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I returned from Moab this week and had to readjust my gear for the Suzuki's normal role as a recovery vehicle. Since I had to pull it all out of the bags to verify condition and completeness, I decided to share my gear and some general recovery gear/safety thoughts. YMMV; Your gear will vary based on terrain, vehicles involved, weather, distance from additional resources, your companions gear and vehicle, etc....
My gear ends up being pretty heavy for my Samurai, so I had to put heavier springs over the rear axle to handle the additional weight.
This is most of the gear, it doesn't include my small go-bag and hard-sided lunch box.
TRACTION BOARDS:
I carry 2 pair of recovery boards. I have used them a couple times, but mostly for getting vehicles up out of the hole they dug themselves into so that it is easier to pull them out. Heck, many times, we can stick these under a rig and they can drive themselves out and back onto the hard pack. We don't have much mud here in the mountains of Colorado, but these would work the same in the mud. The MaxTrax has held up better than the ActionTrax as I drove onto them with my Samurai once and broke a corner off.... These certainly work better when they are warm, when they are not "bridging over open air" and overloaded. They take a certain amount of care (read that as MUCH care) to prevent spinning tires from rubbing down the nubs. I just replaced my MaxTrax and still need to add the metal bolts to reduce the biggest frustration using these. The orange straps are used to find the boards when they get flung under a vehicle into the deep snow. Why do I have white ones if I do recoveries in snow? I won them in a raffle. The orange straps that normally are wrapped them got used to secure some loose body parts on a recovery I did and I didn't get them back....
These plastic cleats melt off pretty quick if you are spinning your tires trying to ride up on the boards. I typically winch them up onto the boards to save the $$$$ that the boards cost to replace.
KINETIC RECOVERY ROPES:
These kinetic recovery ropes ("Super-Yankers", "Bubba-Rope") are so much better when a vehicle needs a pull than using a chain or regular strap. My Samurai doesn't have a bunch of weight to multiply, but a 3/4 rope has a 19,000 pound rating. I think they are even better when pulling a disabled vehicle back to the trailhead. The stretch of the rope gets rid of most of the jerking associated with pulling another vehicle. You can see what happens when the vehicle being pulled drives over the rope..... I still use this one for towing out, but use the bigger 7/8 rope rated at 28,600 lbs to recover vehicles that are mired in badly. I am not a fan of jerking on vehicles for hours trying to pull them from their mire. I would rather pull them out slowly with a winch to prevent damage to vehicles or rope by repeatedly yanking on them. You can find videos on YouTube all day showing bumpers ripping off, stuck guy over-driving and running into the guy recovering them and other assorted chaos. These, like synthetic rope, should be washed regularly if you are getting them dirty to prevent the dirt from wearing out the fabric when you use it later.
TREE SAVERS AND STRAPS:
Got to have "tree savers" and various straps to secure snatch blocks to trees, rocks, other vehicles. They come in many different ratings. The long, dirty one is only rated at 9300 lbs. The others are rated at 30,000 to 35,000 pounds. My winch can exceed this pull if it was connected inline. I use it for recovering my own Samurai, as my 2650 lbs would really need to be buried to require 9,000 of force. I also use it when applying a side load to prevent a vehicle from slipping further off trail or from rolling over. The moral here is get rid of gear that isn't up to requirements of the recovery you are going to try to attempt or simply keep it in the vehicle when it isn't up to the task.
If you didn't know, straps have a stress indicator weaved in that will show if the strap has been subjected to higher than designed loads. The stitching will be ripped out. Its worth a look at straps, especially when they are not yours...
CLIMBING GEAR:
Your terrain may not require this, but here in Colorado, there are times where getting down to a vehicle requires a climb that is rather steep or covered in loose rock. A harness, rope, brake and carabineers make hauling gear up or down a slope much easier and safer. The knot in the rope is used to carry gear separately away from my body. I work on my fear of heights, so you won't find me rappelling down sheer faces. They have professionals for that!
AIR COMPRESSOR: I don't subscribe to a hard-mounted air compressor in my vehicle. I use mine on my wheelers, I take it with me in my motorhome and other cars, and to the track in my racecar. If you ever have taken off a tire down in a gulley, drug it up to a vehicle with a compressor to fill it and then down to reinstall, you would consider a portable one might be a good idea. At the same time, I sure wish I could free up space in my cab of my rigs. Sigh...... Don't forget a quality tire repair kit (I carry large patches as well, but it sure is a pain to dismount a tire on the trail).
