Factor 55- "Winch Hooks"

[factor55]

I use the Winchline.com Safety Thimble. http://www.winchline.com/images-products/ST2L.gif

While similar to the original Prolink, it has been in use longer, and proven durable.

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If you guys have any questions please let us know. Always here to help and answer any questions.

Cactus Red that is a great product. We destructive load test all of our parts to make sure we know exactly where the ultimate failure will be. The ProLink is rated at 16,000 lbs and has an ultimate failure rating of 39,000 lbs. Over 20,000 of our parts are out in the field without a single failure.

The main difference between the Safety Thimble and the ProLink/FlatLink is the ProLink/FlatLink works with Synthetic Rope and Steel Rope and the ProLink and FlatLink are easily removable. There is no splicing required. The ProLink also completely protects the end of your expensive synthetic rope from abrasion and UV. The ProLink/FlatLink also have integrated EPDM Rubber pieces to make sure there is no metal to metal contact to protect your fairlead from being damaged.

Love the pics and ideas you guys have. This is a great forum.

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[cruz]

They say that it's safer to use than a hook because stuff can slip off a hook-and they look cool. And cool costs extra.

10-4 Ben, this is how I save coin ...

[factor55]

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1416616056.728824.jpg

My new Warn rollers are a lot bigger and the cable slot isn't large enough for the cable clasp to fit through. I wish it fit so I could tuck it in. These items rock!

You can oval that clasp by tapping the clasp with a hammer on an anvil and flatten it just enough to get it to fit through the fairlead slot. Thats one way I've seen it done and thank you!

[factor55]

They say that it's safer to use than a hook because stuff can slip off a hook-and they look cool. And cool costs extra.

10-4 Ben, this is how I save coin ...

Thats a great way to use it and cost effective. Its also very funny how The Basic Guides to Winching Safety clearly show you to not use the hook. haha Love that.

The only reason that setup could be problematic is if there's a thimble creating the eyelet at the end of your wire rope. Those types of thimbles are designed to collapse under hard pulls. If you have a hard pull it could potentially collapse around the pin of the shackle and you would have a heck of a time getting it out of there.

Cool does cost extra. haha

But so does manufacturing and paying American machinists to make American made products with American made metal.

[cruz]

Thats a great way to use it and cost effective. Its also very funny how The Basic Guides to Winching Safety clearly show you to not use the hook. haha Love that.

The only reason that setup could be problematic is if there's a thimble creating the eyelet at the end of your wire rope. Those types of thimbles are designed to collapse under hard pulls. If you have a hard pull it could potentially collapse around the pin of the shackle and you would have a heck of a time getting it out of there.

Cool does cost extra. haha

But so does manufacturing and paying American machinists to make American made products with American made metal.

I try to save coin by not replacing parts that still work.
But when I do replace worn or broken parts I upgrade to products that are better, like your high quality AMERICAN made product.

Keep up the good work factor 55.

[adeluca73]

They say that it's safer to use than a hook because stuff can slip off a hook-and they look cool. And cool costs extra.

10-4 Ben, this is how I save coin ...

Thats a great way to use it and cost effective. Its also very funny how The Basic Guides to Winching Safety clearly show you to not use the hook. haha Love that.

The only reason that setup could be problematic is if there's a thimble creating the eyelet at the end of your wire rope. Those types of thimbles are designed to collapse under hard pulls. If you have a hard pull it could potentially collapse around the pin of the shackle and you would have a heck of a time getting it out of there.

Cool does cost extra. haha

But so does manufacturing and paying American machinists to make American made products with American made metal.

I installed your Flatlink on my new PW w/o even taking the hook out of the package it came in. Used it to pull my bonehead cousin out of the snow bank he ran his 2WD Dodge Journey into trying to climb a 1000' hill climb in 18" of snow when we were hunting in Northern Mi a few wks ago. Worked great. He's still a jack-wagon though, can't fix stupid.

