The  assembly of ratchet buckle and nylon or polyester webbing is the ratchet straps. The straps part of the assemblies can be made of nylon or polyester webbing , the safe load limit can range from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds , the width can be 1” to 4” , usually we can see hooks, loops or chain extension at both ends of the assembly .

The ratchet buckle is primary made of steel, some buckles have plastic handles, some have aluminum handles, and there is one kind of buckle called one piece ratchet buckle, the handle is steel . Following link is the diagram of long wide handle ratchet :  Ratchet Diagram .

Both nylon and polyester webbing are used to make the straps, but they have different characteristics, for shock absorption, we need nylon webbing and for tie down bulk loads we need polyester webbing straps, nylon webbing has better elongation than polyester while polyester webbing are stronger than nylon ones, in real world applications we need varieties, that is to say we need both nylon and polyester webbing  straps for different needs .

Webbing cab also be coated with suitable materials that will change desirable characteristics, such as abrasion resistance, sealing to prevent penetration of foreign particles and matter, increased(or decreased) coefficient of friction, ultra-violet light resistance .

Last but not the least, the quality of the straps is the most important characteristic, to properly and safely use the ratchet straps is a must . Now we need to find low price yet high quality straps. Specialty stores will have almost all the straps you may need, and you probably are familiar with the people as well as the products in the store, and you don’t mind to pay a little premium for the service and quality . Online tie down stores actually is a better choice if not  most of the time, you can search all around the country even the world to find the deal just for you, when you search “ratchet straps free shipping” you will find the best deal ever for your money .