A bendable strap like this makes refilling tires less of a burden. I turn on the compressor, connect the hose and slip the strap over the lever to allow it to fill while I do things that are more enjoyable, like open a beer (at the camp) or poke fun at my friends misfortunes of the day. 3 minutes per tire roughly takes me from 7 psi to 25 psi. (Samurai on 33s). In those 12 minutes, I get all my gear reset, windows cleaned off and have a snack and drink. The power tanks intrigue me, but haven't found a good reason to get home 10 minutes earlier.
HI-LIFT:
This is a Hi-Lift accessory kit (plus a few other tools). The black blocks and chains, and red multi-tool allow the HL to work as a winch. It is slow, but works pretty well. I use it more to secure vehicles from tipping over if we only have one winch to work with. The yellow strap accessory is a wheel lift. Nobody likes to jack all the way to the top, just trying to get a tire to lift up off the ground a few inches. Lifting from the tire gets it out of the hole it is in without so much of the travel. A rebuild kit and a base for soft terrain finish up the add-ons. I carry the base in the bag so that there is more room in the samurai around the jack. With the multi-tool, you can also use the HL as a porta-power to straighten steering linkage or even window frames when you ah.....roll your rig. You should practice with your Hi-Lift before you ever need it. Keep your face away from the handle at all times and ensure you have a good mounting location when jacking. I am not sure what the hate is on these, but have seen rigs where you cannot jack from due to round bumpers and no flat surfaces. I built-in mounting points and flat surfaces on my bumpers and sliders, so I have little to worry about.
CHAINS AND CLUSTER HOOKS:
Chain should never be used for yanking a vehicle out of a jam, but it does have some uses. I like to use it around rocks when I need an anchor. I also use it to bind with the two cluster hooks to help recover vehicles without dedicated recovery points. You need to know your chain specifications as well. Mine is 3/8 G4 that is rated at 5400 lbs working load limit (WLL). WLL is a fraction of the breaking strength (usually 1/3 to 1/5 of the breaking strength). In the case of my G4 chain, it has a breaking strength of 16,000 pounds, so I will use it on my upper wraps of my winch and try to limit that load applied to 7000 lbs. Bigger chain would be better, but the cluster hooks have a 4700lb WLL limit, and the sheetmetal on most vehicles don't like to have that much force applied to it. I try to use two vehicles and two different mounting points when using cluster hooks on a unibody vehicle to keep forces within specifications. You don't want a chain coming back at you....
CABLES: I am not a cable guy, but occasionally there is a need, such as when a cable has to go over a rock, or a large rock is being used as an anchor. There is plenty of debate on the pro/cons of cable vs synthetic winch line, but I like the fact that there is less inertia when a synthetic line snaps, I like that it is like and winds easily on the drum, but synthetic line also needs to be kept clean and away from sharp edges (including snatch blocks that have been used for wire rope). I use this line because it has an armored sheath and is heat stretched so for the same diameter, it is much stronger and more resistant to damage. Synthetic rope doesn't like to be rubbed on sharp objects. Once again, size determines the force that you can apply to it. This 25' wire rope if from my winch when I bought it. The black tape isn't holding it all together! It has been weaved into itself properly; the black tape is to keep it all tight and to hold the sharp ends down at the end. The 3/8 wire rope here has a 15,100 lbs breaking strength, plenty for a single-line (direct) pull from my 9500 lb winch, but if it were to be used to anchor a vehicle on a double-line pull (19,000 lbs) it would likely break. We have had this happen when calculations were not done properly during a recovery and had the wire fly back under both vehicles in front of it. This wire rope would never be found in my 67 Bronco with a 18K winch, as it is just asking to be broken....
