Gas or traction boards

I am heading out for a trip. I typically don't worry about gas and just fill up where i can. In the mountain west that is not cheap. gas has now gotten to expensive for my old habits. I can fit gas cans on my roof rack where i have traction boards. I am not planning on doing anything more than forest service roads as a friend will have a stock sequoia. we are not out looking for hard trails just camping.

so questions is gas or traction boards? i would hate to need the boards or my friends need them but i doubt on this trip i would even need them but gas is so expensive it would be nice to fill up when the price is right.

thoughts

 

i dont have this trailer shown with me
just the camper

 

If you get stuck and have to walk back, you won’t have to worry about the price of gas.
You’ll then have to worry about staying hydrated on the long walk home.

Seriously though, if the price of gas is an issue.
Are you sure going on this trip is a good idea?

 

more just being budget minded and thinking big picture. always save your $0.01 even when you got em. thought process has gotten me this far in life and traction boards are new investment.

 

if we were wheeling it would not be a questions this is just forest service roads and basic camping trip. I can logically think both ways

 

Why not both? I’m sure you can strap the boards on someplace but realistically how much gas do you plan to carry? Tank size is like 21 gallons so you would need 4 5 gallon cans just for one tank. Seems like a lot of hassle to save a dollar a gallon. I’m gonna vote take one can for just in case and take the boards. Budget in a little extra for gas or maybe save the trip for some other time.

 

Dry weather and no sand, leave them or get enovative on mounting.

 

gas.

A lot of people don't even own traction boards, let alone use them. Not that they're useless, they're just not as necessary as one might think.

 

Neither; invest your time planning instead.


I get it, some of those small towns will gouge even when prices are low. It can be mitigated with a little bit of advance planning though. I normally don't integrate fuel stops into my plan, but when they get wildly variable, i would set my waypoints as the towns with cheap gas and fill in the rest from there.

 

agree, I have traction boards and never used them in the four years I go wheeling. But at the end it’s like with an umbrella…as long as you have one on you it will not rain until you forget it

 

Bring gas, have your buddy carry the got stuck boards or split it one of each on each ride. You have checked that the nozzles for your gas cans fit your filler neck right? The new gas can (container) nozzles are a bloody pain to work in a vehicle mounted filler neck and most Jerry Can nozzles are for Diesel sized holes. Not that I have ever been well prepared and had to make a funnel out of aluminum foil and hold the filler neck gate open with a screwdriver while hefting 50 lbs of gas can

Cheers,

Doc

 

Ya got a damn truck. Put the boards in the bed or the back seat and bring the gas. Can’t believe you are actually asking this.

 

If you’re not wheeling, only camping, there’s no rain/mud/sand… I highly doubt you need the traction boards. Just get a tow/recovery strap and you can pull the stuck (in case that really happens) vehicle if needed.

 

I off road mostly in the desert and usually dont take boards. Mainly because I forget. The one time I needed them, I used my Hi-lift to raise a rear quarter and used my spare as a traction board. It worked. Ditch the boards and take a recovery rope, or two.

 

Gas cans…forest service roads shouldn’t need traction boards. If you do, just grab some nearby branches or pack an extra pillowcase to use and abuse.

 

Both.

Knockoff traction boards are $60
which is a couple fill ups of savings from living in CO instead of CA with $1/gal gas tax

 

I've been wheeling in Colorado for almost 20 years now. Not once have I ever needed traction boards. If you have a friend with you then you will be fine.

 

I don't see how extra gas cans will save you any money. You're going to burn the same amount of gas either way.

 

I have only used my maxtrax once, while alone in Maine and out of reach of any trees to anchor to, by my size up. IMO, they are the last option. You will have another vehicle with you, so pulling each other out will almost always be a better option anyway. You can get creative with recovery work, but you can't improvise your own gas.

I also would not worry about filling up where gas is 10-20c cheaper and tapping your reserves to save $20.

 

How much gas can you honestly bring? 3 gallons? That’s like $10 premium if that. Also why not carry both? It’s a truck you have a bed