This page sets out the general checks applied to rigging hardware before use and at periodic intervals, and the defects that require a component to be withdrawn from service. It is written for distributors and end users who need a common reference when they brief their own customers.
It is general guidance based on the practice set out in lifting and rigging standards. It does not replace the standard applicable in your country, the manufacturer's instructions for a specific item, or a competent person's examination where the regulations require one.
Before each use
- Identify the item. Read the marking: size, working load limit and manufacturer. If the marking cannot be read, the item cannot be identified and must not be used.
- Check that the rating is adequate for the load and for the way it will be loaded. Rated capacity assumes axial loading — off-axis and shock loading reduce it.
- Look for cracks, distortion, and wear at the points that bear on the rope or fitting — the pin and the eye of a shackle, the throat of a hook, the saddle and U-bolt of a clip.
- Check that moving parts work: a screw pin or nut must run freely by hand, a snap hook gate must close fully, and a turnbuckle must turn without binding.
- Check for corrosion. Light surface rust that wipes off is not the same as pitting and section loss.
Periodic examination
- Set the interval from the duty, the environment and the regulation that applies to you — not from a fixed calendar period alone. Marine, outdoor and high-cycle duty warrant shorter intervals.
- Examine for the same defects as the pre-use check, in better light and with the item clean, so that fine cracks and pitting can be seen.
- Check dimensional wear where the standard gives a limit — a hook throat that has opened out, or an eye that has elongated, is worn beyond use.
- Record what was examined, what was found and what was withdrawn. The record is what shows the examination happened.
Withdraw from service if you find
- A crack, in any direction, anywhere on a load-bearing part.
- Distortion — a bent body, a shackle pin that will not seat, a hook that has opened out, a turnbuckle body that is twisted.
- Wear beyond the limit in the standard, or a reduction in section from wear or corrosion.
- Pitting corrosion, or corrosion that has reduced the section.
- A damaged, seized or stripped thread; a screw pin or nut that will not run fully home.
- Heat damage — including arc strikes and weld spatter. Do not repair rigging hardware by welding or by heating and re-forming it.
- A missing or illegible marking, or any modification made after manufacture.
Care and storage
- Store dry, off the ground, and separated from chemicals and from dissimilar metals that could start galvanic corrosion.
- Keep threads clean and lightly lubricated so that a screw pin and a turnbuckle still turn after a period in storage.
- Do not de-rate, repair or re-mark a component. If it is out of service, take it out of the working area and dispose of it so it cannot be picked up again.
- Keep the documentation with the batch: standard, sizes, WLL, material and the inspection document agreed at the time of order.
More in the resource library
Selection guide
How to choose the pattern, size and finish
Read moreMaterials & finishes
Carbon, alloy, 304/316 and the coating options
Read moreClip installation
Number, spacing, turnback and torque
Read moreApplications
Where the hardware is used
Read morePacking & shipping
Cartons, pallets, marking and documents
Read moreGlossary
Rigging and lifting terminology
Read moreShackle selection
Bow vs dee, screw pin vs bolt type
Read moreWLL & safety factor
WLL, proof load and breaking load
Read moreTalk to us about your requirements
Send us the specification, quantity and destination — we will come back with a quotation.