Snatch Blocks: Snatch blocks are great for redirecting line from one place to another (think a vehicle stuck around a corner) or for adding mechanical advantage to increase the force from your winch. With that in mind, the snatch block (pulley block) needs to be rated for the winch you are using. Typically you will find these manufacturer blocks with 17,600 lbs (8000kg) ratings, which is too small for my 9500 winch at its best. Under ideal, like-new, last wrap conditions, I should be able to overload this snatch block. The last snatch block is rated at 55,000 lbs, costs about $325 but will not be damaged by my winches (either the 9500 or the 18,000 winches). Something to think about when you are applying a load with a snatch block. It is worth looking at whatever gear is being used. It is also worth mentioning at this point that everybody should take a look at the rigging, capacities and the situation to make sure nobody overlooks something that can get someone hurt or a rig damaged.
Here is what I would recommend
D-Rings: Here is an assortment of D-rings that have different sizes and capacities. From 9 1/2 Tons WLL (19,000 lbs) down to 3.25 Tons WLL (6,500 lbs). The smaller ones are used on side by sides or ATVs with small recovery points. The typical D-ring has a 4.75 WLL (9500 lbs) rating. Once again, watch your ratings and the winch rating. A snatch block used with my 9500 Smittybilt winch would require the 9.5 ton to be properly secured, although the WLL leaves you reasonable room for safety. Something to think about when your rig or your life is on the line.....
Receiver-Mounted Recovery Point:
There are many of these on the market. Find a good one and a strong D-ring. That was the easy part. Now you need to make sure your bumper can withstand the forces being applied. A triple line pull with my 9500 lb winch can place up to 28,500 lbs of force on the D-ring, receiver and mounts. I have 6 mounting points and then two welded brackets around the receiver to ensure my frame stretches before I have a failure. This goes for the front winch mount/bumper as well. Most makes don't provide enough support for a winch using multipliers. If you bolted the bumper up with 4 bolts, you might want to look at the quality/quantity of metal that is securing the bolts. Plenty of winch bumper failures on YouTube (my bumper failure story is for another time). I recommend something like this Factor 55 recovery point. Factor 55
Trail Welding:
I would love to have a Ready-Welder or such, but this system has served me well for years (I just replaced this unit when I lost my other set-up on the trail). Connect 2 or 3 batteries and you have a welder. I have welded steering, a spring, a fan clutch that failed and more. Kept us going and got us home. This is light gear to carry, but don't forget sandpaper/grinder/brush so that the weld is reasonable. Also, you should practice a bit so you are qualified to strike an arc when needed. I replace the welding rod occasionally, as moisture ruins them.
Synthetic Line:
I am a serious proponent of using synthetic line and soft shackles when possible for the reasons I listed previously. There are definitely different qualities and construction. Here is what I use, all of it from Master Pull. (2) 75' 7/16 extension and (1) 25' 7/16 extension. I also use X-locks, which can be found HERE. They are used to shorten lines which allows you to properly locate redirects, when using a hi-lift with a line, it allows you to not have to ratchet the hi-lift for days trying to take up slack.
As I stated above, I like the armored line on my winch, but use standard synthetic line on my extensions. Keep them clean to prevent premature wear! The small hoops are soft shackles which replace D-rings to reduce the amount of mass in a pull-line. These are rated around 56,000 lbs each, far stronger than the d-rings they replace. The soft line bag of mine here weighs so little compared to all the heavy bags carrying metal. Also, you should use blankets or something like the line sheath below to protect synthetic line that might touch ground, the vehicle or rocks. Synthetic line has a much higher breaking strength than similarly sized cable. Another thing to think about when buying line is that when it is connected to the vehicle's winch line, it only needs to be rated above your winch rating, no matter the number of redirects or pulleys. When it is used as an anchor though, it will be carrying the whole load being applied.
COLD WEATHER GEAR:
Your environment may not require this. I have a waterproof bag with dry clothes, a parka and snow pants, a spare pair of gloves, hat and socks. A day digging in the snow can leave you wet and still stuck. Nothing will help save your life like a warm set of clothes! I require similar gear for all my riders. If you don't bring it, and there is a situation, I WILL NOT be giving up any of my emergency gear. I am coming home. YMMV....
EMERGENCY GEAR:
Speaking of emergency gear, I have a 72 hour bag packed with all the things I need to survive until I can get out, or get rescued. Food, fire starters, power supplies, lighting, dry gear....... We need another thread for this important equipment.
ADDITIONAL SUPPLIES:
I carry additional needed supplies. Fluids, belts, tape, electrical repair supplies, fire extinguisher, bulbs, shovel and saw. Backup axle shafts and driveshafts. Sandpaper, emery paper.... Things that can get me back on the trail and home or to help someone else get back as well.
