soft shackle users?

[ArlyA]

Who here uses soft shackles on there atv/utv? if so, please do a review of them for that application. I'm going to get some for our 6x6.

 

[5030]

What is the benefit?

 

[hayden]

I use them extensively on a big boat for anchoring, and on the farm for lifting and general use. They are outstanding in all ways. Soft so they don't mar anything, and incredibly strong. And flexible to you can get them around almost anything. I just used 5/16" line soft shackles to lift pre-assembled solar panel racks up onto poles. Each assembled rack was probably close to 1000 lbs. Before doing the lift, I tested a single soft shackle by lifting a 1000 lbs mulcher head and letting is hang for a while. Rated tensile strength for 5/16 Dyneema is 13,000 lbs. That's 50% more than the same size wire rope.

 

[Tinhack]

What is the benefit?

Easy on, easy off. And they don't scratch paint.

 

[2manyrocks]

Lighter. If they break, you don't have a metal shackle flying back at you.

 

[5030]

I don't worry about the 'paint' being scratched on my tractor drawbar as it has little to no paint on it anyway and as far as a shackle breaking, no worry either as the ones I use are rated for well in the excess of anything I require. I use 'made in USA' Crosby threaded pin shackles.

Maybe a fabric snatch rope, but a fabric shackle, no way.

 

[hayden]

Maybe a fabric snatch rope, but a fabric shackle, no way.

I'm curious why? Is it concern over the strength? I admit that it takes some getting used how strong they are. Just looking that them you would think "no way". But they are generally SIGNIFICANTLY STRONGER that similarly sized chain or steel shackles. Just by way of example, 1/2" G43 chain is rated for 4.5MT, and a 1/2" Crosby shackle is rated for 3.3MT. On the other hand, a 1/2" soft shackle has a breaking strength of 20MT. Their strength is very deceptive, and I think is why people are slow to embrace them.

 

[hayden]

BTW, this is the same stuff used for the lines on tub boats with 100 Ton or more bollard pull.

 

[LittleBill21]

Ignore 5030, like usual no idea what the hell he is talking about.

They are used heavily in the off-road recovery world, they are significantly safer when using kinetic ropes, and lighter.

the only downside is abrasion if they get rubbed while being used, obviously they will wear quicker then a metal shackle.

 

[5030]

Ignore 5030, like usual no idea what the hell he is talking about.

They are used heavily in the off-road recovery world, they are significantly safer when using kinetic ropes, and lighter.

the only downside is abrasion if they get rubbed while being used, obviously they will wear quicker then a metal shackle.

Least I don't own a tractor designed and produced in India....

No 'wannabe' toy tractors here either....

I know what I'm commenting about, why I use only Crosby shackles when I need them. Something about that stamped 'Made in USA' that I like.

 

[5030]

Ignore 5030, like usual no idea what the hell he is talking about.

They are used heavily in the off-road recovery world, they are significantly safer when using kinetic ropes, and lighter.

the only downside is abrasion if they get rubbed while being used, obviously they will wear quicker then a metal shackle.

I see you are another one that operates your toy tractor with the ROPS folded. let us all know when it rolls over and flattens you....

 

[2manyrocks]

Outside of the 4x4 off road community, I'm not sure that many people have even heard of soft shackles, recovery rings and synthetic rope.

ArlyA didn't state his use case, but I suspect it has to do with dragging small logs out of the way on trails with his 6x6. I could see using a section of log chain under the log for abrasion resistance coupled with a synthetic pull rope system including recovery rings if the goal is to redirect the pull so the 6x6 can pull logs back into the forest instead of pulling them along the trail.

Although traditional pulleys would be more efficient in transmitting pulling power, recovery rings do seem less expensive and potentially easier to rig in this application of moving small nuisance logs, not harvesting large timber for milling.

 

[RobertEH]

They are pretty cool, but watch for sharp corners on your attachment point - this can wear and cause breakage

 

[RobertEH]

They work great with these recovery rings instead of a snatch block too.

Amazon.com

 

[2manyrocks]

They work great with these recovery rings instead of a snatch block too.

Amazon.com

That ad mentions "little damage to the soft shackle compared with snatch block." Looking at my own snatch blocks, I'd say their edges are too sharp for soft shackles.

It's important to think through what you are going to connect together and how you are going to make the connections so you don't create a failure point.

 

[ArlyA]

They are pretty cool, but watch for sharp corners on your attachment point - this can wear and cause breakage

Yes, but tearing one up is less costly than your machine or tow rope for that matter. Seems people consider them sacrificial.

 

[caver]

Bubba Synthetic Soft Shackles • Bubba Recovery Gear are made in USA. Yankum is another made in USA.

 

[Snobdds]

I don't worry about the 'paint' being scratched on my tractor drawbar as it has little to no paint on it anyway and as far as a shackle breaking, no worry either as the ones I use are rated for well in the excess of anything I require. I use 'made in USA' Crosby threaded pin shackles.

Maybe a fabric snatch rope, but a fabric shackle, no way.

Nobody uses a soft shackle for static pulls from a dedicated sheer point, like a drawbar. It would stretch out the shackle webbing, making them uselsess.

These are totally different and are used more for recovery with shock loads. It's good to not have metal in shock loading.

You're going to learn today 5030...

 

[WinterDeere]

the only downside is abrasion if they get rubbed while being used, obviously they will wear quicker then a metal shackle.

That, and UV resistance. Not much an issue for tractor owners who keep their hardware in a toolbox until needed. I used to race sailboats, and dyneema, vectran, and other high-tech lines were daily life. Yes, it is much stronger than wire rope, infinitely stronger than chain, but you do need to take care with abrasion, UV, and aging.

If your application is low-abrasion, and you don't need to store it out in the daily sun, it's going to be hard to beat the strength of any soft shackle built with vectran or dyneema. It's roughly 15x stronger than wire rope (aka "steel cable") of the same cross-section.

Abrasion and UV resistance can both be overcome by buying double-braid options, dyneema or vectran core with polyester covering.

 

[tacticalturnip]

Least I don't own a tractor designed and produced in India....

No 'wannabe' toy tractors here either....

I know what I'm commenting about, why I use only Crosby shackles when I need them. Something about that stamped 'Made in USA' that I like.

His tractor is a Mitsubishi, and it's made in Japan.