Recovery gear

so at the very least everyone agrees at least a snatch strap and rated shackles and a shovel should be in every bodies kit, regardless of where you are?

a bull bar mounted winch is next to useless to me.....If i get bogged, the last thing I want to do is pull myself further into it. Yes know you can re direct using blocks and trees to change angles, easier to to hook up from the other end imo.

A tirfor style winch is my preference, even though they require a lot more work, you can have a rest, do a bit etc. Most of the time, you could just winch yourself on to the start of the recovery boards, then drive out.

Wash outs in long grass have got me as well, leaving me hung up,stuck in a rutt. Needed to jack up the car, didnt have a hi lift with me, but had a trolly jack and 2 bottle jacks, bit of digging, and lifting, got the boards under, and drove out. Hi lift stays in the back at all times now.

Winch would be handy in high country for sure, but don't have any here. Do have some swampy areas though. But I don't always detect around here, head to the NT desert areas, where staking tyres is very common, add compressor and puncture plug kit.

I realise that there is no one size fits all. All Im trying to get at, is that anyone who drives off road should be responsible for having some kit of their own, so if you need a to help some one out, you can use THEIR snatch strap and shackles, THEIR tow rope, or join them to yours if need be.

These work great :Y: but only if someone else is in the area :Y: never leave home without one .

That's it davent, use Their gear.... My Gear is for getting Me out.... Snatch straps only have a limited Life ..Each Snatch stretches and weakens the strap until You need it, then it breaks... .. But the answer to your Question is Yes everybody should carry a few things to 'Help' with their recovery....
Unwritten 4x4 Rule No# xyz You need a Snatch?.... Get your Snatch Strap Ready to Hook onto anyone willing to help... and USE a Damper tooo.. It may stop this:

Only a few weeks ago, up Yeppoon Area, a fellow was killed by a snatch strap breaking and sending the Shackle/Tow point? straight through the rear window and into his Head...... A Cargo Barrier would have Prevented His Death... A Tragic Loss... 8.( If you Don't take care, they Will Bite...

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/que...central-queensland-beach-20170616-gwt1so.html

LW...

When I have been involved in a snatch recovery I have always used the snatch strap as a tow strap initially, it lets you know how hard the stuck vehicle will need to be pulled prior to getting a run up and pushing all atachment points to the limit. Progressivly load the strap more and more until you start to move or give up. You are able to walk away if you dont think it is safe to continue.

Dont try and reverse recover another vehicle as the diffs are made stronger for forward loading, no sense in requiring a tow out after helping someone else out.

As previously stated use a dampener, which may be a blanket, coat, sand bag, or even the mother in law if nothing else is available.

Avoid shackles if possible and if not consider using one of the new rope shackles.

Use apropriately rated snatch straps 2 ton vehicle requires 7 ton snatch strap, 3 ton vehicle requires 10 ton snatch strap.

One last thing use a dampener.

Ken.

LoneWolf said:

That's it davent, use Their gear.... My Gear is for getting Me out.... Snatch straps only have a limited Life ..Each Snatch stretches and weakens the strap until You need it, then it breaks... .. But the answer to your Question is Yes everybody should carry a few things to 'Help' with their recovery....
Unwritten 4x4 Rule No# xyz You need a Snatch?.... Get your Snatch Strap Ready to Hook onto anyone willing to help... and USE a Damper tooo.. It may stop this:

Only a few weeks ago, up Yeppoon Area, a fellow was killed by a snatch strap breaking and sending the Shackle/Tow point? straight through the rear window and into his Head...... A Cargo Barrier would have Prevented His Death... A Tragic Loss... 8.( If you Don't take care, they Will Bite...

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/que...central-queensland-beach-20170616-gwt1so.html

LW...

Click to expand...

Yeah, that's why a vehicle mounted winch is a better option in lots of cases.

First thing to do is dig the route your tyres will take out. IE make a ramp in front of the tyre, don't just try and pull it out from a serious bog, then assist with the use of max tracks etc, if that fails get help either from yourself with a winch or a friends winch.
Snatch straps should be the last option.

Totally Agree OP... My Snatch Strap is 3yrs old and never been used.... By the time I do get to use it, it will have rotted away in the Drawers of the 4X4

LW...

mmm, what recovery gear for a 4x4. Well there is a whole list of things you could take, in fact so much you'd need another vehicle to carry it. Everything already mentioned and probably more. However the more important issue to anyone making the choices, particularly "newbies" is;

1. Where you are going and how long for; i.e what I take to the VIC GT for a couple of weeks, where I am never going to be more than 40-50 kms from a town and on relatively easy tracks, would be a lot less than a 6 week trip to the W.A. goldfields @ 2-300kms from the nearest town.

2. Are you going by your self, with another vehicle or in convoy....

3. How much experience do you have, there's no point in taking Chemiweld, if you don't know what you are doing (as an example).

4. How confident are you in your vehicle and how reliable is the vehicle actually.

5. Time of year, fuel tank range etc etc etc ......plus anything I've missed, lol.

My point being, what to take is very subjective, yes there are basics, like a compressor, Maxtrax or similar etc but at the end of the day its down to awareness, planning, preparation and execution.

