Ratchet Buckle, Overcenter Buckle, Cam Buckle & Wire Hook
There are three major types of
fasteners: cam,
over-center, and ratchet.
Cam fasteners
are a simple type of
fastener that use a cam to
push down on the webbing
that is passed through the
cam and prevent the webbing
from slipping back through
the fastener. The edge of
the cam lever that faces the
webbing is usually knurled
to provide a firmer grip on
the webbing. Tension is
added by pulling the excess
webbing through the fastener
until the necessary tension
is achieved and then
releasing the cam lever to
lock the webbing in place.
Over-center
fasteners require a slightly
more complex threading
procedure to start the
webbing through the
fastener. The tensioning
method provided by this
fastener makes it easier
than the cam fastener to get
more tension into the strap
and to keep it there. When
the fastener is ¡°open¡± you
can feed the excess webbing
through the fastener. When
all of the slack is removed,
the act of ¡°closing¡± the
fastener will add tension to
the webbing and hold that
tension tightly in place.
Ratchet
fasteners are the most
complex of the three
fasteners to thread, but
offer advantages in taking
up the slack in the webbing
and tensioning the assembly.
Once the webbing is threaded
through the fastener, the
ratcheting mechanism is
employed to take up the
slack and tension the
assembly to the necessary
level. The ratcheting
mechanism functions
similarly to a socket
wrench; you open and close
the fastener repeatedly to
pull the webbing through the
fastener. Releasing the
tension is a simple matter
of depressing the release
lever and pulling the
webbing back through the
fastener. ¡¡ |
