Types of shackles and how we use them

Types of shackles and how we use them.

What is a marine shackle?

Marine shackle is the tool, which connects 2 pieces of equipment or 2 objects together.

It is usually the end of a chain and its job is to make a strong physical connection of a lifting device to a load that needs to be moved.

Although there are many types of keys available in the market, in the following article we will study the main ones:

D-shaped key.

As its name indicates, the "D" shaped key essentially has the shape of an oblong "O".

It is, as we said, a type of key that we encounter a lot, since it has a huge range of applications. Typically, the “D” key locks with a threaded fork or a clevis type fork and are considered a suitable choice for medium to heavy loads.

When dealing with lateral loads where the lift is not necessarily completely vertical, type “D” keys are not recommended as they may bend or start to rotate if too much pressure is applied.

O-shaped key.

"O" type keys or anchor keys are the best-known variation of "D" keys. Their main advantage is that they can withstand multiple loads from different directions due to their rounded body.

They are suitable for lifting or rigging applications and a major advantage is that they can accommodate wider lifting straps than the corresponding “D” wrenches in their class.

Long key

This is another variation of the "D" shaped key, with the difference that it has a longer body. Its great advantage over other keys is that it offers more available space inside its body for exploitation. When it comes to heavy lifting loads it is not considered the safest choice in strength levels.

Twist Shackle

The use of the torque wrench is when we want a 90 degree angle of rotation from our original object. It usually has a marine use since it is ideally used to reduce the twist in the rigging of a yacht or ship. Also, its design allows the connection of many objects of different sizes.

Soft link

A new type of key which we could say is of innovative construction is the Softlink.

Softlink has been developed by the French company Wichard, and is primarily intended for all types of boats looking for performance and ease of use.

It is made of the special Dyneema fabric which gives it incredible strength and lightness. Can replace keys and carabiners.

It has really remarkable strength and lightness (4-5 times lighter than a typical marine wrench) as well as being very easy to use.