Ratchet Binders

[SouthernX]

I need to buy some 5400 lb. ratchet binders. Harbor Freight has a good price ($24.99) but its probably made in China (- Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices). Fastenal has them for $39.10. They say it is a Fastenal approved vendor but they don't say where it is made. (5/16-3/8 Chain 5400Lb Equiprite Ratchet Load Binder | Fastenal).

At 6 ratchets that's almost a $90 difference in cost. I don't want to waste $90 but I don't want to be pennywise and pound foolish and risk my tractor and the safety of others if the Harbor-Freight binders are crap. Anyone used the Harbor-Freight binders?

On the other hand the Fastenal binders are painted in a blue which pretty closely matches the blue on my New Holland tractor. Spiffy, eh? That alone might be worth the extra $90.

My gut feeling says go with the Fastenal binders but I thought I would put this out there just to get your $.02 worth.

 

[SouthernX]

Also, I noticed that the Fastenal is 2 lbs. heavier. I know more weight doesn't necessarily mean stronger but in some cases it does.

 

[LarryRB]

I have lay over binders that I bought at Lowe's 7 years back and the same price then,, 24.95 each. Never had a problem and I go through a tough CT scale house on occasion...

 

[Diamondpilot]

The good thing about HF is the return policy. Buy them and see how they work. 100's of guys on this site use them from HF and the seem just fine. Kind of hard to mess up a chain binder.

Chris

 

[JB4310]

And most likely one binder is rated at more than the machine your carrying, if you were binding a 30,000# machine with six 5400# binders I'd be a little worried.

I got a couple china binders with my trailer, then went and bought a couple 6600# binders from AWdirect.
I tend to look at the more expensive items first, thinking it must be better but that may not always be the case. in your situation I'd still go with the better quality binder.

This is a good binder for the money:

Alloy Ratchet Load Binder for 5/16" Grade 40, 70, 80, 100 Chain & 3/8" Grade 40, 70 Chain - Mfg# LDR3810

JB.

 

[Dargo]

Although it's widely known that I despise most Horrible Freight junk, for a chain binder I'd just buy one size larger and get the HF Chinese binder. Several years ago I bought my ratcheting binders and bought US made ones. It's my understanding that it's difficult to find US made ratcheting binders now. I actually had to post a picture of my binders with the "made in the U.S.A." forged in them to prove to a guy that they were indeed US made because he couldn't find any.

I've since needed more binders and bought a couple of Chinese made ones (probably the same as HF) at Rural King. The only difference is that I've noticed is that when I accidentally backed a heavy tractor over one of my US binders it bent, but was able to be bent back, and the the Chinese one I backed over broke and it looked to be made out of pot metal. Still, with chain you can go a size larger (i.e. use 3/8" binder with 5/16" chain, 1/2" binder with 3/8" chain etc.) with the binders. Using a 1/2" Chinese made binder in non-critical places wouldn't bother me.

 

[chh]

I have two chinese made ratchet binders that are identical in apprearance to the Fastenal binders you link to except for the paint color. I don't know the brand they came out of a discount tool sale. Mine seem ok, I prefer to use my lever binders, but the ratchet ones have never given me any trouble and I haven't managed to break them yet. Going over your expected rating is good advice.

 

[flusher]

I need to buy some 5400 lb. ratchet binders. Harbor Freight has a good price ($24.99) but its probably made in China (- Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices). Fastenal has them for $39.10. They say it is a Fastenal approved vendor but they don't say where it is made. (5/16-3/8 Chain 5400Lb Equiprite Ratchet Load Binder | Fastenal).

At 6 ratchets that's almost a $90 difference in cost. I don't want to waste $90 but I don't want to be pennywise and pound foolish and risk my tractor and the safety of others if the Harbor-Freight binders are crap. Anyone used the Harbor-Freight binders?

On the other hand the Fastenal binders are painted in a blue which pretty closely matches the blue on my New Holland tractor. Spiffy, eh? That alone might be worth the extra $90.

My gut feeling says go with the Fastenal binders but I thought I would put this out there just to get your $.02 worth.

You might want to check AW Direct

search ratchet binder

 

[Dargo]

I just clicked on your link to HF and compared that to the 9200 pound 1/2" binder I bought at Rural King. I then looked at HF's 9200 pound ratcheting binder and got confused. I think there's a typo in the chain size. HF's 9200 pound binder - Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices is the same price as the one you listed for 5400 pounds. The difference is that the handle isn't removable and it uses factory hooks rather than pin on hooks. I also think it's really made for 1/2" chain even though it says 3/8". Either way, for the same price, that is what I'd buy if I were going to buy there.

 

[SouthernX]

I need to buy some 5400 lb. ratchet binders. Harbor Freight has a good price ($24.99) but its probably made in China (- Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices). Fastenal has them for $39.10. They say it is a Fastenal approved vendor but they don't say where it is made. (5/16-3/8 Chain 5400Lb Equiprite Ratchet Load Binder | Fastenal). [ snip... ].

Just for clarification, the load will consist of my tractor / loader (6000 lb.) and bush-hog (1000 lb.). I am going to attach on each side and the four corners of the tractor. Regs say I'll need to put a strap on the bush-hog too.

The following is from the Federal Carrier Administration website...

Minimum Working Load Limit for Cargo Securement Devices and Systems
The aggregate working load limit of any securement system used to secure an article or group of articles against movement must be at least one-half the weight of the article or group of articles. The aggregate working load limit is the sum of: One-half the working load limit of each tiedown that goes from an anchor point on the vehicle to an attachment point on an article of cargo; and The working load limit for each tiedown that goes from an anchor point on the vehicle, through, over or around the cargo and then attaches to another anchor point on the vehicle.


If I did the math right I'll exceed requirements by quite a bit. I came up with (WLL 5400 lbs. / 2) x 6 = 16,200 lbs Aggregate WLL. That would be over twice my actual load weight. Overkill I guess but I like the idea of 6 tie-down points as opposed to 4. I guess I'm a little paranoid since this will be my first time transporting my tractor.

I called Fastenal. The Fastenal brand of binders are made in China ( surprise! ). They do have CM binders that are made in the U.S.A. for $73.00 apiece. Lets see, 6x73 = $438 + $35 tax = $473. It's too bad we have to choose between quality / safety and something we can realistically afford.

I plan on using grade 70 chain. It doesn't cost much more that grade 43 and it will make me "official" (I guess). I'm just wondering if I'll be able to find a Chinese made binder that is grade 70. My initial guess is, probably not.