Look at what UPS delivered today!
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A couple weeks ago I called MasterPull to ask some questions on ratings and differences between there Superline and SuperlinXD winch lines. Emil Bjornsson answered the phone. He happens to be the CEO of MasterPull. He didn't identify himself that way and I had no idea, but it was clear whoever I was talking to was extremely knowledgeable and loved talking recovery gear. I almost couldn't get him off the phone. He was more than happy to answer all my questions. I bet we talked 30 minutes. It became clear during the call that he wasn't just an employee and that he had to have been part of starting the company. I googled him after to confirm.
I went with Superline rather than Suplerline XD mostly because the minimum breaking strength is a little higher than the XD version (29,700 lbs vs. 21,700 lbs). Its also a little less expensive. The XD is more abrasion resistant and they do that by having a rope in a rope. The outer layer is a Dyneema protective jacket. The reason the minimum breaking strength is less is because in order to get the 3/8" OD, the inner rope is less that 3/8". Anyway, I just decided that the better ware resistance wasn't a good trade off for me as my winch line is only used 3 or 4 time a year. After receiving it, it feels like the Superline is more wear resistance that the Warn Spydura I have been using and my Spydure line isn't excessively worn. The Superline should be more wear resistant based on the Dyneema fibers vs the Spectra 1000 that Spydura is made of.
The open soft loop is large and will allow for easy connection to soft shackles and other soft straps that may be wide. The plastic puck thing is cool too. Its removable so if it bothered you as an unnecessary object that could be a projectile you can easily remove it when using the line. Its plastic and pretty lite so its not going to bother me and is way better that the Factor 55 aluminum brick I had on there before.
While I was talking to Emil I asked about his soft shackles as they showed out of stock and there wasn't a price listed. He said that while he has developed these for our market and professional recovery folks, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to sell many with the influx of much cheaper soft shackles flooding the market. His retail price for his shackles is $160. Factor 55's extreme duty 3/8 soft shackle is $90 though it isn't as strong as far as MBS. You can also go to 1/2" shackles and get a lot of strength and not spend $160. I did buy two (and about $1000 of other stuff) and he gave me a discount. I haven't used them but they sure feel like they will last forever. One interesting feature is the sliding knot lock:
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It makes slipping the loop over the knot a lot easier, though sliding the lock to the knot is a thing that you have to remember to do. You need to tighten the figure 8 loop on a normal soft shackle too but that will also self tighten.