That is most of what I carry in my rig. What are you guys packing?
My gear ends up being pretty heavy for my Samurai, so I had to put heavier springs over the rear axle to handle the additional weight.
This is most of the gear, it doesn't include my small go-bag and hard-sided lunch box.
TRACTION BOARDS:
I carry 2 pair of recovery boards. I have used them a couple times, but mostly for getting vehicles up out of the hole they dug themselves into so that it is easier to pull them out. Heck, many times, we can stick these under a rig and they can drive themselves out and back onto the hard pack. We don't have much mud here in the mountains of Colorado, but these would work the same in the mud. The MaxTrax has held up better than the ActionTrax as I drove onto them with my Samurai once and broke a corner off.... These certainly work better when they are warm, when they are not "bridging over open air" and overloaded. They take a certain amount of care (read that as MUCH care) to prevent spinning tires from rubbing down the nubs. I just replaced my MaxTrax and still need to add the metal bolts to reduce the biggest frustration using these. The orange straps are used to find the boards when they get flung under a vehicle into the deep snow. Why do I have white ones if I do recoveries in snow? I won them in a raffle. The orange straps that normally are wrapped them got used to secure some loose body parts on a recovery I did and I didn't get them back....
These plastic cleats melt off pretty quick if you are spinning your tires trying to ride up on the boards. I typically winch them up onto the boards to save the $$$$ that the boards cost to replace.
KINETIC RECOVERY ROPES:
These kinetic recovery ropes ("Super-Yankers", "Bubba-Rope") are so much better when a vehicle needs a pull than using a chain or regular strap. My Samurai doesn't have a bunch of weight to multiply, but a 3/4 rope has a 19,000 pound rating. I think they are even better when pulling a disabled vehicle back to the trailhead. The stretch of the rope gets rid of most of the jerking associated with pulling another vehicle. You can see what happens when the vehicle being pulled drives over the rope..... I still use this one for towing out, but use the bigger 7/8 rope rated at 28,600 lbs to recover vehicles that are mired in badly. I am not a fan of jerking on vehicles for hours trying to pull them from their mire. I would rather pull them out slowly with a winch to prevent damage to vehicles or rope by repeatedly yanking on them. You can find videos on YouTube all day showing bumpers ripping off, stuck guy over-driving and running into the guy recovering them and other assorted chaos. These, like synthetic rope, should be washed regularly if you are getting them dirty to prevent the dirt from wearing out the fabric when you use it later.
TREE SAVERS AND STRAPS:
Got to have "tree savers" and various straps to secure snatch blocks to trees, rocks, other vehicles. They come in many different ratings. The long, dirty one is only rated at 9300 lbs. The others are rated at 30,000 to 35,000 pounds. My winch can exceed this pull if it was connected inline. I use it for recovering my own Samurai, as my 2650 lbs would really need to be buried to require 9,000 of force. I also use it when applying a side load to prevent a vehicle from slipping further off trail or from rolling over. The moral here is get rid of gear that isn't up to requirements of the recovery you are going to try to attempt or simply keep it in the vehicle when it isn't up to the task.
If you didn't know, straps have a stress indicator weaved in that will show if the strap has been subjected to higher than designed loads. The stitching will be ripped out. Its worth a look at straps, especially when they are not yours...
CLIMBING GEAR:
Your terrain may not require this, but here in Colorado, there are times where getting down to a vehicle requires a climb that is rather steep or covered in loose rock. A harness, rope, brake and carabineers make hauling gear up or down a slope much easier and safer. The knot in the rope is used to carry gear separately away from my body. I work on my fear of heights, so you won't find me rappelling down sheer faces. They have professionals for that!
AIR COMPRESSOR: I don't subscribe to a hard-mounted air compressor in my vehicle. I use mine on my wheelers, I take it with me in my motorhome and other cars, and to the track in my racecar. If you ever have taken off a tire down in a gulley, drug it up to a vehicle with a compressor to fill it and then down to reinstall, you would consider a portable one might be a good idea. At the same time, I sure wish I could free up space in my cab of my rigs. Sigh...... Don't forget a quality tire repair kit (I carry large patches as well, but it sure is a pain to dismount a tire on the trail).
