Topic: SWL on recovery points.

[Quick Draw]

So my dad gave me 4 really beefy lifting eyes he got from work to use for recovery points.  They have a 1" shank and the diameter of the ring material is at least 3/4".  The diameter of the eye is like 4"  They look like they mean serious business.  On them they say 1.5T SWL, which I understand means Safe Working Load.  So I take that to mean that these eyes will lift 3000lbs straight up all day long with no worries.  What I'm curious about is more along the lines of the max load.  I would really like to be able to yank the hell out of them if need be to get me or somebody else unstuck.  Apparently they're not heavy enough to lift my truck straight up in the air safely... but I would still bet they would do it.  They look way stronger than any D ring I've ever seen on a truck, but I kind of expected it to be higher than 1.5T.  Does anybody know what the factor between SWL and max load is?  I can take some pictures if need be.  I really don't think they will ever be an issue...but maybe somebody else knows better.

[Snowtoy]

During snatch style recovery there are a lot more forces being applied than 3000lbs, I wouldn't use anything w/less than a 10,000lbs load capacity.

[possume22]

just because they look beefy doesnt mean they are they could be made out of low grade material i got some straps that are 1500 pound  but 800 pound working load so i take it as a 800 lb strap

[Caboose]

When looking at recovery gear, the rating usually advertised it isn't the SWL (Safe Working Load), its the MWL (Maximum Working Load) or the breaking strength.  Safe working loads are loads that a strap or shackle is rated to work at and not deteriorate in strength.  Those eyes will lift at 3k lbs forever so long as they don't rust.  Id like to see you 10k lbs strap pull at 10k lbs forever.

You use recovery gear not too often (hopefully) so the breaking strength is advertised.  Most people want to know how much can i pull without breaking this strap.  Just make sure your strap is the weak point and not your mount/shackle or else you could have a deadly projectile.  Also parachute your recovery gear.

To get an idea of your MWL on those eyes you found, i would look at similar sized shackles and steel rated at that working load.  A good site is http://www.uscargocontrol.com/

Shackles (3/4") rated at 4.75 tons = approx 10k lbs
http://www.uscargocontrol.com/anchorshacklescrewpin34steel475ton-p-2465.html

These are the most common shackles used on recovery points if I'm not mistaken.



Tow Strap, just in case you are interested.
http://www.uscargocontrol.com/recoverytowstraps-c-48.html?gclid=CLOXoNWC4KACFSZHagod6WTQCg




Someone please correct me if anything stated above is wrong, I'm still doing research on recovery gear myself.

[Quick Draw [OP]]

Thanks Caboose.  I was thinking the same thing, but I wasn't sure.  I just hope the D-ring shackles are a good approximate estimate on it.  I've heard that for some things they find a max load, and divide it by a factor to arrive at a SWL.  So in theory, it seems like I should be able to find it.  I just sent an email to my friend that is a tower rigger.  He has a plethora of knowledge about recovery gear and lifting equipment, since his life depends on it in many instances. 

[Caboose]

Keep up posted as well, i am by no means an expert.