remember which way to rack your alpines?

Alex C wrote:

That sounds like more faff than just remembering to rack, say, silver biner on top, red on bottom (which is my system — never even have to think about it now). If you can remember which way to rack your sport draws, why would it be hard to remember which way to rack your alpines?

It’s not hard for me to remember. I just want to rack my draws however they are handed to me efficiently on my harness after the follower brings up a disaster of gear clipped all over their body.

If you don’t spend a lot of time teaching beginners how to climb you might not realize just how many more important things there are to focus on than which way the alpines are facing. For example, the importance of closing the system so you can’t rappel off the end of the rope.

Folks can only learn so much in one session. 

The other way round. Biners damage bolts especially the anchor ones. Ropes also damage anchor bolts more than biners so use these to minimise wear when practising tope rope solo or with a partner.

giraud b wrote:

The other way round. Biners damage bolts especially the anchor ones. 

Not a thing. Aluminum is softer than steel. The end. 

Scott D wrote:

Not a thing. Aluminum is softer than steel. The end. 

Aren't camp nano 22s titanium? Re open discussion Scott. 

Edit: nanos absolutely shred slings! The wire gate rivet protrudes out and shreds nylon wayyy more then aluminum bieners used on a few bolts occasionally 

Alexander G wrote:

Aren't camp nano 22s titanium? Re open discussion Scott. 

Edit: nanos absolutely shred slings! The wire gate rivet protrudes out and shreds nylon wayyy more then aluminum bieners used on a few bolts occasionally 

I'm prety sure they just call the silver color 'titanium'

The ones I have are definitely aluminum. 

Titanium doesn't anodize and dye the same way as aluminum does, you'd be able to tell visually.