My last trail outing, either someone on the trail when we were all occupied with an obstacle as I waited my turn or during that weekend on a quick trip out of the forest to the store, some one decided they needed my D-Shackle mount more than I did. I had not used my locking hitch pin as I usually do, because, well, I left it at home in a hurry to get on the road for the weekend. Anyway, I wanted to find another solid steel receiver mount like I had, not one of the hollow tube type that are made of steel welded to form the hollow mounting 2"x2" portion which is suppose to work, but I do not see how it could ever be as strong.

Anyway, I found the Bulldog 2" Receiver Hitch Mount with D-Shackle on the Internet after some searching. Then found it on Amazon.com which I figured would be the best price. Not in this case! I then found it on another web page with free shipping and got it in a couple days in time for my weekend trip this weekend. Both Amazon.com and the web page I ordered from have an old stock picture of this part.



Here is the Amazon URL: $29.99 + $12 shipping = $41.99


And here is the URL of the site I ended up ordering from: $32.05 + Free Priority mail shipping
3/4" Shackle Receiver Mount Bulldog Winch- 20037 - McGuaghy's Suspension Online

I received the new part which is shiny chrome looking all over including the D-Shackle, which I guess is due to the zinc plating for corrosion resistance. It is also cross-drilled to mount using the hitch pin to allow the D-Shackle to be used vertical or horizontal as needed.

Here is the item that I actually received shown on the Bulldog winch web page showing the same Bulldog part#, but obviously a newer version of the product, part# 20037. I cannot find on the receiver mount or the D-shackle a country of the manufacturer, but the edges are clean and parts are trimmed smooth, and everything is solid. Highly recommend. Will see if I need it this weekend, and may have more feedback. The included D-shackle is rated at 9,500 lbs.
http://www.bulldogwinch.com/index.cf...prod/prd27.htm

 

Looks nice. If my Warn one ever fails or grows legs I'll look into the Bulldog.

 

cool, thanks for the link.
side note= had an unusually beneficial transaction on ebay, recently. seller was promark offroad. I ordered a 12k ****** and a couple other things. It was best price and fast n free shipping. filled cart, checked out. got a call the next morning....."12k is out of stock, would 20k be alright, at the same price? me= sure or I can wait, no big deal. they= great we will get your order out now with the 20k, so that you are not waiting." so 2 mornings later, package arrived. but it had 2 (only ordered the 1) 20k ****** blocks and a pair of gloves that I did not order...??? I sent them an email and response was "we just want the customer to know that we appreciate the business and will do our best to get orders filled promptly and correctly. sorry for our error" so for the first time ever, I actually look at the seller name on ebay. SCORE!!

 

Well, I found this on on Ebay that looks similar with the hitch pin and free shipping as well for only $27.93. So lots of good price options if you search, and hopefully this will cut down on the search time for some folks. They have it in black as well that says it can be used vertical or horizontal, but the picture in the black receiver mount auction shows just horizontal with only one hitch pin hole, so may want to ask if you plan to purchase the black receiver mount. UPDATE: I sent the seller a message on Ebay, and they confirmed that the black receiver is cross-drilled to be used horizontal or
vertical.

Silver Multi Mount Receiver Hitch Shackle D Ring Kit Silver D Ring Pin | eBay

Black Multi Mount Receiver Hitch Shackle D Ring Kit Silver D Ring Pin | ebay

 

What's the WLL and design factor of the shackle?

 

Nice, just to let you know the post isnt showing up properly on my iphone - I think there is a plugin you can grab that takes care of that now.
I want to show my admiration for your generosity in support of people that should have assistance with your question.

 

WLL on the D-Shackle is 4 3/4 Tons (9,500 lbs.) In regard to "design factor", I am not sure exactly what you mean, but guessing that means all total with the receiver mount and D-Shackle what is load limit for this as sold for recovery. I am not sure. I am guessing the cross-drilling would tend to weaken the solid shank portion somewhat, but not sure. I was ignorant and was using the WLL of the D-shackle, assuming that big chunk of metal alloy would do the job up to that limit. Probably not a good assumption in all cases.

 

No, design factor it the ratio of breaking load to WLL. So WLL * design factor = breaking strength.
Shackles can be anywhere from about a low of 1.5:1 (for soft shackles I've seen for sale) to 5:1 for Green Pin, CM, and Crosby screw pin shackles.
For recovery the unofficial standard is 3:1, but I use 5:1 shackles so I can use smaller ones and still be safe.

WLL is the working load limit, and should not be exceeded when using it.

 

This is the one that I have. It has a working load of 9,5000 lbs. Warn doesn't specify safety/design factor. I paid $30 shipped off eBay.
Warn Industries - Rigging Accessories for Jeep, Truck & SUV Winches: Shackle Bracket

 

I have the same one and it's held up great.
At some point I have to believe all this arguing is pointless and the weak link is the factory hitch receiver itself.