What is an attachment point?
An attachment point is used to connect one item to another. Specifically our attachment points are used to connect a lead to a collar or harness or a sling to a rifle. These are the most common attachment points:
Black Stainless Steel Swivel Snap Round Eye
This is our most popular attachment point for our K9 leads. These snaps were designed in house specifically for our K9 leads. Made of stainless steel, they feature a black coating that is the most durable coating available. Due to the stainless construction, they are designed to stand up to the most brutal exposure to the elements and continue to function. They are Marine Grade and have a stainless steel internal spring and a drain hole in the spring cylinder to shed water.
The snaps feature a large thumb tab on the gate to be big enough for gloved hands to manipulate. We also made sure that the thumb tab ended flush and did not have a lip, to mitigate getting caught on environmental hazards. The snap size was dialed in to accommodate our 1” webbing, without bunching, and the round slot design allows for and additional 180 degrees of movement—this means the lead can articulate on a double axis to further reduce tangles or accidental un-clippings.
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Solid Brass Swivel Snap Round Eye
This is our second most popular attachment point for our K9 leads. Made of solid cast brass they are both durable and malleable. They are Marine Grade which means they have been designed to stand up to the most brutal exposure to the elements and continue to function. They have a stainless steel internal spring and a drain hole in the spring cylinder to shed water. They also have a swivel attachment that lets them spin freely which prevents tangles.
Being made of malleable brass they will bend before they break, unlike other snaps cast from different material that are prone to catastrophic failure without warning. This is important because it gives the handler the opportunity to take them out of service before they fail. These attach to the leads with a large rounded eye that was originally designed to be used with ropes. This round eye gives the clip an extra degree of articulation, helping it move more freely and preventing accidental unclipping—which can happen when the snap gets caught on other hardware and the pressure applied defeats the clip.
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HK Snap
Our solid stamped steel HK Snaps are extremely durable and strong. Originally designed by Heckler & Koch for their submachine guns, these compact but versatile clips can even be clipped into each other through an integrated stamped hole in the body of the clip. They function just like a non-locking carabiner and are easy to manipulate with one hand. If you’re clipping into a solid point all you have to do is press the gate of the clip against the point, the gate will open and can be clipped with one hand. To unclip just use your thumb to press the gate open, pull up to release tension, and remove the snap. This is our recommended clip for our rifle slings.
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M.A.S.H. Hook
Made by ITW Nexus, the M.A.S.H hook is the only clip-in option that has no moving parts. Made of stamped stainless steel it was originally designed as a rifle clip-in option alternative to the HK Snap. Because it has no moving parts it can last forever and because it’s made of stainless steel it is very strong. To attach and detach you just press the tabs with your thumb and forefinger, turn sideways, then rotate back and release. It’s complicated to manipulate at first, but once you’re used to it your muscle memory takes over. This is our second most recommended clip-in option for our rifle slings.
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Rifle Sling Swivel
One of the earliest detachable sling swivels created, it gives the user the ability to quickly attach and detach their sling from their traditional sling swivel mounts. These mounts are most commonly used on hunting rifles and shotguns. To detach simply depress the spring loaded gate pin and rotate 45 degrees out of the way. To attach just reverse those steps. These have a much more limited application than our other attachment points but are very common on traditional long gun stocks.
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Quick Detach (QD) Sling Swivel
Designed for modern rifle and shotgun stocks with QD socket integration, these are very secure and give a large range of motion by pivoting freely once they have been attached to their socket. To remove just depress the spring loaded button on its center with your thumb and pull the swivel out. Reverse those steps to attach it to a socket. These have very few moving parts and are one of the only rifle attachment points that swivel.
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Quick Detach Snap Shackle
Our stainless steel snap shackles are some of the strongest and most durable in the industry. Originally designed for marine application as a clip-in option that could be released under load, the clips we use were made specifically for the Special Forces community as part of their aerial platform personal retention lanyards. Being one of the only clips to be both strength rated for life safety application and releasable under tension, it was selected in the event an operator became trapped by their retention lanyard and allowed them to quickly detach by pulling a safety tab affixed to a ring. It’s no longer the preferred attachment option for aerial platforms because of how easy it is to unclip when a full life load is applied, but works perfectly for K9 application where the loads are far less than an operator in full kit. This is the only clip-in option that we use with our Operator Series Tactical Deployment Lead.
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Kong Frog
This unique attachment option was designed through a collaboration between Kong and the Polytechnic University of Milan as a replacement for the modern day carabiner when used in sport climbing. It was designed to attach to the end of quickdraws and give a quick and easy attachment point to climbing bolt hangers. They are easy to use and provide a redundant level of safety. When the gates are preloaded open all you have to do is push it onto whatever clip-in point you want and the dual gates automatically close. To unlock it all you have to do is secure the body in your hand and use your thumb and forefinger to pull the tabs back.
Its real strength is its redundancy, making it one of the most secure clip in option available. The downside is that it’s larger and has more moving parts than the other options. Also, it has a tendency to catch on environmental hazards and does not swivel which can cause tangles.
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Herm Sprenger Scissor Snap
One of the only attachment points specifically designed for K9 use, these heavy duty snaps are the only attachment option that clamps down tighter the harder they are tensioned. To release you just have to use your thumb and forefinger to press the sides together. You attach it in the same way. They are larger than many of the other clip-in options but remain one of the only to be designed specifically for K9 use. They also freely swivel keeping your lines tangle free. This is not a readily available option, but can be added if you want a custom lead.