vehicule Recovery question

[sayn3ver]

Right now i can't afford to purchase a winch(looking at a warn m6000 or similar in a stinger configuration). I am looking to invest in a high quality come-along. I called around and i think i am gonna settle one of these https://www.wyeth-scott.com/index.asp, particularly the 2ton with 35' single line. M question is, sometimes you need to go some distance to find an anchor and if your good an stuck, you're doubling up the line to get the 4000lb rating. In doing so, this doesn't leave with much line to find a tree. So, how would you go about extending the length? Would you use a tree saver and hook the come along tot hat and use a a beefy tow strap(i am getting either a 2'" or 3" x 30') inbetween or could i use a length of chain and a tree save or what? I don't want to injure anyone including myself.

 

how would i go about this?

[chazmataz]

i bought the same come-a-long about 3 months ago haven't used it yet but i was looking at getting a couple of different leghtens of their choker cables, i already have a couple of straps for the tree. i figured that if i had some distance to p[ull that it would have to be done in stages until i was unstuck enough to be able to go the rest of the way under power. there is a different company out there that has a hand winch but they aren't taking orders right now that i was also considering.

 

this technigue wouldn't be any different then with a hi-lift jack (which i used to get a friends truck out of a ditch and back up on the road last winter using chains and trees, he was good and stuck) where you only move the vehicle about 3 ft. at a time.

 

so if you are looking at getting a come-a-long i would look at least at these they are high quality and alot better then thoughs cheap stamped steel one from taiwan or where ever they come from those things get bound up and come apart or bend, i've seen it happen and if your lucky you might get one use out of them before there junk .

 

hope this helps. chaz

[sayn3ver]

yes, i was looking at these, Maasdam, and Lugg-All. I talked to a lady at te lug all rep center today on the phone. They would be my first choice but their 2ton is $233 dollars and their 3 ton is over $500. At that point i might as well by a winch for another 100dollars or so.

 

Some guy i read on another forum has had one of these wyeth-scott comealongs for like 30 years with no issues.

 

I think for our suabrus, a come-along like one of these is enough for most situation, abit it might take longer to extract the car, but i is postable and can be repaired for a reasonable price. I also like the built in safetly feature of the bending handle. I was going to go for the bigger 3ton puller, but i want more cable and the fact that there is a higher safetly margin on the 2ton(the faq on their website points this out). I'd rather have the 2ton handle bend way before any serious situation could develop. i am pretty sure i am gonna get one of these and not worry about a winch for awhile.

 

So i can use a tow strap or a peice of chain? Or would those choker peices(gloried sections of the 5/16inch cable?) be the best option?

 

i want to be able to go off on my own sometimes and more distance (30+ft is what i assume is a minimum for my personal comfort)

[Mike W]

I carry an extra 25' of 1/4" cable for extending pulls or dealing with weird angles. Also couple of 6' tree slings and a big snatch strap come in very handy.

[fastenova]

Do not get a cheap come-along. I was able to use it to pull my sube sideways on flat ground no problem to get out of a bind, but I had to try to pull my buddy's bronco out of a mud pit and the thing just bound up. It was one of the 'nicer' cheap models, but I ended up using my hi-lift and mostly my subaru to get him out. I still need to see if I can return it and get my money back.

 

If you have a hi-lift, that's the way to go, it's better than a cheap come along and super versatile. Just don't winch all the way to the top or it could pull itself outta the straps (had a buddy smash his foot that way)

 

I've got two 15' tow hooks and a 20' recovery strap that have served me very well so far, but I think I want to get another 20 footer just to be safe.

