There are various forms of shackle on the market. Normally one would use what’s called a screw pin shackle and use tie wire to ensure it won’t come un-screwed if permanent install. Otherwise there is pin and cotter pin shackles and ones that use a bolt that are less used because it's difficult to easily remove them.
Having studied this shackle some, it shows no signs of ever having been threaded thus it was one of the other versions - no doubt the type that uses a pin and cotter pin retainer for it.
Someone along the way replaced the pin provided with a quick release pin no doubt to make it quick and easy to remove. The shackle seems to have been designed to have a pin in it, but replacement of one pin that’s got a cotter pin retainer for another type that has a push button extractor is very against normal safety standards. No matter if the pin might be rated for the same 3 Ton load or not - if it even is rated for load in the same way, you are not to install components on rigging equipment not coming from the factory for that equipjment. Can’t even replace the nut on a wire rope clip if missing if other than factory. Much less in the photo you can see shadow around the opening for the pin and pin. The tolerances of this opening were not very good for the type of pin in use. This type of pin is designed to go into a slightly smaller hole and as a other than lifting capacity type of thing.
So someone it would seem used a non-factory spec. or specifically load rated pin to replace the factory one as a easy removal solution. This no doubt was a very light load and needful quick release situation where someone was not informed about proper products for doing this because the pin in use is not cheap to buy thus it was not a cost effective solution either. They must have thought they had a brilliant solution and for the most part in no doubt even using a oversized shackle for the application I theorize. The shackle is in very used condition but no real fattening of it’s pin thus it could not have been used at capacity or in a shock loading on the non-rated pin. For the most part, the pin won’t pull free unless you really tug on it so they were thinking, it’s just not proper use of materials and a bad idea in general. There are other solutions for load rated gear when you need to quickly release it.
Bad idea, and while of the same coloring, due to the tolerances of the hole, I seriously doubt anyone sells this type of equipment. Came off a show thus someone was using it and probably a few of them. Got one of them after the show, apparently the stage hands did not question it’s use, nor there probably is more in use by who ever once owned it. Such things are part of what cause stage tragedies. It showing back to my shop shows that not even any of our crew noted some other companie's use of it since it was not destroyed on the spot.
Having studied this shackle some, it shows no signs of ever having been threaded thus it was one of the other versions - no doubt the type that uses a pin and cotter pin retainer for it.
Someone along the way replaced the pin provided with a quick release pin no doubt to make it quick and easy to remove. The shackle seems to have been designed to have a pin in it, but replacement of one pin that’s got a cotter pin retainer for another type that has a push button extractor is very against normal safety standards. No matter if the pin might be rated for the same 3 Ton load or not - if it even is rated for load in the same way, you are not to install components on rigging equipment not coming from the factory for that equipjment. Can’t even replace the nut on a wire rope clip if missing if other than factory. Much less in the photo you can see shadow around the opening for the pin and pin. The tolerances of this opening were not very good for the type of pin in use. This type of pin is designed to go into a slightly smaller hole and as a other than lifting capacity type of thing.
So someone it would seem used a non-factory spec. or specifically load rated pin to replace the factory one as a easy removal solution. This no doubt was a very light load and needful quick release situation where someone was not informed about proper products for doing this because the pin in use is not cheap to buy thus it was not a cost effective solution either. They must have thought they had a brilliant solution and for the most part in no doubt even using a oversized shackle for the application I theorize. The shackle is in very used condition but no real fattening of it’s pin thus it could not have been used at capacity or in a shock loading on the non-rated pin. For the most part, the pin won’t pull free unless you really tug on it so they were thinking, it’s just not proper use of materials and a bad idea in general. There are other solutions for load rated gear when you need to quickly release it.
Bad idea, and while of the same coloring, due to the tolerances of the hole, I seriously doubt anyone sells this type of equipment. Came off a show thus someone was using it and probably a few of them. Got one of them after the show, apparently the stage hands did not question it’s use, nor there probably is more in use by who ever once owned it. Such things are part of what cause stage tragedies. It showing back to my shop shows that not even any of our crew noted some other companie's use of it since it was not destroyed on the spot.
