Bullshit. The Petzl rep is an idiot and should be publicly ridiculed.
For stainless steel, the endurance limit is something like 50% of the tensile strength. And the endurance limit (fatigue strength) is the cyclical loading for which the material can survive 10 million cycles. Even Raindawg hasn't clipped 10 million bolts in his lifetime. I seriously doubt normal loading of the wire when opening the gate on any biner is anywhere near 50% of the tensile strength.
And a shorter live span than what? Every carabiner uses some sort of metallic spring to close the gate. What is Petzl using for a spring? Something steel, I guess, which one could make the same arguments.
If this is Petzl's engineering expertise then they and their products should be avoided at all costs.
my thoughts exactly...either the spring is flexing or the wire...can't have it both ways...so, if you make a fatigue arguement (which really doesn't happen...seriously, anyone snap a gate from opening it??? ever??) for one system it applies to the other as well...