I took the advice I was given and went to every farm implement, tractor supply, co-op, REAL auto parts store that I could find locally. The only hooks I found were all chin hooks. The best of the bunch is surprisingly made in the good ol USA and is rated at 9600 lbs. No matter what the rating, it's still the wrong type of hook. However, I would really like to know why they will sell a chain style hook for $100.00 and for one that has a round eye, it goes up to over $50 everywhere else.
Oh, c'mon Kate. You get the same end result whichever it is.
Rule of thumb I use is the finish on the part. If it's a rough casting - walk. If it's a fancy plated one, be suspicious of the underlying material. I tend to look for a surface that is smooth enough to indicate a forged part with plenty of beef and filleted (rounded fill) at any joints. If you have a fairly sizable truck stop around, ask the guy hauling pipe where he gets his chain parts. If you're really paranoid you can have hubby do some quick checks with a ballpeen hammer and a punch to get a better feel for the quality of the steel once you find one.
Anything over $20-$30 bucks for a single hook is absurd - even that is high if you find a decent industrial supply house. Now hooks that bolt onto your rig are a bit different - you pay for the special shapes and bolt spacing - but strap/chain hooks are a different story.
All I could find were chain hooks Will... I bought one rated at 9600lbs, for $12 Forged, made in the USA BUT Hubby says it's not going to work with a strap. Says it should be a round eye. Makes sense to me. This style looks like it will tend to cut a strap.
I jus' be doin what the bozz say I should be doin....
Sorry, the note below, I typoed the chain hook price, should have been $10 NOT $100... I'm trying to type with a bandaid on my index finger.
Oh, c'mon Kate. You get the same end result whichever it is.
Rule of thumb I use is the finish on the part. If it's a rough casting - walk. If it's a fancy plated one, be suspicious of the underlying material. I tend to look for a surface that is smooth enough to indicate a forged part with plenty of beef and filleted (rounded fill) at any joints. If you have a fairly sizable truck stop around, ask the guy hauling pipe where he gets his chain parts. If you're really paranoid you can have hubby do some quick checks with a ballpeen hammer and a punch to get a better feel for the quality of the steel once you find one.
Anything over $20-$30 bucks for a single hook is absurd - even that is high if you find a decent industrial supply house. Now hooks that bolt onto your rig are a bit different - you pay for the special shapes and bolt spacing - but strap/chain hooks are a different story.
Just so you know, the Warn HS9000i winch I got came with hooks designed for something like 9600 lb, or the 'straight' tow limit. If I use a pulley block, my winch is rated at 18000 lb....
Anyhow, I bent the damn hook that came with the winch setup pulling a pickup truck frame/hulk from the bush up onto the trail in a cleanup we were doing with the local government of a 4x4 area.
This hook bent on a straight power pull with no pulley block or snatching action happening.
I use a 'D shackle' or better even a 'web shackle' as that
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calls them in their search window, now whenever possible instead of these 'cheap', (not cheap $$$) hooks. The web shackles are for straps and are rated on that site for a work load of up to 100,000 lb depending on size.
If you are using an elastic snatch strap, you only want loops. If the poor sucker stuck doesn't have proper hooks to put your loop around for the extraction, tell him to call a tow truck, he shouldn't be in the bush unprepared. Seriously, you don't want a hook letting go, they 'do' kill people.
Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail > All I could find were chain hooks Will... I bought one rated at 9600lbs, for > $12
Ya see Mike, this is EXACTLY what I'm concerned with. Mine is a Warn M8000, with a snatch block on it there may be as much as or more than 16k pull on it.
I looked at the Warn site (man their site sucks for finding parts and stuff) I'm fully aware that if one breaks, it can be fatal. Make no mistake about it. That's why I'm trying to find the RIGHT hook to put on it.
Now, I've looked at the links that everyone has provided. There are some really nice looking hooks out there but when you get into the heavier ones, they are the size of a spare tire. Yea, I know size matters and surprisingly, this time I'm looking something a little smaller.
The one I posted a photo of is about as big as I want to go.
I REALLY like the look of this one, found it via a link someone else posted, then went to the mfgr's site.
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I'll have to hunt one down. I'll keep you posted
K.
Anyhow, I bent the damn hook that came with the winch setup pulling a pickup truck frame/hulk from the bush up onto the trail in a cleanup we were doing with the local government of a 4x4 area.
This hook bent on a straight power pull with no pulley block or snatching action happening.
I use a 'D shackle' or better even a 'web shackle' as that
formatting link
calls them in their search window, now wheneverpossible instead of these 'cheap', (not cheap $$$) hooks. The web shackles are for straps and are rated on that site for a work load of up to 100,000 lb depending on size.
If you are using an elastic snatch strap, you only want loops. If the poor sucker stuck doesn't have proper hooks to put your loop around for the extraction, tell him to call a tow truck, he shouldn't be in the bush unprepared. Seriously, you don't want a hook letting go, they 'do' kill people.
Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail > All I could find were chain hooks Will... I bought one rated at 9600lbs, > for
Hi Kate, We like to use these things to connect our straps.
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Called a clevis and helps transfer a straps pull evenly to a hook. They are easy to use and are very strong for their size. They are a good way to smoothly transfer a straps load to a hook, even if the hook isn't for straps. One could also just hook it to a hole in the bumper if need be also, or transfer a strap load to a chain or whatever? They are also very good for cables.
You might take a look at MasterPull; I bought an aluminum fairlead from them and was very happy with the quality and customer service. It looks like they have some quality hooks too (I like the looks of their safety hook):
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