Abstract: The endless band-like portion of a chain for the tires of heavy duty automotive vehicles is assembled of substantially square main links and U-shaped shackles. Each link has a base plate which engages the tread of the tire and an outer plate which engages the ground and is spaced apart from and defines with the base plate a compartment containing projections which extend from the base plate and/or outer plate and serve to engage and retain detent members on the legs of the shackles. Each link has at least one yoke disposed in a plane extending at right angles to the respective plates and engaging the web of a shackle whose legs are anchored in the compartment of a neighboring link. At least one leg of each shackle has a spur which cooperates with the web of an adjacent shackle to prevent the extraction of legs from the compartment wherein the legs are anchored as a result of engagement of their detent members with the projections of the respective link.