Chains vs straps

[3gunr]

I haul my tractors quite a bit , i use chains on the tractor and straps on any implement.

 

[Peter 315]

I use chains on tractors and steel, Straps on wood and other easy damaged items...

 

[4570Man]

Going to agree here. I've had straps come unhooked and super loose. But biggest thing is they will chafe bad.

That being said I hate/have no developed skills to chain and bind. Takes me FOREVER to properly bind. But I find they usually stay good.

I use straps when I can. My SCUT is fine with 2 of your husky straps but when I move an ag tractor I jump to chains or multiple straps as you. But you have to watch their contact points.

If you have a good setup of short chains and lever binders with a cheater pipe it’s quick and easy. I could have my machine chained on and done faster than you got the straps untangled.

 

[Big Barn]

I use chains on tractors and steel, Straps on wood and other easy damaged items...

Same.

 

[Bearsixty7]

Straps are fine IF rated high enough, in good condition, there are no abrasion points and the angles are right. You don't want to strap any thing that can compress (springs, air filled tires, etc) vertically. When you hit a bump and the item compresses and then rebounds up, it can likely snap or stretch the strap (Same can happen to chains as well) plus it won't provide any lateral load stability. I've hauled Jeeps and ATV's for decades on or in multiple trailers and I've learned a lot about how to properly secure loads. The tractor I've only hauled 6 or 7 times and I use chains on front due to abrasion points and no way to attach a strap cleanly but I do use ratchet straps on the back.

I have ratchet straps and chains, depending on what I am securing. I can have the straps on and tight much faster than chains and binders for most things.

 

[4570Man]

Straps are fine IF rated high enough, in good condition, there are no abrasion points and the angles are right. You don't want to strap any thing that can compress (springs, air filled tires, etc) vertically. When you hit a bump and the item compresses and then rebounds up, it can likely snap or stretch the strap (Same can happen to chains as well) plus it won't provide any lateral load stability. I've hauled Jeeps and ATV's for decades on or in multiple trailers and I've learned a lot about how to properly secure loads. The tractor I've only hauled 6 or 7 times and I use chains on front due to abrasion points and no way to attach a strap cleanly but I do use ratchet straps on the back.

I have ratchet straps and chains, depending on what I am securing. I can have the straps on and tight much faster than chains and binders for most things.

If you’re hauling something with a lot of bounce like an ATV putting blocks under it and pulling it down tight eliminates that problem.

 

[Tractor Seabee]

I learned in the Navy about loading and tying down cargo including vehicles/equipment. Cardinal rule: The cargo has to be braced and/or tied down so it becomes solid to the surrounding deck and/or bulkheads. Blocking between wheeled equipment frames and the deck. If it can shift even a fraction soon it is moving around. Moving cargo can create a disaster. I have seen enclosed cargo trucks that had loosely tied down/stowed cargo with a gaping hole in the side and the cargo on the ground. The forces generated can be exponential to the weight of the item. I always use chains and binders on vehicles and equipment. Straps on solid cargo, wood dunnage between metal items, and as tight as you can get it. Check every couple hundred miles and more often on rough roads. Better safe than sorry. The guy behind will appreciate that.

Ron

 

[Big Barn]

I learned in the Navy about loading and tying down cargo including vehicles/equipment. Cardinal rule: The cargo has to be braced and/or tied down so it becomes solid to the surrounding deck and/or bulkheads. Blocking between wheeled equipment frames and the deck. If it can shift even a fraction soon it is moving around. Moving cargo can create a disaster. I have seen enclosed cargo trucks that had loosely tied down/stowed cargo with a gaping hole in the side and the cargo on the ground. The forces generated can be exponential to the weight of the item. I always use chains and binders on vehicles and equipment. Straps on solid cargo, wood dunnage between metal items, and as tight as you can get it. Check every couple hundred miles and more often on rough roads. Better safe than sorry. The guy behind will appreciate that.

Ron

My dad was in the Army. When I was a kid that is pretty much the same as what he taught me.

We didn't have trailers back then and our tractors and equipment were driven onto trucks to be transported between farms.

 

[MF243RedTop]

That being said I hate/have no developed skills to chain and bind. Takes me FOREVER to properly bind. But I find they usually stay good.

Try using a rachet chain binder?
I gave up on lever binders years ago

 

[4570Man]

Try using a rachet chain binder?
I gave up on lever binders years ago

A cheater pipe is a must have feature of lever binders but for chaining wheeled equipment a lever binder is way faster. A ratchet binder is a pain in the butt even when they work right. Leave them on the trailer deck in the rain and let the screw rust and the ratchet lever seize and they’re a real treat. I’ve had to use a chain hook or a rock to beat the ratchet lever more times than I can count. Oil helps for a while but it’s right back to the same thing.