 

Aaron

[Scott in Bellingham]

last time we went out we used a good strap around a tree , a comealong on the car and a chain in between the strap and comealong, this way when you run out of cable on the comealomg you can adjust the length with the chain, the chain is good for that has no give. now when I pull someone out I use a 1/2" rope , its long and acks like a bungee cord which builds up pulling force, now if you want a winch look around for a used one , be less then 1/2 $ then new, I just picked up a 8,000 lb Ramsey for 300$ off creigslist, it has less then 1hr on it ,it does way more work then I could ever do with a good comealong, Im not going back

[Mike W]

Couple other things occured to me that might be worth mentioning.

"Snatch straps" stretch, great for yankin' someone out, not much good for any kind of winching. I like logging chains too, but it's a bit heavy for Subaruing so I'd rather have a long cable and shorter cable instead.

Bring extra shackles and at least one snatch block. I got most of my stuff on sale from Northern Tool and it's pretty good quality.

Good bumpers well connected to the unibody. Those factory tie-down points like to rip off if you pull on them hard.

 

Also, it kinda goes without saying that if you go alone, go over-prepared for anything. Also, don't be a "Mike." A couple months ago I had a rare opportunity to go wheelin' so took off solo assuming all my recovery stuff was still in the car. Naturally I was more stupid than usual...

I slid the rear of my car off the trail while doing a crazy move and got stuck in such a way that I couldn't go backwards and couldn'd winch myself forward (the 2k # winch on the bumper is almost worthless anyway.) The only way to get the car out was to winch the rear of the car sideways uphill about four feet. So I go to grab my come-a-long and it ain't there! After an hour of fun in a freezing downpour, I freed myself using the Hi-lift style jack, 20' cable, tree straps, snatch block, shackles, shovel and machette. If I'd forgotten anything else at home, I'd have been doing the walk of shame!

 

Oh yeah, there's some great reading on recovery techniques, safety, and stuff. I don't have the links handy, but I think one was on the Pirate4x4 site.

[WoodsWagon]

The bumper mounting locations don't look much stronger than the tow loops.

 

I've found the tow loops are pretty strong. I pulled a tacoma buried up to the bumpers in mud out by getting a 6' run on a chain hooked to the tow loops. Took a buncha' whacks, but the truck came out and the tow loop stayed in.

 

I've got a MM9000 on the front of my wagon. It needs a bit more work, it's a heavily used winch and the motor is kinda bound up. I had to glue the permanant magnets back into the motor, they had broken loose and stuck to the armature. There's a lot of cable on it, and I have a treesaver strap and a shackle to hook to. It's strong enough to pull my car up a nearly verticle slope without trouble.

[ezapar]

I've had a pretty good experience with cheap come a longs. As cheap as 20 bucks when on sale at Harbor Freight. They're perfectly suited for the little Soobs. 2k with 12 feet of cable, and 4k with 6 feet of cable. (built in snatch block)

With the car spinning its wheels, a guy pushing on the bumper and a guy cranking on the come-a-long, you can get a soob out of anything. An inch at a time. (I know, I know, but they're much easier to stow than a highlift)

 

I always carried 2 (still do) incase I had to use them at the 4k strength. They will bust, but only if you mis-use them. If one man can't pull the handle by himself, then that's the limit of the come a long. You're not supposed to use bars or more than one guy.

 

They've pulled me or my companions out of maaaaassss crazy situations. And trust me, I've as many stuck Soob's as anybody has.

 

I just picked up a 8,000 lb Ramsey for 300$ off creigslist, it has less then 1hr on it ,it does way more work then I could ever do with a good comealong, Im not going back

 

Yep, I cannot wait to get a good 8k WARN into my ARB! You've got one up on me Scott.

[Mike W]

Hey I should have mentioned that Costco recently had a rather nice cheapo come-a-long for about 20 bucks. It was up a notch from harbor freight quality.

I wouldn't mind having one of those Wyeth-Scott units, looks like something you could pass down to your grandkids. Winching with a Hi-Lift was a hassle...slightly better than doing the spanish windlass trick with belts and shoe laces. I'm still glad I carry the jack, it's worth it's weight and very useful as a jack. Just not the funnest way to winch a car out.