Anatomy of a tie down strap
There are tons of straps on the market with lots of configurations, strengths and numbers all over the packaging. Hopefully this little blurb will give you some info about what makes up a strap and can lead you to purchase the correct one for your needs. (Hopefully on www.SecureMyCargo.com ) Straps are usually made from Nylon Webbing. The strap width usually comes in sizes from 1 inch up to 4 inches, which can make its breaking strength (BS) range from 300 lbs up to 20,000 lbs. Breaking strength is the max tension the strap can take before it snaps and its usually 3 times the Working Load Strength or Limit. Working Load Limit (WLL) is what the strap is meant to handle on its daily strapping tasks, if you normally go over this limit you are compromising the strap and will make it fail prematurely. Straps are not just straps, they are assemblies. The basic straps we sell on our site use webbing that is rated with a 8000 lbs breaking strength but the components you use with it will not match that strength, so the weakest link determines the WLL and BS of the strap. In most circumstances cam buckles are weaker than ratchets and both of those pieces of hardware come in light duty and heavy duty versions. So as we mentioned above straps are composed of several parts to make the assembly. Below are the main components of a standard tie down strap. Main Body- This is the piece of hardware that is used to take up the slack in the nylon webbing and tighten the grip on whatever you are strapping or keeping in place with the strap. Cam Buckle- Straps that use these as the main body are tightened as hard as you can pull on the Pulling End of the nylon webbing. Tension is released when you press on the spring lever of the cam buckle. Ratchet – Straps that use these as the main body are tightened dramatically more when you slowly ratchet in the nylon webbing. Tension is released when you pull up on the release lever and pull the ratchet handle back to the fully open position. Fixed End Hardware- This is the short end of the strap where usually 6 inches of nylon webbing is attached from the Main Body to one or two of several hardware choices, S hook, Flat hook etc. Some will even have a loop of nylon webbing here, this loop is meant to go over handlebars and not scratch them like a metal hardware would. These are usually called Motorcycle/ATV straps. Adjustable End Hardware – This is the part of the strap with the most nylon webbing usually from 6 feet up to 30 feet. This is the part of the strap that moves closer to Main Body when you are taking up the slack of the nylon webbing with the Cam buckle or Ratchet. This end will have one or two of several hardware choices, S hook, Flat hook etc. Some will even have a loop of nylon webbing here, this loop is meant to go over handlebars and not scratch them like a metal hardware would. These are usually called Motorcycle/ATV straps. Pulling End – This is the part of the Nylon webbing is at the opposite end of the Adjustable End Hardware. You pull this part to take up the slack on the cam strap and ratchet it in on a ratchet strap. Normally on a cam strap it will either be a cut and melted end of nylon webbing or have a soft handle sewn in to easier pulling. On a Ratchet strap there is no need to pull so it will always be a cut and melted end of nylon webbing. STRAP HARDWARE COMPONENTS
Main Body	Fixed End Hardware	Adjustable End Hardware	Pulling End
Cam Buckle	S Hook	S Hook	Flat end
Ratchet	Snap Hook	Snap Hook	Soft Loop
	Soft Loop	Soft Loop
	Double J Hook	Double J Hook
	Flat Hook	Flat Hook

Strap Examples
Cam Strap Main Body: Cam Buckle Fixed End: S Hook Adjustable End: S Hook Pulling End: Built-in Soft Tie This is a standard type cam strap you will see on the market.
Ratchet Strap Main Body: Ratchet Fixed End: S Hook & Soft Tie Adjustable End: S Hook Pulling End: Built-in Soft Tie This is a dual purpose ratchet strap, it can serve as a standard strap using the S hooks on both ends, but comes with handle bar soft ties at both ends also.
Typical Hardware Strap Ends
S Hook	Double J Hook		Flat Hook	Snap Hook