[2011TXPowerWagon]

They say that it's safer to use than a hook because stuff can slip off a hook-and they look cool. And cool costs extra.

10-4 Ben, this is how I save coin ...

I do not know why I never thought of this before but it seems so obvious to me now that I have seen it.

[TommyG]

The ProLink is rated at 16,000 lbs and has an ultimate failure rating of 39,000 lbs. Over 20,000 of our parts are out in the field without a single failure.

A double line pull on one of our winches would exceed the rating. Should we be considering the Prolink XXL or a larger Flatlink like the AEV model or is the standard model sufficient?

Thanks for all the info. I have it on good authority that Santa is bringing me a Hitchlink and I have my eye on either a Prolink or Flatlink soon after and I want to make sure I get one that is heavy enough.

[FirerescuePW]

I believe the load would be shared equally by the winch and the link, thus cutting the force in half.

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[R0NAN]

A double pull with a snatch block will double the force at the anchor point( eg. Tree) . At your truck , the force will be shared between your winch and the flat link attachment point. If we assume our winches are capable of pulling 15000 lbs at its last wrap, then the winch and the flat link will each have 15000lbs and the tree anchor will receive 30000 lbs. the flat link has a failure point of at least 35000 lbs so you should be fine. Just don't use it for anything other than your winch line. The pro link xxl is nice but it won't fit inside the bumper and it likely won't snug up to the bumper very well either . The flat link will tuck inside up against the fairlead.

[Stickman]

So does anyone have the Prolink on their wagon? Will it fit inside the factory winch opening? Thinking of getting one of them, I think the Prolink looks better than the flat link, gives it a tougher/off road look instead of the clean look. Ill also pick up a pair of shackles since Im at it.

[Dark84]

I have the prolink xxl and can agree that it doesn't fit snugly. I just leave a little slack in the line though and it works out fine. I'l take some closeup pics when I get home.


Sent from my mind to yours.

[Dark84]

Sorry for the late pics. Got home late last night and had to wait on daylight to get some good pics. Here's how the prolink xxl looks on my PW.

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ImageUploadedByTapatalk1418053651.465456.jpg (119.69 KiB) Viewed 6237 times

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1418053625.746671.jpg (103.08 KiB) Viewed 6237 times

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1418053605.111502.jpg (127.25 KiB) Viewed 6237 times

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1418053593.210970.jpg (111.96 KiB) Viewed 6237 times

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1418053580.209457.jpg (111.95 KiB) Viewed 6237 times

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[TwinStick]

My "site navigation-fu" is lacking. I cant seem to find the item in Post # 1, pic # 2 on their site ?

Help please.

[Ducky's Dad]

Ill also pick up a pair of shackles since Im at it.

As I try to make space in my tool box, I'm also planning to add a couple more shackles. So, why does everybody, including Factor 55, sell 4-3/4 ton (9500 lb) shackles? Do they assume we are all driving Jeeps or small Rovers? Someone on here is or was a professional rigger, so it's time to re-up your shackle recommendations for our big ass trucks.

[2011TXPowerWagon]

http://factor55.com/product/flatlink/

i could not find anything about the three headed thimble

[Stickman]

So the XXL will fit, but just barely? Is it really needed on our trucks? I know it's nice to know it will never fail for your purposes but nearly $60 more for something not necessarily needed is too much for me. And the shackles do seem to be right on the edge of not enough for our trucks. Bubba shackles have a wider variety that are more than enough for our trucks.

http://www.bubbarope.com/clevis-shackle ... bubba-rope

Also Bubba rope has a new rope shackle that looks pretty cool, only about $15 more and 1 less piece of metal in the connection always makes for a safer recovery right? Also has a better breaking strength than the factor 55 shackles. Pretty interesting piece.

http://www.bubbarope.com/gator-jaw-soft-shackle

[Dark84]

Yes it barely fits. I haven't pulled it too snug against my bumper yet for fear of damage to the bumper.


Sent from my mind to yours.