A bendable strap like this makes refilling tires less of a burden. I turn on the compressor, connect the hose and slip the strap over the lever to allow it to fill while I do things that are more enjoyable, like open a beer (at the camp) or poke fun at my friends misfortunes of the day. 3 minutes per tire roughly takes me from 7 psi to 25 psi. (Samurai on 33s). In those 12 minutes, I get all my gear reset, windows cleaned off and have a snack and drink. The power tanks intrigue me, but haven't found a good reason to get home 10 minutes earlier.
HI-LIFT:
This is a Hi-Lift accessory kit (plus a few other tools). The black blocks and chains, and red multi-tool allow the HL to work as a winch. It is slow, but works pretty well. I use it more to secure vehicles from tipping over if we only have one winch to work with. The yellow strap accessory is a wheel lift. Nobody likes to jack all the way to the top, just trying to get a tire to lift up off the ground a few inches. Lifting from the tire gets it out of the hole it is in without so much of the travel. A rebuild kit and a base for soft terrain finish up the add-ons. I carry the base in the bag so that there is more room in the samurai around the jack. With the multi-tool, you can also use the HL as a porta-power to straighten steering linkage or even window frames when you ah.....roll your rig. You should practice with your Hi-Lift before you ever need it. Keep your face away from the handle at all times and ensure you have a good mounting location when jacking. I am not sure what the hate is on these, but have seen rigs where you cannot jack from due to round bumpers and no flat surfaces. I built-in mounting points and flat surfaces on my bumpers and sliders, so I have little to worry about.
CHAINS AND CLUSTER HOOKS:
Chain should never be used for yanking a vehicle out of a jam, but it does have some uses. I like to use it around rocks when I need an anchor. I also use it to bind with the two cluster hooks to help recover vehicles without dedicated recovery points. You need to know your chain specifications as well. Mine is 3/8 G4 that is rated at 5400 lbs working load limit (WLL). WLL is a fraction of the breaking strength (usually 1/3 to 1/5 of the breaking strength). In the case of my G4 chain, it has a breaking strength of 16,000 pounds, so I will use it on my upper wraps of my winch and try to limit that load applied to 7000 lbs. Bigger chain would be better, but the cluster hooks have a 4700lb WLL limit, and the sheetmetal on most vehicles don't like to have that much force applied to it. I try to use two vehicles and two different mounting points when using cluster hooks on a unibody vehicle to keep forces within specifications. You don't want a chain coming back at you....
CABLES: I am not a cable guy, but occasionally there is a need, such as when a cable has to go over a rock, or a large rock is being used as an anchor. There is plenty of debate on the pro/cons of cable vs synthetic winch line, but I like the fact that there is less inertia when a synthetic line snaps, I like that it is like and winds easily on the drum, but synthetic line also needs to be kept clean and away from sharp edges (including snatch blocks that have been used for wire rope). I use this line because it has an armored sheath and is heat stretched so for the same diameter, it is much stronger and more resistant to damage. Synthetic rope doesn't like to be rubbed on sharp objects. Once again, size determines the force that you can apply to it. This 25' wire rope if from my winch when I bought it. The black tape isn't holding it all together! It has been weaved into itself properly; the black tape is to keep it all tight and to hold the sharp ends down at the end. The 3/8 wire rope here has a 15,100 lbs breaking strength, plenty for a single-line (direct) pull from my 9500 lb winch, but if it were to be used to anchor a vehicle on a double-line pull (19,000 lbs) it would likely break. We have had this happen when calculations were not done properly during a recovery and had the wire fly back under both vehicles in front of it. This wire rope would never be found in my 67 Bronco with a 18K winch, as it is just asking to be broken....
Snatch Blocks: Snatch blocks are great for redirecting line from one place to another (think a vehicle stuck around a corner) or for adding mechanical advantage to increase the force from your winch. With that in mind, the snatch block (pulley block) needs to be rated for the winch you are using. Typically you will find these manufacturer blocks with 17,600 lbs (8000kg) ratings, which is too small for my 9500 winch at its best. Under ideal, like-new, last wrap conditions, I should be able to overload this snatch block. The last snatch block is rated at 55,000 lbs, costs about $325 but will not be damaged by my winches (either the 9500 or the 18,000 winches). Something to think about when you are applying a load with a snatch block. It is worth looking at whatever gear is being used. It is also worth mentioning at this point that everybody should take a look at the rigging, capacities and the situation to make sure nobody overlooks something that can get someone hurt or a rig damaged.
