Type a line (WLL 4.75 t, shackle 3/4 inch, pin 22 mm, EN 13889 6.5), or pick the type and the WLL. Below, an offered shackle can be checked against the one wanted.
On the WLL and the type alone: the pin, finish, marks and certificate are checked separately, and the marks, the certificate and the competent person decide.
EN 13889 sets a series of forged steel lifting shackles of grade 6, dee and bow, with a working load limit (WLL) from 0.5 t to 25 t; in the US the same shackles are named by a nominal size in inches under Federal Specification RR-C-271. Type the WLL marked on the shackle (“WLL 4.75 t”), the inch size (“3/4 inch”) or a measured pin diameter (“pin 22 mm”), and the reader gives the WLL and the size, the pin diameter, inside width and inside length where the sources agree, draws the shackle to scale, lists the marks, checks an offered shackle against the one wanted and writes an RFQ line.
This is reference data, not a rigging calculation: the WLL marked on the shackle, its certificate and the competent person decide. Dimensions are given only where two independent maker tables agree and the EN 13889 table, where it gives a value, does not differ; where they differ, the cell is blank.
A dee shackle has straight, parallel sides and takes a single leg, a chain for example. A bow shackle is rounder below the pin and can take several slings. Either has a screw collar pin (type W) or a bolt with a nut and a split cotter (type X); EN 13889 covers only shackles with threaded pins.
The main figure on a shackle is its WLL in tonnes, from the series 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.5, 2, 3.25, 4.75, 6.5, 8.5, 9.5, 12, 13.5, 17 and 25 t. Each WLL has an inch size under RR-C-271: 3/4 in is 4.75 t, for example. The minimum breaking load of a grade 6 shackle is six times its WLL.
Makers of EN 13889 shackles mark the WLL, the grade mark 6, their own identification mark and a traceability code on the body and on the pin; most add the size and CE. The traceability code ties the shackle to its certificate; both parts carry it, so the mark on the pin is checked against the mark on the body.
| Mark | Where | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| WLL, t | Body | The load the shackle is rated for; the marked figure governs. |
| Grade mark 6 | Body | Grade 6 steel, quenched and tempered; a minimum breaking load of six times the WLL. |
| Maker’s identification | Body | The maker’s name or symbol; ties the shackle to its maker and certificate. |
| Traceability code | Body and pin | Ties both parts to the material and test records behind the certificate. |
| Size | Body | The nominal size, often the body diameter in inches. |
| CE | Body | In the EU, conformity with the Machinery Directive. |
| WLL, t | Size, in | Pin D, mm | Inside width at pin W, mm | Inside length, bow, mm | Inside length, dee, mm | Min. breaking load (6 × WLL), t |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.5 | 1/4 | 8 | 12 | 29 | — | 3 |
| 0.75 | 5/16 | — | — | — | — | 4.5 |
| 1 | 3/8 | 11 | — | — | 32 | 6 |
| 1.5 | 7/16 | — | 19 | 43 | 37 | 9 |
| 2 | 1/2 | 16 | — | — | — | 12 |
| 3.25 | 5/8 | 19 | 27 | — | 51 | 19.5 |
| 4.75 | 3/4 | 22 | — | — | — | 28.5 |
| 6.5 | 7/8 | 25 | — | — | — | 39 |
| 8.5 | 1 | — | 43 | — | — | 51 |
| 9.5 | 1-1/8 | 32 | — | 108 | 90 | 57 |
| 12 | 1-1/4 | — | — | — | — | 72 |
| 13.5 | 1-3/8 | — | 57 | 133 | — | 81 |
| 17 | 1-1/2 | 42 | 60 | 146 | — | 102 |
| 25 | 1-3/4 | — | — | 178 | — | 150 |
A dash marks a value the sources disagree on, which is left out. The pin diameter and the inside width are the same for a dee and a bow shackle of the same WLL; the inside length runs from the inside of the crown to the underside of the pin. Every figure is in at least two independent maker tables, and the pin diameter and the inside width are checked against the EN 13889 table as well. Left out: the pin diameter at 0.75, 1.5, 8.5, 12, 13.5 and 25 t; the inside width at 0.75, 1, 2, 4.75, 6.5, 9.5, 12 and 25 t; the inside length in the other cells (the makers differ by 1 to 6 mm); the body diameter at every size; the proof load (for EN 13889 only one maker states it); the inch sizes outside the EN 13889 series (3/16, 2 and 2-1/2 in). A measured pin is matched to an agreed diameter within 0.5 mm either way.
EN 13889:2003+A1:2008, Forged steel shackles for general lifting purposes, Dee shackles and bow shackles, Grade 6, Safety: its scope and a summary of the DIN EN 13889:2009 dimension table; a trade article on the introduction of the standard (pin types W and X, traceability of body and pin); the dee and bow shackle tables of two makers that state conformity with EN 13889 and RR-C-271; the data sheets of two more makers of EN 13889 shackles (the 6:1 ratio, the marks, the traceability code on body and pin). Every figure on this page is in at least two of them.
Forged steel dee and bow shackles of grade 6 for general lifting, with a working load limit (WLL) from 0.5 t to 25 t, and only shackles with threaded pins: a screw collar pin (type W) or a bolt with a nut and a split cotter (type X). A shackle marked with a WLL outside that range, or with a smooth pin and a spring clip, is outside this standard.
Makers of EN 13889 shackles mark the WLL in tonnes, the grade mark 6, their own identification mark and a traceability code on both the body and the pin; most also mark the size and, in the EU, CE. The traceability code ties the parts to the material and test records behind the certificate. If the marks cannot be made out, do not order by guesswork: send a photograph and the certificate number.
Six times the WLL: the makers checked here state a 6:1 ratio for grade 6 shackles, so a 4.75 t shackle has a minimum breaking load of 28.5 t. The breaking load is a test figure, never a working load: the shackle is used at no more than its marked WLL, and the certificate and the competent person decide.
A dimension is shown only where two independent maker tables give the same value and the EN 13889 table summary, where it gives one, does not differ. Where the sources differ, even by half a millimetre, the cell is left blank. The body (bow) diameter is left out altogether: the sources give different values at almost every size.
US Federal Specification RR-C-271 sizes shackles by the nominal diameter of the body in inches. The sources checked agree on the WLL of each size from 1/4 in (0.5 t) to 1-3/4 in (25 t); for example, 3/4 in is 4.75 t and 1-1/8 in is 9.5 t. The marked WLL, not the size, is what to order by.
EN 13889, bow or dee, the WLL in tonnes, the pin type (screw collar pin, or bolt with nut and cotter), the finish (galvanised or self-coloured), the certificate needed (EN 10204 3.1 or a class certificate), the quantity and a photograph of the marks on the shackle being replaced.
Decoding a shackle is a check of the WLL and the dimensions, not a lifting plan. Attach a photograph of the marks on the body and the pin and the certificate number, and Vessel Core checks them before an offer goes back.