Hi Dave,

Well I reckon snatch straps aren't much chop when you're by yourself! If going with a mate, yeah, but obviously no good for solo travels.

Anyway one thing I've found great that hasn't been mentioned yet is an exhaust jack. Much more useful than a hi lift jack and easier to use, technique-wise. Don't need the jacking points and base plates either.

Condor, it must be the way I tried to explain the post....sigh......nearly everyone who replied has missed the point completely.

Of course there are many many options, depending on the circumstances.

The whole point of this, is WHAT SHOULD EVERY 4x4,NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE IN OZ, have as a standard so if uou need to be recovered, you do not have to reley 100% on the equipment of someone else. I reckon that a snatch strap,a jack,a shovel should be mandatory to have in any 4x4.

Even if by yourself, you should have a snatch in your kit, someone else could drive nearby, or you could walk and find help, phone a friend etc, use your own gear 1st.

No point in continuing this thread I think.

Think I will stick to my 2wd ute dave, seems light enough not to get bogged after reading some posts :8 ]
I agree however maybe a rule of sale for a 4x4 should have basic safety/recovery equip. Since a few years ago I thought a 4x4 was for wives on mobile phones around suburbia.

I have a fair bit of kit too,

Tirfor
9500Lbs Electric winch
1 X 4ft genuine Hi-Lift jack
1 X 5ft genuine Hi-Lift Extreme jack
various G-60 Tow Chains
Snatch Blocks
Snatch Straps
1 X 4 Ton Exhaust Jack
1 X 3 Ton Exhaust Jack,

and I am in the process of fitting either 3 X 135Amp / 1100cca batteries or 3 X 115 Amp /1000 cca batteries, then I need to get someone to do the wiring etc plus I am adding 3 X 100 watt solar panels, One of the batteries will be dedicated for the fridge / freezer only with the option of switching to one of the others, But I am thinking of going with the 115 Amp Batteries because of the size and weight, and I will fit a 600watt inverter in the front and a 1000watt/2500watt surge Inverter in the back along with a microwave oven and I have a small 15"ish TV to fit with a built in DVD player,

Then I am going to add a 3" lift kit plus front and rear diff locks, or maybe Detroit Lockers or one of each then a roof top tent along with getting a small caravan for winter time. And maybe a small generator with an 8 Amp charger built in and maybe a small wind generator just in case,

John.

One small thing that can be worthwhile as an addition to a tyre repair kit is a tube of superglue, for severe sidewall damage and only as a last resort and never for road use. Only use this repair when the alternative is running on a deflated tyre, use low pressure and travel slow. This is not a legal repair and will have your insurance company wipe you if you have a claim. ONLY USE AS A LAST RESORT. This repair will not last long as the superglue is ridgid and the tyre wall is flexing all the time. Ken.

I have been looking for this pdf for a while, since this post started. Aids to survival. It is an exceptional read and on page 13 they detail what they reccomend for off road trips.

www.vks737.on.net/pdfs/survival.pdf

120 pages of good proven information, that will increase your chances of survival if you are in deep $h1t. Ken.

A very good read ken2m... Nice Find...

LW...

My recovery gear is a bloody big load of common sense , city slickers need a lot of...

my recovery gear is a lot of common sense as well HOWEVER i also have chains, winch, snatch straps, tools, jacks, radios etc etc etc to many to list
What we all have to remember is that recovery gear is not for you alone it is also for them that don't carry any
be it city slickers or country bumpkins i have recovered both at different times and i think the comments were "i didn't think i would need anything like that"
yep in the bush miles from nowhere and no phone reception of cause you don't need tyre repair gear or for that matter a serviceable spare or a winch
so to say common sense is true but it runs very thin these days

Yep 7.62, Common sense is the limiting factor,

I rescue folks every winter here just like I do when I come home, "Stupid" is a Global illness, Avoiding the obstacle in the first place can greatly improve ones chances of survival, Having all the gear is a good thing and my plan is not to put my self in a position where I have to use it,

John.

7.62marksman said:

my recovery gear is a lot of common sense as well HOWEVER i also have chains, winch, snatch straps, tools, jacks, radios etc etc etc to many to list
What we all have to remember is that recovery gear is not for you alone it is also for them that don't carry any
be it city slickers or country bumpkins i have recovered both at different times and i think the comments were "i didn't think i would need anything like that"
yep in the bush miles from nowhere and no phone reception of cause you don't need tyre repair gear or for that matter a serviceable spare or a winch
so to say common sense is true but it runs very thin these days

Click to expand...

I just added two of these ARB puncture repair kits just in case,

John.

Same as mine except mine is in a black case come in handy :lol: :lol:

7.62marksman said:

Same as mine except mine is in a black case come in handy :lol: :lol:

Click to expand...

Cool,

I also bought the ARB Air Down Gauge, which after thinking about it is not really such a big deal, when a stick and a pressure gauge will do the same job, lol.

John.