Recovery Q&A and help.

Since 2008 and earlier didn't have side curtain air bags so wouldn't have the RSCA (Roll Sensing Curtain Airbag) button.

The VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) button would only be on vehicles with electric brake boosters. I think that was maybe available before 2009 but my 2008 does not have it (TRD Offroad with the vacuum booster). The VSC is turned off automatically in 4wd low anyway.

I specifically looked for the vacuum booster trucks so my opinion is that neither are necessary but that's just my $0.02.

 

So I'm having trouble understanding how best to plan for a snatching situation. The only thing I can find that is actually rated to a high enough WLL is the ARB front recovery point. Even pulling from a receiver shackle aren't you exceeding the limit of the tow hitch, receiver mount, and shackle? None of the front or rear bumpers seem to be actually rated for a snatch recovery, is that true or am I over thinking this? I would assume using a snatch strap rated to 17000 lbs (3-4x the weight of our vehicles) should be used with equipment rated equally or higher. The receiver shackles I've found are rated to about 9,500 and our tow capacity is much less than that. Is it a good idea to setup a snatch off of anything other than the front ARB recovery point or the frame?

I'm trying to put together a solid recovery kit and it seems like going the winch route with a rating above and beyond vehicle weight (~10k-12k) seems like the best option to avoid damage and to actually have attachment points for setting up a recovery?

What am I missing here?

(And I know people are doing snatch recoveries off their aftermarket bumpers but I'd like to prepared to do it properly and as safely as possible)

 

By snatch are you talking a typical recovery strap or a kinetic? But you're over thinking it to an extent.

It's doubtful many aftermarket bumpers are going to have a rating to them. That ARB tow hook may have a rating, but that's also why it costs so much for a piece of $25 metal... Having it rated makes it expensive.

Tow rating is factoring in how much weight your vehicle can safely tow (move, steer and stop).

The strap is rated to do much more because it sees a spike in the stress that is placed on it when one vehicle is moving and the other isn't. If the vehicle is stuck in mud and you yank them instead of having the strap tight before you begin to pull, the yank is going to be subjected to a force that is multiples of the weight of that vehicle.

Using a kinetic strap in this case allows it to stretch and it won't put as much force on the vehicles as it slowly builds up the tension.

As far as the receiver shackle things... i used to have one until i started doing recoveries and then realized it was easier and safer to just put the strap in the receiver and put the pin through it.

 

There's nothing wrong with thinking it through, not many of us do. I know it's only been the last few years that I've really thought about it. Back when I started I just followed the standard advice, too.

AFAIK snatch straps (as opposed to tow straps, which do not stretch) are given a value that represents the maximum amount of force they can tolerate. There's usually a maximum amount of stretch as well. Any more than this will break it. What you then have to know when buying one is how much energy you want or can input to it. That's physics, mass, velocity, force and energy. But for the sake of argument most of the ones we use are around 8,000 kg. It doesn't require all that much velocity for a 3 ton (2,750 kg) vehicle to create that much force.

The thing to consider is there's working (or safe) load limit and margins of safety. Everything is rated for a working load. That's the number on a bow shackle (3.25 tons or 4.75 tons), the tow rating of a receiver or draw bar, chains, straps. Everything has a number given that the manufacturer expects to be the amount of force the device sees. That number can vary from its breaking point to some percentage of it's true (ultimate) strength.

In the case of a bow shackle the maximum number is a lot higher, somewhere between 4x and 6x times the working rating. This is also true of hooks. There's a WLL given and shackles are proof tested higher than that (particularly if they're rated for use in overhead lifts). In this case you know 3.25 tons is going to be very safe. But you'll notice that even a 4.75 ton (4,309 kg) shackle is technically insufficient for a 8,000 kg strap.

Bolts and material are rated with a proof, yield and ultimate. Up to the proof is the where a bolt works and doesn't bend or break. Yield is where it will probably deform but not break and ultimate is where it definitely fails. The rating is for tensile, shear is a fraction of that (roughly 60%). Chains are rated similarly, a safe load, a load that will deform them and a load that will break them.

For a tow point their load is given as their class, e.g. class III is 5,000 lbs (2,268 kg). I assume they have design margin that's higher but I don't know off hand what that might be. For the sake of safety you have to assume it's 5,000 lbs though (like any rating, never use the margin to routinely overload).

With aftermarket bumpers there's usually no rating given, either found analytically (engineered) or by testing. You should do your due diligence and either figure it out or at least check it out. It's not easy to assign a rating to a bumper and that's why ARB doesn't put recovery points on their bumpers. They might be able to design and even test to a rating but then you have to rely on the workmanship, that the right bolts are used, nothing is modified, the frame of the truck is intact. ARB has always said to reuse the OEM tow hooks or their rated recovery points.

With small & large aftermarket shops you just can evaluate the recovery point by looking at the parts used, the way the clevis is made, the mechanical configuration and weld quality. You want enough material thickness, that the point is well supported, that you're not relying on a single weld pass, that there's no moments created that will increase stress and strain.

