On Fri, 21 Mar 2008 03:55:44 GMT, Jim Chandler wrote:

One question to consider is what was the CONDITION of the straps. Nylon
becomes very brittle when exposed to sunlight for long periods and it
also cuts very easily when under tension. Could be there was a sharp or
rough edge somewhere that the strap passed over and when tension was
applied it just cut. Saw some graphic demonstrations of that when I was
a loadmaster doing air drop. An 8 ply extration sling under tension
from the extration chute can be cut in one or two swipes with a not
necessarily sharp survival knife. Tends to open ones eyes, it does.

I have a "snatchem strap" for my 4WD and have recently bought a
replacement because the original had a few strands frayed - it is
probably still good for at least 90% of original capacity but has been
relegated to a towrope only where there will be no extreme stress as
when snatching. Only been used about 3 times. Better to replace
than have vehicle damage caused by one snapping.