Safe tow rope options?

[Mickey_D]

There are advantages and disadvantages to both (or all three if you count steel rope/cable).

Chains and steel rope are great for pulling a stuck vehicle out. That is if the towing vehicle has the balls and ballast to do it at little more than idle in 1st. Just take up the tension then let the clutch out and let the torque do the rest. This is generally reserved for tractors or earth moving equipment. Or some HUGE ASS oil burner dually 4X4 1 ton pickup. As said above, NEVER EVER "yank" on a chain.

Straps are great for when you have a relatively small towing vehicle or the tower has limited traction. You can use the elasticity of the strap to get a little running start, get to the end of the strap / traction ability then plant the brakes. Especially good when the stuck vehicle is in mud. The constant tension on the strap will let air get down under the stuck vehicle and let it "slurp" out of the mud. Straps are also beneficial when there's a chance the stuck vehicle will act unpredictably (like when extracting a car from a ditch) as straps are MUCH more forgiving to jerks and sudden changes in tension that would put too much stress on a chain or cable. The best type of strap to get is the ones that have a "tattletail" woven into them. It's a short section of non-elastic rope that is an indicator of when you've approached or exceeded the maximum stretch of the strap. When the tattletail goes straight, you're at maximum pull. When the tattletail snaps, you better let off.

As said before, an old Jeep rock climber's trick is to put an old sweatshirt or jacket (heavy is good here) over the center of the strap / chain / cable. If the towing implement snaps, the jacket / sweatshirt will create drag on it (and assist gravity), generally preventing the "rubber band" effect.

[Misled]

Something I didn't see mentioned in any of the posts if double-braid nylon line. I learned about it while in the Coast Guard. I have several that we use to this day for "extracting" vehicles from "situations". Better be prepared if ya want one......it is expensive......

Consider this.....tugboats use double braid to tow ships. That is a LOT of weight to tow. Coast Guard vessels use double-braid to tow sinking and disabled boats and ships in rough seas. Imagine the stretching forces exerted from one end to the other while in rough seas! I'm pretty sure you won't find chains or tow straps doing this job.

Disclaimer: the USCG goes to great lengths to teach Coasties that there are limits to the line's capabilities and that they can kill when they snap. They also teach that the connections points are always the weak links.

The method that Mickey_D mentioned works pretty good. The towing vehicle goes forward and take up the "stretch" and then basically stops. Oftentimes, this is all the extra help the stuck vehicle needs to get moving. We also take steps to make sure that if a line did snap, we are out of the line of fire.

Misled

[Mickey_D]

Oh, you mean the donkey dick towing hauser?


Yes, my ship was a certified ocean going tug, even though it was an oiler......


I managed to get a hold of all the old 1" and 2" small boat mooring lines when we upgraded. The front bumper on my Jeep consisted of a 4" square tube wrapped in 3 layers of the 2", and my rear roll cage uprights were wrapped in 2 layers of the 1". One of the many things I forgot to retrieve when I sold that Jeep....

[Misled]

Originally Posted by Mickey_D

Oh, you mean the donkey dick towing hauser?


Yes, my ship was a certified ocean going tug, even though it was an oiler......


I managed to get a hold of all the old 1" and 2" small boat mooring lines when we upgraded. The front bumper on my Jeep consisted of a 4" square tube wrapped in 3 layers of the 2", and my rear roll cage uprights were wrapped in 2 layers of the 1". One of the many things I forgot to retrieve when I sold that Jeep....

There were a lot of Coasties that had the wrapped in line (whatever you do, don't call it "rope"!!!!) bumper treatment. With your experience, you know what I talking about for towing.......

[Mickey_D]

Originally Posted by Misled

There were a lot of Coasties that had the wrapped in line (whatever you do, don't call it "rope"!!!!) bumper treatment. With your experience, you know what I talking about for towing.......

Oh, the one time I used the 2" I offered it to a bunch of guys. The one stuck was a HUGE mottha' of a Suburban. Not entirely sure exactly what it was, but the 38" Gumbo Monster Mudders were below ground level, as were the step rails on the 8" total lift vehicle. The towing vehicles were an F-350 oil burner with 38's, an IH 1 ton Travelall with 35's, and some monstrous K-5 Blazer with 44's that made the ground shake when it idled. They wrapped the line around something on the Burb, a clove hitch knot on the F-350's bumper, a clove hitch knot on the Cornbinder's bumper, and a double reef knot on the Blazer (Yes, I had over 100' of the 2"). I just stood back and watched as I would guess about 2,000ft/lbs of combined torque (all in 4WD-Lo) pulled up the slack.

All three gave everything they had to pull that Burb out, and that line didn't even groan. I REALLY kick myself on not grabbing that stuff off my Jeep. There's been several times I could have done with that stuff handy.