You notice that on paper the system has several weak points. It's not simple for everyone to always know every detail and even more just about impossible for every single recovery or winching to be 100% safe. There's a risk that is unavoidable here and the goal is to minimize the chance of someone getting hurt or killed.

FWIW, my thinking is that you do the best you can with the hardware but then to keep your head when doing actual recovery. That means thinking about outcomes if something does fail. For example use the passenger side tow hook if you can (which is why I think Toyota does not put one on the driver's side BTW) so that if a part fails the strap or shackle isn't flying towards the driver. Also keep bystanders and passengers out of harms way, throw a blanket over ropes and straps if you can, etc.

Start with as slow of a speed as you can, IOW don't leave half the strap slack and try and hit 4th gear by the time you tension it. The beauty of a snatch strap is you only need to leave a little slack and it only takes 10 or 15 MPH to store significantly more energy than the weight of your truck alone. So in effect a 2,750 kg truck going a few MPH could be giving the stuck vehicle the equivalent of 3,000 kg or more between the force and stored kinetic energy in the strap. You can always try a second time going faster so IMHO there's no reason to go to 11 on the first attempt.

The goal isn't to try to get 8,000 kg into the strap on every recovery, just enough to get the other truck unstuck. The reality is if a truck is stuck, spinning his wheels you really only need to help a little. It's less likely that you have to provide *all* the energy, that's a break-down or maybe stuck in a mud suction.

This is also why it's OK that a shackle is rated lower than the strap itself. Like Brandon said, the best part about a dynamic strap is that the energy isn't dumped instantly so the impulse is lower, less tough on parts. But it's ultimately up to you to be aware of what's going on and to not exceed the capacity of the system.

 

That's great stuff, Dave!

Thanks for taking the time to explain things.

 

Thanks for the well thought out responses, good stuff here!

 

Hey everyone, long time reader first time poster (this is my cherry post I guess).

Recently became the owner of a 2017 TRD Pro Tacoma, wanted to build a recovery kit, if/when shit goes sideways. Does anyone have any recommendations? everything has been tremendously helpful and I plan on talking to a few shoppes in person to pick sale associates brains but I wanted to turn to my new community for starts. Wouldn't want to sound any more so like a noob!

As of now I'm thinking of: 5 v 1 ; Hi Lift Jack 48", 10 ft tree strap, snatch block, snatch strap, tow strap OR one 12K pd Warn winch with Fab Fours off road bummer.

If anyone recommends the winch, does the load of the gear (~180 pds bummer and winch ~68 pds) about 250 pds mess drastically with suspension and tire wear?

 

Hi Lift Jack 48" - yes, 60" if you can fit it. Also, base plate and accessory hook.

10 ft tree strap - yes

snatch block - yes

snatch strap - yes, yank rope (ie, Bubba Ropes or Masterpull) is a better choice

tow strap - if you get one, do not get one with metal hooks on the ends. You can tow with a yank strap

12K pd Warn winch - 10K winch is plenty of power for these truck. I suggest synthetic line

Also needed:

shackles (also called a clevis), 3/4" pin - carry several

There is a lot more gear you could carry - many threads on here about it.

 

Wow, a ton of really good info here. Thanks for the post. (I think that I need to keep learning more OR stuff).

 

Not to get off topic. But I see you're in Atlanta, head over to the GA Tacoma Owners thread and say hi!

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/ga-tacoma-owners.17642/page-593#post-15673359

Welcome to TW btw

 

Im in the market for a good snatch block. Does anyone have any recommendations?

 

Well that will save some cash. Can you just use a regular pin?

 

So you can tow with a snatch strap?

 

Correct, obviously don't look for a cheap one. But that pin is holding in that chunk of metal and the strap will typically fill up the receiver to spread the weight across the whole pin.

 

Thanks. I'm just now putting together some recovery tools, this is good info.

 

Just ensure that the receiver doesn't have any sharp/rough edges. And test out whatever strap you have before hand to make sure it fits inside your receiver, don't want to use it for the first time to find out you can't fit it into the receiver hole.

 

Yup, cheaper straps might have larger ends and be tough to fit in there.

And try to make sure it's a straight pull, not side loading it since then it'll be in the inside edge of the receiver.

 

Using a hitch pin to connect your strap to the receiver is perfectly safe but be mindful that when you do this to be careful about the edges of the receiver tube. They are relatively sharp and can lead to wear and tear on the nylon, particularly in off center pulls. IMHO the argument for using a receiver adapter is the nylon strap eyes only ever see the smooth radiuses of bow shackles. Just my $0.02.

 

You can but it's not ideal. The stretch can be a pain since it will constantly be jerking the vehicle being towed and it's putting wear on your relatively expensive dynamic strap. If you're anything like me tow straps will sometimes drag on the pavement or get pinched or run over. Doing that will ruin a snatch strap quickly. Just add a cheap Walmart tow strap to your kit that can be abused for stuff like that. Just make sure to get one that does NOT have metal hooks and just sewn in eyes instead so you can use shackles still.

 

Do I need the same rating for a tow as a snatch strap?