Atlas Pompier Hook Hook

(a.k.a. Fireman's Hook)

Technical details

I bought my pompier hook from Kathy Green in 2006, but it is far older than that, perhaps dating from the 1960s.

The pompier hook is essentially a giant steel carabiner. Mine is mounted on leather & canvas belt. The hook is made from two pieces of plated drop forged steel, a steel pivot, and a spring. The lower portion of the frame is subtriangular with a 13.4 mm hole for attaching the hook to the belt. The upper portion is 21 mm. in diameter, as is the gate. The gate closure is a V-shaped, with the frame concave and gate convex. The front of the frame has raised letters reading "ATLAS S.E.CO.," "N.Y. U.S.A.," and "DROP FORGED," with an "MB" ligature in a small circle underneath.

Comments

The pompier hook is a fireman's tool who's primary purpose is to allow clipping ladder rungs. Cavers once used it for rappelling (way back in the manila rope days), rigging it like a carabiner wrap.