Recovery Equipment for your Off-Road Adventure

Going off the road is always a fun activity and is usually done as a family outing for the most of us. To ensure safety of everyone involved, we need to understand the importance of using correct and rated equipment as our recovery gear. Using wrong or sub optimal quality equipment will only make life harder while out on the tracks and could end up in someone getting hurt as well!

Snatch Strap v Tow Strap

Let us first discuss the biggest confusion among all the recovery items in the back of your rig. This is the age old question of using a snatch strap as opposed to a tow strap. A tow strap/rope is not something that should come under sudden and direct directional forces and thus should not be the preferred weapon of choice while snatching out a bogged vehicle. A tow strap is not able to stretch out more than its length to create a bungee effect which results in it not being able to hold any kinetic energy. This inability usually results in over exertion of other components involved in the recovery, like shackles, recovery points and in some cases even the chassis beams of both the vehicles involved.

To try and avoid damage and help in an efficient recovery, one must use a snatch strap/rope. This strap works like a bungee rope. When one vehicle pulls away in momentum to recover the bogged vehicle, upon reaching its length, the strap will then extend whilst holding kinetic energy and once the maximum length has been reached, it will transfer this energy into contracting itself back to its original length. This will result in the bogged vehicle being pulled out with tremendous forces in a calm and controlled manner.

There are various such products out in the market today, belonging to a huge price range. It is always beneficial to use proven and tested companies when it comes to such equipment. Paying a little bit more will always be worth it, as this is something that may just save your vehicle someday. Snatch straps usually come in different categories. Ironman produces top quality snatch straps which cater to either an 8,000kgs or 11,000kgs pull limits.

Shackles

These are the most important items in your recovery kit, unfortunately these are also the most common thing to be forgotten at home when you go off the road. Because of their small size, it is sometimes difficult to catch them lying around resulting in you leaving them outside your vehicle when you drive off. I usually keep 4 or 5 spare shackles in the car, but that’s just me. Shackles are the piece of equipment which help attach the snatch straps, tow straps and winch cables to your vehicle. No matter, how good your straps or winches are, unless you have a strong and rated shackle, it is all waste. This connection is the most vital link for your recovery. There have been stories about unrated shackles breaking and turning into uncontrollable missiles when under tension. Again, as any other recovery equipment, it is mostly worth the extra money to buy something which is rated and tested. Ironman sells bow shackles which are capped at a massive 4.75T weight limit.

The above two items must always be carried in your car when you’re going off the beaten track. It may come in handy to recover yourself by using another vehicle or may even save someone else’s vehicle who has conveniently forgotten to bring their own. Never leave anyone behind yea?

Treds

As advertised by Ironman, ‘Total Traction by Treds’, the equipment gives you the liberty of having yourself a road made under your tyres on demand, when the things get too rough. In the olden days, most of us had to make do with planks of wood under the tyres to try and gain some traction out of tricky bog holes or even sand. But today, Treds can offer brilliant levels of traction by using technology that has revolutionised recoveries in the four wheel drive world. The key thing to look out for on Treds are the ‘teeth’ on the face of the equipment. This is what helps the tyre gain traction as the tread of the tyres bites onto these ‘teeth’ to move forward. Various smaller brands have tendencies to produce and distribute sub quality products on which the ‘teeth’ are either bent out of shape or broken within a few recoveries.

Recovery Kits

When it comes to equipping yourself with a complete recovery kit, it is normally easier on the back pocket in the long run, to buy everything as a kit as opposed to buying all the equipment separately. Ironman sells complete recovery kits which include all the required equipment that you may need. Dependent on your requirements, you may choose from a small or large recovery kit, both offered by Ironman.

Winches

These are the overlords of recovery equipment. A winch can get you out of situations that you may feel impossible to get out of, provided you use the winch correctly. Winches normally come in various pulling strengths, ranging from 2,000 Lbs, all the way to 12,000 Lbs. Ironman boasts its winch line up with 12,000 Lbs and 9,500 Lbs monster winches. The one key thing to understand with winches of any brand, is that they are as powerful as the brain of the user. There are various ways and techniques to operate these machines in conjunction with heaps of gear that you may want to use along with it. Usually installed in the front of the vehicle, the winches pull the vehicle out of any situation, up most hills and when correctly used with snatch blocks, they can even pull out bigger rigs without any trouble.

Stay tuned for more information on winches with synthetic ropes and other accessories.

- Sujay Vasist

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