| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
tropolis
Joined: 21 May 2008
Posts: 25
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 9:38 am Post subject: have any of you guys ever lost a strap |
|
|
| i was watching ice road truckers and the guy got a loose strap and had to jump out real quick and tighten that. anyone ever have a strap just fall off? |
|
| Back to top |
|
BigDiesel
Joined: 01 Apr 2007
Posts: 1210
Location: Space... The Final Frontier
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 12:06 pm Post subject: Re: have any of you guys ever lost a strap |
|
|
tropolis wrote: i was watching ice road truckers and the guy got a loose strap and had to jump out real quick and tighten that. anyone ever have a strap just fall off?
Like a Jock Strap ??? |
|
| Back to top |
|
Syncrosonix
Joined: 16 Feb 2008
Posts: 584
Location: scottsdale, arizona
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 12:33 pm Post subject: Re: have any of you guys ever lost a strap |
|
|
BigDiesel wrote: tropolis wrote: i was watching ice road truckers and the guy got a loose strap and had to jump out real quick and tighten that. anyone ever have a strap just fall off?
Like a Jock Strap ???
or a strap-on? :lol: :lol: |
|
| Back to top |
|
TomB985
Joined: 14 Sep 2006
Posts: 247
Location: Columbus, OH
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 12:36 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Never had it happen, although I don't pull a conventional flatbed, either...
I don't think it's very common, but it certainly is possible... |
|
| Back to top |
|
Uturn2001
Joined: 10 Jan 2005
Posts: 4669
Location: East Central IL between the corn and the beans
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 12:36 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Nope. but then again I always wrapped the hook end around the rail in such a way that it made it difficult for a loose strap to actually fall off.
As far as straps loosening in route goes it happens all the time due to cargo settling and shifting and the strap itself stretching some which is why the smart flatbed drivers stop about 20 minutes out and check and retighten and do this every couple of hours while enroute, sometimes more often depending on the load. |
|
| Back to top |
|
repete
Joined: 21 Dec 2006
Posts: 249
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 12:58 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Nah, never lost one yet, there always laying right there on the floor when I open the doors :lol: |
|
| Back to top |
|
JeffTheTerrible
Joined: 20 Jan 2005
Posts: 746
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:13 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| I had one snap on me as I was tightening it. I made it a point to inspect them much more carefully after that happened. As for having them loosen up on me while I was going down the road, yes, but I've never actually lost one. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Rev.Vassago
Joined: 04 Apr 2006
Posts: 6281
Location: The other side of the coin
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:11 pm Post subject: |
|
|
repete wrote: Nah, never lost one yet, there always laying right there on the floor when I open the doors :lol:
I lost 6 of them the other day after opening my doors. But then I found out that the guys on the dock "accidentally" took them off my trailer, and after I complained, they reluctantly gave them back to me, claiming they didn't know what trailer they belonged to. :lol: |
|
| Back to top |
|
GMAN
Joined: 13 Feb 2005
Posts: 9907
Location: Tennessee
|
| Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:32 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| I don't recall having lost any straps, but have had them to loosen. I make a habit of checking my straps or chains every time I stop. Starting out it is a good idea to stop after about 50 miles to see if everything is properly secured. If you properly hook your strap around the rub rail, you should not lose your strap. I always keep an eye on the load using the rear view mirrors. You can usually spot a loose strap before it gets critical. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Rawlco
Joined: 25 Jan 2006
Posts: 1170
Location: Central Maine
|
| Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 11:55 am Post subject: |
|
|
| I have never lost a strap, but I have seen a few lying in the road. Once I did see an oncomming truck lose a strap. I imagine that the loose end of the strap got caught under a tire because that strap went flying up into the air and came down at least 8 feet into the grass on the side of the road. |
|
| Back to top |
|
dewercs2
Joined: 13 Jan 2007
Posts: 163
Location: Hemet, CA
|
| Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 1:46 pm Post subject: |
|
|
GMAN wrote: I don't recall having lost any straps, but have had them to loosen. I make a habit of checking my straps or chains every time I stop. Starting out it is a good idea to stop after about 50 miles to see if everything is properly secured. If you properly hook your strap around the rub rail, you should not lose your strap. I always keep an eye on the load using the rear view mirrors. You can usually spot a loose strap before it gets critical.
Hey Gman... I started to do the samething but my last company safety guy said that the rub rail wasn't a valid anchor point since it was aluminum. My new point of anchor was to be under the the deck, onto the steel framing. I should have asked what if the trailer was all aluminum. The other thing he said was this is the rub rail not the load securement rail and DOT doesn't like to see straps on the outside of the rub rail per some rule of law in the book that I can't remember right now....
I'll have to watch for skateboards as I'm riding the "DOG" on friday and saturday. Off to Arrow in Oaklahoma for orientation on monday. |
|
| Back to top |
|
JeffTheTerrible
Joined: 20 Jan 2005
Posts: 746
|
| Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 2:35 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Yeah, I usually tried to come down to the I-beam under the trailer, without going over top of the rub rail, unless my straps weren't long enough. Some trailers, I could hook them under the bed, but some, I couldn't (such as the 53 ft. stepdecks Swift operates), in which case, I wouldn't have much choice but to go around the rub rail. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Windwalker
Joined: 22 Oct 2005
Posts: 3101
Location: Holiday, FL
|
| Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 7:56 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I understand (from an MD Trooper), that a driver with a load of hay had the hook come loose from the frame rail under the bed. I was told that the wind took the strap over the load, and down into the opposing lane of travel. It went through the windshield of a 4-wheeler and killed the driver.
That securement is one of the main reasons I'm not pulling flatbed anymore. A slight breeze, a couple of wiggles of the strap, and the hook is UNHOOKED. It can catch on the bottom corner, and when you start to tighten it down, it suddenly slips off, and goes up in the air. When it comes down, it's addressed "TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN". I've got a 3 inch scar on the top of my head from one. I've also seen the bottom edge of the frame bent and cracked, and even with a piece broken out.
When it happened to me, I had DOT standing about ten feet from me, and I don't remember everything I said, but I'll bet he still does. |
|
| Back to top |
|
JeffTheTerrible
Joined: 20 Jan 2005
Posts: 746
|
| Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 8:26 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Strapping down bales of hay is probably going to be quite tricky. Can you imagine how easily it could loosen up as you go down the road? I'd certainly be hesitant to accept such a job, anyhow. |
|
| Back to top |
|
Jumbo
Joined: 27 Aug 2006
Posts: 930
Location: Northern Wisconsin
|
| Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 11:09 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| We never use rub rails for tiedowns. All our straps have chains on the end so we can go around the spools or through the pockets. The only thing we can attach to the rubrail is bugees for our tarps. |
|
| Back to top |
|
| |
