Compromise! Want the bling of an aluminum thimble and about the same function of an eyelet, at about half the cost of anything made by Factor 55.
http://tacticalrecoveryequipment.com/2014/08/safety-thimble-2/
It has it's own design advantages and disadvantages. For one since the line completely wraps the thimble, it's closer to having fewer points of failure as your really depending on just the rope eyelet to hold, not the eyelet plus a pin, plus the aluminum block. Plus, it looks better than my line dangling from a shackle off one of my recovery points.
I own one and they are STOUT, doesn't give a bit, as it put a nice half circle scratch on my kneecap the other day and hurt like hell when I ran into it. If that is not a testament to it's strength, I don't know what is. [/sarcasm]
The super simple eyelet in the above post is more than suitable as well. It doesn't "bump stop" but they make just bumpers you can stick on the line and have no load bearing role in the winching operation.
I just get kind of suspicious at seeing a product like Factor 55 being so promoted by people who buy them. I can see being enthused about buying a new trinket for your rig, I've been there, but a winch thimble coming up over and over, hmm. If Factor 55 was an advertiser on this board I think they would not be shy about it. I wonder if they don't offer a little incentive if you agree to go forth and spread the good word for them some.
It's not that Factor 55 is a bad product, but call a spade a spade, it's bling. It's meant to look cool and serve a function, which I'm sure it does fine. I think the flat link is a good idea, I like my thimble to bump up to the fairlead so it's handy, but as my knee can attest it sticking out like a pacifier on the front of my rig, isn't so great. I'm not going to pay $150 for one though, $70 for my Safety Thimble II was high given the simpler options out there, I just paid that much purely for aesthetics.