Ratchet strap lead is too long (eliminate strap on ratchet side)

Question

1-inch ratchet straps don't always fit the object I'm strapping well, such as the end of a canoe or lumber that is snug to the vehicle. The strap on the ratchet side is too long.

1. The total ratchet strap length is too long.
2. Or, the placement of ratchet mechanism is wrong. The ratchet doesn't fit properly around a right-angle object, is in a spot that will damage the vehicle, or is awkward to operate.

Sometimes I can loop the strap around an object to take up the slack or use a loop strap.

But other times, it would be better if there were no strap on the ratchet side, making the distance between the ratchet and the hook shorter.

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Ideas:

• These strapless hooks seem ideal, except they're meant for larger straps:

  

  VULCAN Delta Wire Hook End Fitting For 2 Inch Ratchets
  VULCAN Tube Style Double J-Hook Ratchet Attachment
  Various Vulcan strap hardware

• I considered replacing the ratchet pin with a bolt to allow looping the existing hook around the bolt. But I think the hook loop is too thick (yellow arrow); it would jam up against the spring mechanism (red arrow):

  

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Is there a product or modification that would allow a direct hook on the ratchet side of a 1-inch strap?

Answer 1

Why not shorten the existing strap permanently on the ratchet end? You could get it down to an inch or two between hook and mechanism. That seems like enough

Bar tacking on a pretty basic sewing machine is really easy and allows a compact join. It's very strong; the straps were probably made that way, or with the larger box X stitch pattern. For something like this with safety implications I'd use 2 or even 3 separate rows of bar tacking. Climbing harnesses do that - but I wouldn't modify them!

Answer 2

I noticed most 1 1/2-inch straps have a removable bolt & lock nut for the strap on the ratchet side.

Erickson 2 pc 1-1/2 in. x 6 ft 3,000 lb Powersport Ratchet Tie-Down Strap Set

So I removed the bolt and put the bolt through the other end of the strap in the loop that contains the hook. Then re-installed the bolt. See the top strap in the photo:

That seemed to work well, so I copied that design using two 1-inch straps too.

I purchased 1-inch straps with the shortest ratchet-side strap I could find: Erickson 2 pc 1 in. x 12 ft 1,200 lb Ratchet Tie-Down Strap Set. I cut off the non-removable pin using bolt cutters and replaced it with a removable bolt and lock nut.

With the middle strap in the photo above, I removed the factory hook from the strap using bolt cutters. I folded the strap around the new pin and installed a carabiner into the two loop ends. Although, I realized later that replacing the pin wasn't necessary. I could have just looped the strap around the existing pin.

With the bottom strap in the photo, I used the same technique as the 1 1/2-inch strap.

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Notes:

• The benefits of the top and bottom techniques are:
  • The hook is closer to the ratchet.
  • The open-ended hook is more versatile compared to the carabiner. Although I could replace the carabiner with something like a clevis hook with a pin. Or some other kind of hook that has a removable pin.
• All three techniques can be reconfigured with tools to use the full strap.
• With the top and bottom techniques, I could cut off the excess strap if it gets in the way.
• In hindsight, I could have left the factory pins as is, simply removed the factory hook and installed a carabiner into the loop that is used for the pin. Although, the loop on the far end the strap is longer so the hook would have been further from the ratchet.