Homemade Traction Boards

Got the idea from my buddy.

2x12 treated wood cut into four three foot sections - $36 at Home depot
100 2'' long 3/8'' bolts (tire side), 40 2.5'' 3/8'' bolts (ground side), 140 nuts/washers - $45 at local ranching store (2.99 per pound)

Total of $81

These are not intended to be used to drive over gaps but just incase of getting stuck is sand, snow, ect.

Nothing fancy but nice to have in the back.

 

Cool idea, I might take two of them and attach them with some rubber.

Don't forget to treat your end cuts!

 

Don't you think the wood would break in certain instances. Where plastic would not?

 

In delaware you must carry a board with you to drive on the beach.

 

Treated wood is a stronger then you'd think but I'm sure they will break at some point, or if used to bridge a gap. But if put under the tire when in soft material I think they'd be able to withstand some weight. I haven't tested these but my buddy who made did this originally used them to cross some deep snow in the GMC 2500. So the in theory they work in certain conditions.

Honestly, I carry a few types of recovery gear at all times in my truck and these are just another tool depending on the circumstances.

 

Looks good. Maybe attach something like 1/2 - 3/4" tall strips of wood across the width in a few places to add some horizontal traction surface area? Looking at snow machine tracks and tank tracks there are a lot of horizontal strips for traction.

 

The ACQ treatment neither strengthens or weakens the lumber as far as it's resistance to snapping

 

Thanks! My knowledge of lumber is lacking.

 

I know this is an old thread, but I was (gasp!) searching around because I was inspired by another (recent) thread about mounting your traction aids

So anywho...

Curious what other people have come up with for DIY traction aids.

I've always used rocks, tree branches, or whatever else has been in situ, but recently started thinking about carrying something with me, I guess because I'm getting caught up in the hype of "needing" bright orange traction aids, but without actually wanting to spend the $300 on them.

 

Firewood . You have a little already. Or stack rocks.

 

Yeah, that’s mainly why I’ve resisted buying expensive plastic things that I have to carry with me all the time, rather than just find some rocks or branches. But, I’m always interested in another DIY project, that maybe end up being useful.

 

End treatments?
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/low-buck-campsite-solutions.442460/page-5#post-13399988

 

You can buy plastic recovery boards for less than the cost of making.. this.

Amazon is your friend.

 

Most of the cheapie junk solid to compete with maxx are one time use if that. I'm making a set out of scrap 1" treated trimmed in scrap aluminum angle iron. I'll have a few bucks and an hour or so in it for something that won't get stolen like most, and will outlast the competition. I may try and find old milk crates and create a folding lattice like the $100 per piece fiberglass trax that are sold. can't bridge them, but a bag of sand and a board can be more useful than some of these things.

 

What if you used some nails sticking up? The sharp end will help the tire dig in. LOL Great idea man, sometimes when a vehicle is stuck at the beach and they havent dug themselves in I use some of my mesquite pieces that I take for the bbq pit and jam them under their tires and they 9/10 get out in 1 try.

 

Actually, if you just run screws directly into the tread. You may be on to something, thanks for the nudge to improve!

 

I would suggest stainless steel wall studs so they dont rust or come out.

 

Look heavy... relatively speaking.

 

Smart! I've been using tie downs strapped to the tire

 

nice.