Propickup Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/93737
BUYER'SGUIDE By Tim Walton Bubba Rope Bubba Ropes were devel- oped for military use to safely pull off - road vehicles out of mud, sand or snow. Their kinetic energy recovery rope has the ability to stretch up to 30 percent and that rubber-band-like eff ect is great for getting a stuck vehicle moving. Their recovery rope is coated with Gator-ize, a formulated polymer coating that makes them water, UV and abrasive resistant. The 7/8-inch x 30-foot has a minimum breaking strength of 28,600 pounds, is built in the USA, and comes with its own mesh duffl e bag. Bubba Rope; bubbarope.com; 877-499-8494 Master Pull The Super Yanker from Master Pull is made in the USA out of double-braid nylon rope able to stretch 30 percent when used properly. When stretched, the two braids are pulled tighter allowing the rope to absorb energy and lengthen without stretching the nylon fi bers themselves. This allows the rope to be used for years without damaging the rope. The stretch also provides shock absorption helping to reduce stress on vehicle components and passengers by removing the abrupt jerking action from using other types of straps or chains. Master Pull; masterpull.com; 360-714-1313 W hen I'm working on houses out in rural areas, the width and condition of the roads aren't always ideal, especially with mul- tiple contractors trying to fi gure out how to access the jobsite. Sometimes just getting around each other can be a challenge. Since my work truck isn't equipped with a winch, two of the best tools I have on board are a tow strap and a recovery strap. I've gotten my own pickup stuck where I misjudged the con- dition of an unfi nished driveway, which, as it turns out, was water logged. Fortunately I had my recovery strap and the general contractor gave me a hand and I 56 PROPICKUP October 2012 was back on my way. Tow straps and recovery (often referred to as "snatch") straps may look similar. But they are designed for entirely diff erent uses – and substituting one for the other is a serious safety issue. Understanding the material and design diff erence between the two will make them more eff ective in your arsenal of self- recovery tools – and prevent you from the potential safety risks of using them incorrectly. TOW STRAPS Tow straps are designed to help you move another vehicle that is disabled but not necessarily stuck. However, they are not designed to be used as a snatch strap. That's because tow straps are constructed and designed not to stretch under load, so the force on one end is evenly distributed to the load on the other end with the length of the strap staying relatively constant. In other words, there's not the constant stretching and retract- ing between vehicles like would happen if you used a snatch strap for the same purpose. Cargo straps, lifting straps and tree-trunk protectors have similar characteristics to tow straps. RECOVERY STRAPS When you have a vehicle truly stuck, however, you need to have some "give" in a strap to absorb the applied forces during the recovery process – and to provide additional kinetic energy to maxi- mize the pulling power. Recovery straps (and ropes) are designed to have a rubber band-like stretch to them, which not only multiplies the force by storing the kinetic energy in the strap or rope itself, but also allows you to keep momentum making the traction of the tow vehicle less of an issue. That stretching of a recovery strap greatly reduce the ragged jar when the slack is gone, which protects the attachment points on both vehicles from damage.