Some thing I've been playing with for 30 plus years. As everyone has mentioned, especially Bartamos, get your basic capacities set up. After that, know what you are going to lift, and what rigging you'll need to do it. I once had an employee get ready to lift an 8000 lb load. He had used chains to rig it. I told him to stop using the chains and go get some rated slings. He came back at me with the answer that chains are rated. I agreed with him and asked them what the rating was. He didn't know. So i told him to get some rigging that had known ratings, like a sling with a rating tag that he could verify. Like my 20,000 lb web slings. Point being, know what you're going to lift then find yourself the proper machine to do it. A 1 ton hoist = 2000 lb rated lift. That means the weakest part of that machine, weather it is a link of chain, the bolt that holds the hook on, or whatever, is good for a safe work load (SWL) rating of 2000 pounds. Whatever rigging you use, chain, sling or rope, can be good for the same, less or more. If it is good for less, then you just derated your set up to the weakest piece. Let's say you chose a rigging chain rated at 1500 pounds. Now your whole set up is only good for 1500 pounds even though the hoist says 2000 pounds.
I6 engines are somewhere around 650 pounds, small block Chevy's around 575, BB's around 685. Well within a 1/2 ton or 1 ton hoist. The whole truck, as it left the factory, was close to 3100 pounds. The front end heavier than the rear. Lifting the front with the hoist might make the building squeak a little, the back, not so much.
A good general rule, never get under a load unless it is supported. Jack stands, cribbing, etc.
And never use rigging that has been shock loaded. Say you used a rope to yank your truck out of the mud. Would really want to get under a load that was suspended by that rope when you don't know what kind of internal shock damage you did to that rope?
Then we can get in to fun stuff. Like a Bowline knot in a rope now de-rates that rope to 65% of its SWL.
