danmojo82

Now that Ive finally got myself a winch I was looking into recovery gear. One thing I noticed though is that its expensive. So I was looking around for cheaper parts that I could use in place or that I could piece together piece by piece and found some interesting things. Take Tractor Supply Co., you can get a snatch block there with a higher weight rating then the ARB snatch block for half the price. Same thing with tree savors and tow ropes.

So my question is this, why go with the Off-road specific stuff? Is there that much of a difference in quality and reliability?

RAINSTATEBEAR

I have been told only buy shackles from the US and Canada.

danmojo82

As always. And I am a firm believer in you get what you pay for, just curious as to if anybody has had any experience with normal things breaking faster than the higher end stuff.

Air Force Jeeper

Much like all my products I try to buy from the US only anyway. I know that it is not always possible to do this, but I do where I can. I am tired of giving money away to other countries that don't give anything back. Not hijacking the thread, just giving my two cents. And for the members from countries other than the US, don't take offense, I don't judge you for loving your country don't judge me for loving mine.

stang9986

I bought the arb recovery kit from northridge from using cheaper stuff with a high pull rating in the past and it not holding up I would pay more for the higher quality stuff again and know its gonna hold up when you need it

Menard666

A lot of the higher end stuff uses what is called the SWL (Safe Working Load) or SF (Safety Factor) in their load ratings. Take for example the 3/4" Crosby screw pin shackles that I use. The stamped rating on them is 4 3/4 Ton or roughly 9500lbs (The WLL or working load limit). Crosby shackles are built with a safety factor of 6:1 which means the average ultimate breaking strength of these shackles are 28 1/2 Ton or roughly 57000lbs. When buying recovery gear, you should know what load rating they are giving you and what, if any safety factor is built into it.

kingteddybear

Yep, I was hitting Tractor Supply, Harbor Freight, HD, Lowes, local hardware stores etc. trying to find the best deals on recovery gear. Then I went to a 4WD show a few weeks back and actually saw and examined the Smitty Built, Rugged Ridge, and ARB recovery gear. There really was no comparison in build quality. The ARB looked to have a similar build quality to what you would find at an industrial supplier of rigging slings. It was along the lines of ...ahhh that's why it cost so much. Saving my dollars for ARB. Probably spent enough on gas trying to save a buck to buy an ARB winch extension strap. Just my two centavos