Hazard of snatch blocks

A local rollback driver was recently fatally injured due to using a snatch block not rated for the application. (As I understand it, the snatch block needs to be rated for TWICE The winch rating. I.E. 10000lb winch means a 20000 lb snatch block). The Snatch block exploded and the driver was not a safe distance away. Ok, I know he should have not have used it etc etc. Just trying to remind those who could benefit to discard and remove any snatch block from your truck or trailer not rated for at least two times greater than the winch.

YUP , while working in the oil patch i spent a lot of time out of the office and in the seat of a Dozer and the one i ran the most was a 750 John Deere with a hyster W 6 F winch and i had 1 1/8 blue wrap drill line on it and straight line pull at and ideal i could pop it like old baler twine . That winch was a 60000 lb line pull and i also had two army tank retriever snatch blocks for when the going got tough , nothing like winching out a 200000 lb drilling rig head light deep in mud to temper test everything . . You get 380 feet of cabe strung out and the dozer set in and start tugging one had best be readfy to dive to the floor plates as more then once i had the cable break or the tail chain break , that 3/8 inch expanded metal screen was no match for a flying end of tail chain or as one time on a double set one of them 100 plus pond snatch blocks coming on thru and taking out the screen . Muffler and stack along with the air cleaner while i ate dirt . Any winching is deadly i don't care it it is only a stuck ATV and winch line .

Years ago while on a high line transmission crew trying to get a truck stuck in mud out the supervisor insisted running a winch line up and across a dirt road with no one to stand guard. An elderly woman driving down that road did not see the winch cable stretched fiddle string tight ran into it stopping her car instantly. She was hurt bad slamming into the steering wheel. Another consideration when winching.

Industry standards say a snatch block should be rated for 3 times the line pull.
This is because good snatch blocks have a side hook to attach the dead end of the cable.
For most consumer snatch blocks without this hook 2 times is sufficient.

The easy way to figure the pull on a block is to count the lines to it.
2 lines is 2 times and 3 lines is 3 times the line pull.

Another thing people do not understand is using a snatch block does not double your line pull in all situations.
It only changes the direction of the line pull.

A lot of other calculations go into it when the angle of the line changes in relation to the piece you are moving but this was a simple explanation.

This chart will show how things change with different setups.
Each calculation is based on the same 2000 pound weight.

Thanks John in LA. Good information.

if you have a 3 part line then 3 times the load--

Remember that the rating must cover the ENTIRE load -- not just the thing you're lifting, but also the cables and other snatch blocks.

Note also that the ratings are for vertical pull in free air. It takes less to lift a tractor off the ground than to drag it on its wheels in some conditions.

You had me concerned. I went to my account to verify mine. I tend to do overkill on safety, but couldn't remember what mine was rated for. 8,000 lb. winch and a snatch block rated at 17,000. Thanks.

Yep can happen , I had one break one time while working the oil patch . We were on a rig move and the rig wnt down while we were moving it in . Most times all that was needed to suck it out was for me to set the dozer in and PULL . Pretty amazing that a 750 John Deere with a a Hyster W 6 F winch would pull . I ran a 1 1/8th line on the winch and i have pulled that line apart many times on a straight line pull . Well the move i tugged on the rig the deeper it went . Now we are killing the engine and time for plan B so i go back out to the loy boy and get the two big snatch blocks that were Military that came off a M 88 tank retriever and we do a two part line pull . I have the dozer in a Tee slot trench that is deep and she is not moving . I got the rig moving and i have all but one wrap of cable played out when the snatch block on the rig lets go and came back at the dozer i took a dive to the platform and that heavy metal screen / expanded metal was nothing more then tissue paper to it as it went thru it and on it's way across the hood it took the air cleaner top and pipe with it then the muffler and the elbow for the turbo and fell to the ground when it ran out of free cable about twenty feet in ft. of the blade . The head ache screen had stopped flying tail chains that broke and whipping cable that broke BUT it never slowed down a 150 Lb snatch block . When one is winching you do not want anybody even around , Break a line under extreme load could even slice someone in half .