I recently learned that the construction of the Sampo swivel was not quite as I had shown on my original post and I wanted to bring it to the attention of the members. I managed to actually speak to the owner of Sampo Inc and shared with him my posting on NAFEX and the information about the grouse deflector with the use of different swivels. He emailed me later:
"Yes, it (my original cut-away drawing) is wrong. But, it does not matter. Long story. We had a customer who wanted to use the #8 swivel for bird deflectors on high voltage power lines. They had to be set by helicopters, and last a long time. We set up a drill press with an #8 swivel, and I think 10 lbs of tension. Knowing the RPM's of the press, we let it run to 1 million turns and then gave up. It is the balls that reduce the friction, the metal does not matter that much, until you add a lot of weight."
Brian Butts, Sampo Inc.
Well, we all know we must all keep an eye on the swivels as nothing lasts forever. However, the old #8 Sampo is and will be the work horse of falconry swivels going into the future. It would just be nice if we could see inside over time to check for wear.
David Frank Western Sporting
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