Here is what I would recommend
D-Rings: Here is an assortment of D-rings that have different sizes and capacities. From 9 1/2 Tons WLL (19,000 lbs) down to 3.25 Tons WLL (6,500 lbs). The smaller ones are used on side by sides or ATVs with small recovery points. The typical D-ring has a 4.75 WLL (9500 lbs) rating. Once again, watch your ratings and the winch rating. A snatch block used with my 9500 Smittybilt winch would require the 9.5 ton to be properly secured, although the WLL leaves you reasonable room for safety. Something to think about when your rig or your life is on the line.....
Receiver-Mounted Recovery Point:
There are many of these on the market. Find a good one and a strong D-ring. That was the easy part. Now you need to make sure your bumper can withstand the forces being applied. A triple line pull with my 9500 lb winch can place up to 28,500 lbs of force on the D-ring, receiver and mounts. I have 6 mounting points and then two welded brackets around the receiver to ensure my frame stretches before I have a failure. This goes for the front winch mount/bumper as well. Most makes don't provide enough support for a winch using multipliers. If you bolted the bumper up with 4 bolts, you might want to look at the quality/quantity of metal that is securing the bolts. Plenty of winch bumper failures on YouTube (my bumper failure story is for another time). I recommend something like this Factor 55 recovery point. Factor 55
Trail Welding:
I would love to have a Ready-Welder or such, but this system has served me well for years (I just replaced this unit when I lost my other set-up on the trail). Connect 2 or 3 batteries and you have a welder. I have welded steering, a spring, a fan clutch that failed and more. Kept us going and got us home. This is light gear to carry, but don't forget sandpaper/grinder/brush so that the weld is reasonable. Also, you should practice a bit so you are qualified to strike an arc when needed. I replace the welding rod occasionally, as moisture ruins them.
Synthetic Line:
I am a serious proponent of using synthetic line and soft shackles when possible for the reasons I listed previously. There are definitely different qualities and construction. Here is what I use, all of it from Master Pull. (2) 75' 7/16 extension and (1) 25' 7/16 extension. I also use X-locks, which can be found HERE. They are used to shorten lines which allows you to properly locate redirects, when using a hi-lift with a line, it allows you to not have to ratchet the hi-lift for days trying to take up slack.
As I stated above, I like the armored line on my winch, but use standard synthetic line on my extensions. Keep them clean to prevent premature wear! The small hoops are soft shackles which replace D-rings to reduce the amount of mass in a pull-line. These are rated around 56,000 lbs each, far stronger than the d-rings they replace. The soft line bag of mine here weighs so little compared to all the heavy bags carrying metal. Also, you should use blankets or something like the line sheath below to protect synthetic line that might touch ground, the vehicle or rocks. Synthetic line has a much higher breaking strength than similarly sized cable. Another thing to think about when buying line is that when it is connected to the vehicle's winch line, it only needs to be rated above your winch rating, no matter the number of redirects or pulleys. When it is used as an anchor though, it will be carrying the whole load being applied.
COLD WEATHER GEAR:
Your environment may not require this. I have a waterproof bag with dry clothes, a parka and snow pants, a spare pair of gloves, hat and socks. A day digging in the snow can leave you wet and still stuck. Nothing will help save your life like a warm set of clothes! I require similar gear for all my riders. If you don't bring it, and there is a situation, I WILL NOT be giving up any of my emergency gear. I am coming home. YMMV....
EMERGENCY GEAR:
Speaking of emergency gear, I have a 72 hour bag packed with all the things I need to survive until I can get out, or get rescued. Food, fire starters, power supplies, lighting, dry gear....... We need another thread for this important equipment.
ADDITIONAL SUPPLIES:
I carry additional needed supplies. Fluids, belts, tape, electrical repair supplies, fire extinguisher, bulbs, shovel and saw. Backup axle shafts and driveshafts. Sandpaper, emery paper.... Things that can get me back on the trail and home or to help someone else get back as well.
That is most of what I carry in my rig. What are you guys packing?
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