[R0NAN]

As I try to make space in my tool box, I'm also planning to add a couple more shackles. So, why does everybody, including Factor 55, sell 4-3/4 ton (9500 lb) shackles? Do they assume we are all driving Jeeps or small Rovers? Someone on here is or was a professional rigger, so it's time to re-up your shackle recommendations for our big ass trucks.[/quote]

The shackles I use are Crosby which are made in Canada and the 4 3/4 is in metric tons which is the industrial standard. 1 metric ton= 2200 lbs. That's a WLL of 10450 lbs.
Being an industrial shackle, it has a minimum 4x work load limit(WLL)break strength. That just under 42000 lbs.
As a crane operator and rigger, I would suggest:
1: only buy high quality shackles. Preferably industrial shackles from a crane and rigging shop, as they are rigorously tested and have a 4x WLL break strength minimum.
2: buy one 6 1/2 ton shackle for your anchor point( tree) for when you use a snatch block.
3:again.. Don't buy cheap shackles. If companies like factor 55 or bubba can prove they equal industrial standards then fine, ... Otherwise spend a few extra dollars for quality and safety.

[R0NAN]

Look online for companies like Mc Kissicks ( American) or Yoke ( Taiwan).
They both are tested to industrial standards and Yoke is arguably the same quality at half the price ( or close), at least as far as shackles are concerned.

They also make excellent snatch blocks

[Cactus Red]

There are high quality 7/8" pin x 3/4" body shackles available. That's all I carry. I'm fortunate to have a local heavy equipment rental shop in town that has a retail store as well. They use'm, so they sell'm. Similar to these from Granger, except about half the price. Last ones I got thru them were $15.00 if you bought 6 or more. FYI, the picture is not of the correct part.

http://www.grainger.com/product/CM-Anch ... uery=4JYX7

[jeep_boy02]

So the bubba ones say 6x ultimate breaking point.

What is the meaning of a WLL to us if the breaking point is 4-6 times that rating? I could see not using something if it was rated less than twice or thrice your weight. Like the standard equation for picking a winch is 1.5 times your rigs weight. So should shackles be chosen off of WLL or ultimate breaking point?

[Cactus Red]

In reality, the 4-3/4T shackles are good to some stupid failure number, but why not get better stuff if it's available.

WLL is derived from man rated overhead lifting safety specs. It's good to know, but ultimate yield strength is the critical number.

[R0NAN]

So the bubba ones say 6x ultimate breaking point.

What is the meaning of a WLL to us if the breaking point is 4-6 times that rating? I could see not using something if it was rated less than twice or thrice your weight. Like the standard equation for picking a winch is 1.5 times your rigs weight. So should shackles be chosen off of WLL or ultimate breaking point?

Bubba has good standards then. Work Load Limit( WLL) would be better called " safe work load limit".
In the crane industry, they factor in a very high level of safety, or safety buffer. This is because there are many things that can go wrong. By having a 6 x buffer for shackles and not exceeding it, it keeps workers safe and insurance companies happy.
Let's take for example an off road enthusiast who uses a shackle on a non stretch strap and then proceeds to drive 20 miles per hour in the recovery vehicle and hit the end of the strap. The forces involved are astronomical.
People by nature tend to push the limits. Combine hat with the fact that " shit happens" and it's not hard to see why it's a good idea to go 6x. At work I have had accidental shock loads, often due to other people f...ing up.
4x WLL for blocks
6x WLL for shackles.
You want your winch to power out well before the failure point of any of your rigging.

[SheepdogOutdoorsman]

Ill also pick up a pair of shackles since Im at it.

As I try to make space in my tool box, I'm also planning to add a couple more shackles. So, why does everybody, including Factor 55, sell 4-3/4 ton (9500 lb) shackles? Do they assume we are all driving Jeeps or small Rovers? Someone on here is or was a professional rigger, so it's time to re-up your shackle recommendations for our big ass trucks.

7/8" D-Rings ...