3 Ways To Recover A Stuck Truck On An Off-Road Outing
by Kathryn Harris
Off-road trips can be a lot of fun, and depending on the terrain, they can be very challenging for the driver. An experienced driver will most likely not have too much trouble navigating the trail, but there are times when even the best driver with the biggest truck can get stuck. How you handle getting the truck out is important.
Safety First
Before you can even start to think about recovering the truck that is stuck, you need to be sure that your equipment is in good working order and safe to use. You should never pull on a truck with a chain when trying to recover it. If the chain breaks, it can snap like a whip and injure people nearby or cause further damage to the truck. Always use the right tools for the job so that everyone goes home safe after a fun trip off-highway.
Recovery Straps
There are many different kinds of straps on the market that you can buy to have in your off-road recovery kit. The most common are the yellow straps with the large sewn loops on the end. They come in many different lengths and are sold as recovery or snatch straps. These straps are designed to stretch just a little when you pull on them and can be secured to the trucks then aggressively snapped by the pull truck to try and get the stuck truck moving a little. These straps never have metal ends and are not designed to tow a vehicle over a long distance, but in an emergency, they could be used to tow a rig out of the woods.
Come-Alongs Or Manual Winches
If the truck is not coming out with a strap, you might need to set up a manual winch system or come-along to pull the truck out a little at a time. These manually operated tools allow you to attach the line to a tree or other solid point then to a recovery strap and, using the mechanical advantage of the tool, slowly pull on the truck until it comes free. It is an effective method for most stuck vehicles, but be wary of the cable as you pull. If anything looks like it is damaged, bending, or otherwise about to fail, release the tension on the tool and stop the recovery.
Power Winches And Self-Recovery
The most effective method of recovering a struck vehicle is with a power winch. The winch may be on the truck that is stuck or it might be on another in the group. In either case, the winch needs to be used with care so that no one gets hurt. When winching with the power winch, find a solid tree to attach a strap to, attach the cable to the strap, and place a cable weight on the cable to keep it from snapping back if it breaks. Take your time and make small, well-thought-out pulls to get the truck out. It may take a few attempts, but the truck will come out with a little careful planning.
If you try all of the above with no success, contact a towing company like R & R Towing for help.
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About Me
Working in the automotive industry for the last 20 years has been quite the ride. I have seen the evolution of vehicles to what they are today. If you are having troubles with your car, there are a number of issues that could be causing it. This blog is all about problems with vehicles, tips on identifying the exact cause and advice for getting the repairs made quickly. We hope that all of the knowledge that we have absorbed over the years will be helpful in assisting you solve the issues that you are experiencing to get your car running again.