Anything welding

1" recovery point welded 100% with two grade 8 3/4" bolts. Gotta give them what they want

 

Just keep in mind that you might have brake line running through the driver's side frame rail and to be careful about heating that side (2gen).

 

Enginerds FTW! good post Nathan you perform or wittness that shear test you posted the picture of? titanium pin used?

The issue then become usability and longevity. from a statics standpoint, or analyzing in a lab, the shackles we use are indeed overkill under ideal pulling conditions.

first problem is that we don't operate under ideal conditions. as much as we try, shackles get side loaded and misused in other ways.

second problem is that with most straps on the market, two strap eyes will not properly fit into a 1/2'' shackle. so even though it's factored safety rating is within the pull parameters, you're setting yourself up improperly before you even hop in the truck, by not havin a shackle that can properly hole two eyes of a tow strap. you end up spreading shackles at that point, which, like side loading, is not their intended operating conditions.

the last area of concernt when going to a smaller shackle is the life of the shackle. I have yet to wear out a crosby shackle at the crown from use on my truck (though we see it all of the time on our job sites). however, i have elongated one. a smaller shackle will hold fine for most of our pulls, but after years of wheeling use, a 1/2 inch will not hold up as long.

That'll be a fun time! I got to go see one of our supplier's testing facilities last summer. got to watch them pull apart some plasma line and some amsteel blue. very loud, and anyone who claims that synthetic line doesn't recoil with a harmful amount of force is a liar.

 

Tacoma.

 

You're doing the right thing.

and while you're there, you might as well toss a blate on there that wraps around under the radiator support and ties into that mounting point.

and if you have even more free time, gusset up the mounting points on the truck. plating up that 1/8'' steel that the 6 studs are pressed into is a quick job that really beefs up the front end.

 

Is that tubing or pipe?

 

I'll add my .02 here, I went with 1" recovery points, welded through as well as to the winch plate on the sides. I went with 1" for a few reasons, yes they are likely overkill, but besides loading from a shackle during recovery, they are going to take a beating being on the front of the truck and encounter rocks as well. So, from a durability standpoint they are going to be better there.

Following that, with all the calculations above, those are assuming an ideal metal and no dents, scratches etc that will reduce the loading required for failure. I also found them a good price, $30/pair, which was cheaper than most of the 3/4" weld through ones and even the flush mount ones.

edit: welded in just like Eddy's, minus the bolts.

 

Yes

 

Now that's what i call overkill I like it!

 

Kinda hard to ask $900 for a bumper without recovery points or a winch mount.

 

To not argue about something you're wrong about? ..........

 

It's actually pretty cool that this conversation went in this direction.. Instead of "FU guy, it's big enough"..

Totally agree with the lifetime of the shackle; with regards to sizing. I've seen shackles fail due to being worn, some of them just broke immediately due to the fact that they were shitty Chinese black iron.

Definitely find all of this fascinating, especially the particulars of synthetic rope. Agree that typical recoveries are in less than ideal situations. Working part time at Masterpull and fabricating recovery straps for MRAPs and other military vehicles was a pretty cool experience. One thing that I can't stress enough is the importance of treating your synthetic rope properly.

I know I've said it before, but ALL synthetic rope stores kinetic energy. It's still one hundred times safer than wire rope - but it'll still kick your ass.


I've got a few hammerlocks by Gunnebo - ideally, they'd be what everyone would be using in their recovery points, then into the hammerlock with a shackle/hook, etc. I feel as though the fundamental design of recovery points will induce severe side loading on the shackle.

http://gunneboindustries.com/en/Lif...s---Classic/Couplers/Coupling-link-G-Classic/

And Kase; you're doing the right thing. I know with the bit of fabrication work that I've done, I've strayed away from bumpers or anything with a recovery/tow point. Do your research, get insurance - consult with a lawyer. If you're not willing to do it, then I'd suggest putting down your welder.. I know it's shitty to even say that, but it's a product of the litigious society we live in. I've seen a few multi-million dollar lawsuits won on boats due to the plaintiff's own ignorance. It would be fuckin' shitty if one of the bumpers you built killed or severely injured someone.

End. Rant.


Colin, what do you do??

 

I agree. Fun conversations when you bring in some good data. good reply, and those coupling links are nice. every once in a while you see an off road shop with a couple in stock, but it's rare. I've started using a soft shackle a lot more to avoid all improper loading situations.

I'm an engineer for a heavy industrial construction/engineering company.

 

This has probably been asked hundreds of times but...

Do I or should I disconnect the battery if I'm welding on a vehicle? I'll be welding my sliders this weekend and was wondering if it needs to be disconnected before starting.

 

Probably fine without, but for 5 seconds of your time, I say do it. I forgot to do it once, no issues, but again better safe than sorry.

 

Only time I disconnect is with tig. If not just ground on the part your tacking. Muffle shops mig hundreds of cars and never have a prob

 

I always disconnect the battery. Like wishbone said, for the few seconds it takes I prefer the peace of mind knowing I can't potentially mess up some expensive electronics

 

I always disconnect the ground. Better safe than sorry. One of my guys toasted a CPU in a landcruiser at a previous job, no idea how but I don't want that risk.

 

Damn looks like I'm the only one. Hell at my job we are armoring 20 sl500's haven't done it yet. Good thing we got GL lol