Truck tie down means totally different things to different applications , we will focus on big rig tie downs in our discussion, specifically, we are going to talk about flat bed truck this time.
Since people put all kinds of stuff on the flat bed truck, just because they can or they have to , the needs for tie downs become pretty complex .
We are going to discuss truck tie down straps exclusively.
For most flat bed trucks, truck winch and winch straps are what we need, some trailers come with winches installed you have to get winch strap.
Some flat beds come with weld on winches installed, not all flat beds have winches installed . When the flat bed have the winches installed, we can use winch straps to tie down articles on the trailer , usually we tie down steel coils, concrete pipes, skids, anything that not too heavy for the 5400lbs working load limit . Winch straps usually come with flat hooks, because we usually hook the straps on the edge of the trailer , of course the wire hook can be used too. There are 2” and 4” winches and 2” and 4” winch straps , depends on different applications , the length of strap can be 20′, 25′, 27′, 30′, 35′, 40′ or more than 50 feet.
Of course we just can’t leave out the most used tie down device, ratchet straps.
Ratchet Tie Down is most used tie down equipment due to their adaptability , you can use them almost anywhere when it’s applicable. The ending comes with quite some varieties, flat hooks, double J hooks , chain anchor , snap hooks, endless and more. And it’s width can be 1” through 4”, length can be a few inches to more than 50 feet . On commercial trucks ratchet tie downs are the most popular tie down devices for shippers , those trailers without winches installed will look at ratchet straps seriously.
Before you get out or get online to buy these tie down straps , you should learn how to get more out of it while spend less , first thing to consider is the quality , probably you know local store well enough, but for online stores you need to find out by reading other people’s the reviews, trucking blogs, such as trucker’s deal , customer feed backs, or by some other venues to find out if the products and service are good or not.
