Shackles & Bridles
The pieces between the rope and the truck. Soft shackles for rated recovery points, the Hitch Hero for a receiver or a frame, and bridles that split the pull across two points, then tow through technical terrain without getting torn up the way a strap does.
The stuff that takes the hit
Everything between your rope and your truck. Pick the pieces you're missing.
Soft Shackle
Takes the place of a steel D-ring between your rope and a rated recovery point. Stronger than steel for its weight, quicker to rig, nothing to rattle.
From $49
Shop Soft Shackle
Hitch Hero
A soft shackle with a guarded sleeve. Rigs straight into a 2" receiver, around an A-arm or a frame, and works as a regular soft shackle too.
From $49
Shop Hitch Hero
Hero Bridle
8 feet, with a protected center that can run against metal edges. Wrap a frame, a roll cage or a control arm, or use it as a bridle, tree saver or extension.
From $119
Shop Hero Bridle
10' Static Bridle
Splits the pull across two recovery points. No stretch, so the stretch stays in the rope. Doubles as a 10 foot extension, a tree saver or an unbeatable tow strap on the rocks.
From $115
Shop Static Bridle
20' Hero Bridle
The Hero Bridle at 20 feet, with the same protected center that can run against metal edges. Perfect angles in a bridle setup, and a very aggressive tow rope when you need one.
$249
Shop 20' Bridle
12' Pro Bridle
Made for outfits that eat gear through normal use. 12 feet with the Hero sheath end to end, for metal edges and rock abrasion. Built to outlast anything on the market.
$179
Shop Pro Bridle
Receiver Set
A receiver insert and a soft shackle, sold as a set. Nothing sticks out, so it stays in on the trail. For rigs with the spare behind the hitch, where a Hitch Hero has no room.
From $133
Shop ReceiverLooking for a tow strap or a snatch strap?
They're with the winching gear →Bigger rig, bigger sizes
The same two shackles, sized up for the Heavy Duty ropes.
Heavy Duty
Hitch Hero
The guarded shackle for a receiver or a frame, in the big sizes.
From $69
Shop Heavy DutyQuestions people ask about shackles and bridles
Soft shackle or Hitch Hero?
A soft shackle connects your rope to a rated recovery point. The Hitch Hero does that too, and its sleeve is built to sit against raw metal edges as thin as 3/16 inch, so it also rigs straight into a 2 inch receiver, around an A-arm or around a frame. If either truck might not have a recovery point, get the Hitch Hero. If the spare sits right behind your hitch and a Hitch Hero has no room to wrap, get the Receiver Set.
Which bridle do I need?
All four spread a pull across two points and none of them stretch. The 10' Static Bridle is the simple one: two recovery points on a bumper and a rope in the middle. The Hero Bridle is 8 feet long with a protected center that can run against metal edges, so it also wraps a frame, a roll cage or a control arm, or goes through a wheel. The 20' Hero Bridle is the same thing with longer legs, for better angles in a bridle setup and a very aggressive tow rope. The 12' Pro Bridle carries the Hero sheath end to end, for outfits that drag a line every week.
Why does a bridle have to be static?
The bridle is your anchor. If it stretches, the anchor moves. A static bridle keeps the anchor points still, so all the stretch stays in the kinetic rope where it belongs.
Bridle angles and loads
A bridle shares the pull between two recovery points, and the angle it makes decides how much each one carries. Open any question below.
What is a bridle?
A short rope that hooks to two recovery points on the same truck. Your kinetic rope hooks to the middle of it. Instead of one point taking the whole pull, two points share it.
Why use two points instead of one?
One point takes the whole pull and gets yanked to one side. Two points share the load and keep the pull centered, which is easier on the frame, the bumper and the recovery points.
Does a bridle cut the load in half?
Almost. Each side carries a little more than half, and how much more depends on the angle of the V the bridle makes. A narrow V puts about half on each side. A wide V puts more.
Here are our four bridles drawn to scale on recovery points 3 feet apart. Green is the bridle, orange is your kinetic rope.
What is a bad angle?
Past about 90 degrees the bridle is barely helping. At 120 degrees each side carries the full pull, so two points are doing no better than one. A quick check with no math: if the triangle looks wider than it is long, it is too flat.
| Angle of the V | Each side carries | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Under 50° | About half | Good |
| 60° | 58% | Fine |
| 90° | 71% | Poor |
| 120° | 100% | Bad |
Which length should I get?
On a truck, any of ours keeps you in the good zone. Longer is gentler: a longer bridle makes a narrower V, so the recovery points get pulled toward each other less. The 20 foot puts less than half the side pull on each point that the 8 foot does.
The angle each of ours makes, by how far apart your recovery points are:
| Bridle | Points 3 ft apart | Points 4 ft apart |
|---|---|---|
| 8' Hero | 44° | 60° |
| 10' Static | 35° | 47° |
| 12' Pro | 29° | 39° |
| 20' Hero | 17° | 23° |
Why does the rope need to slide on the bridle?
Pulls are rarely dead straight. When the pull goes off to one side, a rope that can slide re-centers itself and both sides keep sharing. If it cannot slide, one side goes slack and the other takes everything. Ours are one continuous piece made so the rope slides.
When can the angle go bad?
When the bridle gets shortened: wrapped around a frame or an axle so most of its length is used up, doubled over, or stretched between two anchors set far apart. Step back and look at the triangle before you pull.
What size do I need?
Shackles: match them to your rope. A shackle should be rated at or above the rope it connects to. Bridles are different. A bridle splits the pull between two legs, and how much each leg carries depends on the angle. A longer bridle makes a narrower angle, so each leg and each recovery point carries about half the pull. A shorter bridle or wider-set recovery points push that number up. Our bridles are one continuous piece made so the rope can slide along them, which keeps the two legs sharing the load when the pull goes off-center. Our kits pair the 3/4 inch rope with 3/8 inch Hitch Heros and a 1/2 inch bridle, and the 1 inch rope with 1/2 inch Hitch Heros and a 3/4 inch bridle. The rated break strength for every size is listed on each product page.
Do I still need steel D-rings?
Sometimes. Where a recovery point is too small for a Hitch Hero to pass through, a D-ring on that point is the right call. Metal on metal is fine. What to avoid is a piece of metal sitting between two soft pieces.
What's the warranty?
Every shackle and bridle carries a lifetime warranty under proper use, within the published service life. They are retired after an overload or shock event. Used and cared for, they're good for 10 years when stored properly, shaded and out of the weather, and 5 years if they live exposed in a truck bed, on a bumper or on a roof rack. The full retirement rules are on the service life page.
Is the gear tested?
Every Kinetic-X rope and shackle is pull-tested to failure by an independent lab in California before we publish a rating.
How fast does it ship?
Orders typically ship within 1-2 business days from Upland, California.