Truck tie downs are actually about a lot different stuff to different applications , we will talk about trailer tie downs in this post , to make things simple, I’m sure you’ve already seen flatbed tie downs on the road, we will only talk about flat beds for the time being.

So many different loads can be put on trailers , the choice of tie downs will be really complicated, they will need quite some different tie down devices to get the job done, such as e track straps for box truck . When it comes to flatbeds , the first thing comes up will be the truck winches, you can see those flatbeds with truck winches at one side on the highway all the time, with those winches it’s easy for the driver to tie down loads with just winch straps with the help of winch bar .

For most flat bed trucks, truck winch and winch straps are what we usually use to tie down stuff, some trailers come with winches installed you only have to get winch straps . When you work with truck winches and winch straps, there is one thing you can’t live without: winch bar, these steel bars are necessary for your job, so get one if you don’t already have one.

If your flatbeds come with winches installed, you only need to get some winch straps for most of your work, of course you still need to keep some chains, binders and ratchet straps handy. Winch straps with winches on the flatbed can be used to secure pallets, machinery, steel coils, concrete pipes etc., with 5400lbs working load limit and the protection of plastic corner guards these winch straps can secure almost anything threw at them. Both flat hooks and wire hooks may be used on 2”, 3” and 4” winch straps, but flat hooks are more popular than wire hooks, you may see flat hooks on all size winch straps while wire hooks mostly on 2” straps. We can find 2” and 4” truck winches and 2” and 4” winch tie downs, depends on different situation , the length of strap can be 20′-40′ or more than 50′ .

OK, now let’s talk about ratchet straps which are the most popular tie down devices for all kinds of trucks or hauling  businesses. It’s well known that the ratchet straps are assemblies of ratchet buckles and nylon or polyester webbing tie down strap, there are fixed end straps with ratchet buckles and loose end straps.

Ratchet straps are most used tie down equipment because of their adaptability , you can use them almost anywhere when it’s applicable. The ratchet straps may have flat hooks, double J hooks, chain anchors, cloth loops or just plain straps at bothe ends, probably some special made ratchets have some other funny ends, say, D ring? Width of the ratchets measured from 1” to 4” and the length can be anything from inches to more than 50 feet, the ratcheting mechanism really has it’s advantage. The reason we say that ratchet straps are most popular tie down devices for most trucks can be found in this paragraph, even for flatbeds which use winch straps massively may find ratchet straps attractive if there are no winches installed on the truck.

For us to get nice ratcheting straps can be difficult or quite easy , depends on what you need and your budget. Depends on your available options , sometimes get them in local store is an good idea , sometimes online sales are much more attractive. Nowadays there are a lot of forums, blogs and online opinion sites out there, you just need to read some reviews, customer feedbacks to figure out the product and servie qulaity of the vendors, there is no need to take chances.