Using two 12-foot chokers with the recommended safe lifting angle, what is the distance between the lift points on the load?

Using two 12-foot chokers with the recommended safe lifting angle, what is the distance between the lift points on the load?

• A. 12 feet
• B. 6 feet
• C. 24 feet
• D. 12 inches

Answer: (A)

When two equal-length chokers lift a load, the two sling legs and the line between the lift points form the base of an isosceles triangle. The distance between the lift points equals 2 times the sling length times the sine of half the angle between the sling legs. With two 12-foot chokers and a recommended safe lifting angle of 60 degrees, the base is 2 × 12 × sin(60°/2) = 24 × sin(30°) = 24 × 0.5 = 12 feet. So the lift points on the load should be 12 feet apart. If the angle changes, the distance changes accordingly.

When two equal-length chokers lift a load, the two sling legs and the line between the lift points form the base of an isosceles triangle. The distance between the lift points equals 2 times the sling length times the sine of half the angle between the sling legs. With two 12-foot chokers and a recommended safe lifting angle of 60 degrees, the base is 2 × 12 × sin(60°/2) = 24 × sin(30°) = 24 × 0.5 = 12 feet. So the lift points on the load should be 12 feet apart. If the angle changes, the distance changes accordingly.