Ok, Our trucks, weigh like 4,000lbs.... why would a person need a tow strap that has a limit of like 35,000lbs, to me, thats, like, WAY over kill.. I mean, a 4,000lbs to strap, is strong enuff to pick the truck up clear off the ground, so why the out rageous limits? Like I carry a set of tow chains we have used to tow cars off the thruway in the past, they have a limit of 10,000lbs, yet people say thats not "good enuff" so like, whats up with this?

 

Well first of all you need a "recovery" strap. It's made to "rubber band" so you can yank someone out and the strap will stretch and retract and help recover the stuck vehicle. Cheap "tow" straps will snap in no time if you have to ******, trust me.

The weight limit is the limit when the strap will break at its maximum strength (not wet, covered in mud, old used etc). So a 5,000lb strap pulling out a 4,000lb truck with another 2,000lb's of resistace/friction from mud,frame on ground etc, and recovering truck yanking/pulling on it = bye bye strap.

Do not use chains! IF a link breaks, what happens, if ANYONE is nearby that can be a fatal injury, if not that, severe damage to the vehicles.

I have a 30,000lb Pro-comp recovry strap ive had for about 2 years, and i have jerked the living **** out of fullsize trucks and jeeps in all sorts of situations. I've had 5 feet of slack and layed on it, and the strap held perfectly.

Fork out the cash for the right equipment the first time, get un-stuck easily and safely.

EDIT: the weight limit of the strap is, say, 5,000lb's of force, not "use on a 5,000lb truck".

 

i have a 5,000 and never used it...
knock on wood.

 

Before i had my pro-comp, i had those cheap autozone "tow straps" that had hooks on the end.

Broke 4, all broke on first use.

Make sure the strap you buy has loops on the end, not metal hooks.

I'm about to retire this 30,000lb and buy a 50-60 whatevers next, the 4" wide one. Mine's 3". It's got some spots on it where i question the integrity of its strength due to it being used wrapped around sharp edges/ends.

 

I tried to tow a saturn with the econo straps at the parts store and it snapped. Sudden stopping or starting puts a bigger load on the rope than what the car weighs.

 

a 5,000 lbs strap has a working load of like 1,000 lbs. a 30,000 strap has a working load of like 7,000. the max rating is for the first initial pull to get r goin IIRC.

 

whats wrong with the hooks?

the cheap one you are talking about from autozone is the one i have...lol it has hooks and i bought it from autozone...lol

 

When the straps broke, it broke at the hook. That's one more metal thing to come flying off and hit you in the face.

 

I know the 4in straps ur talking about, we have those, i dunno their limits tho, we also have some 6 in straps, which are really strong, we use them to suspend our 27ft boat in the grarage from them when we used to paint the bottom..... some things my dad used to do i question..... hang a 12,000lb boat from 2 steel beems, then pull the trailer out from under it, then crawl under there paint the bottm then leave it "hang" LITERALLY all night... nuts if you ask me, but we got lots of straps and stuff, so, how do i tell which ones to grab? tho, i think ours are lifting straps, im geussing those are different?

Edit: 6 posts in under 25 minutes, thats gotta be a record

 

The bigger the better, For recovery and safety equipment, overkill is the only way.

 

head to tractor supply and get urself some good straps, while ur at it pick up some D-rings.

or go to 4WP and get a procomp strap (or three, heh)

 

well i think i win on the biggest one on the site. check my sig. but i have a 60ft 67,000lb tow strap. it cost a little more then a procomp strap and i will never haver to worry about it breaking or being short. the guy on ebay was also selling 120ft 49,000(i think) straps

 

I remember you posting that a long time ago, it'll get the job done alright.

 

used military strap
if you only get one strap make it at least a 3" usually 30K rating

 

I need a badass one!

 

i have a 30,000lbs pro comp strap..that thing was badass..til some retard hooked it on his bumper wrong..and it got cut..while tryin to yank him out..and it broke off like a foot after my loop..so imma upgrade it a 4in 60,000lbs pro-comp strap.. i think thats what it is..

 

how much do these straps cost?

 

I agree with most posts ... however if you use a grade 70 transport chain...
it has absolutely no stretch so I question it flying at you..
I use chains all the time.. straps and chains have different purposes/uses.

Although I will say if you do use a chain no "tugging" just a steady pull..
or you will break something because there is absolutely no give.
(which is nice when you are winching)

I have a cheapo walmart strap. a 30k procomp, and 2 14' grade 70 5400# working load chains.

I will say no matter what you use.. DONT mix a chain and a strap..
you would have the worlds biggest slingshot if it broke.

Also there is a difference between a "tow strap" and a "recovery strap"

Bigger is not always better.. if its too big.. its a pain to use.. I think anything
over 20k on a ranger is overkill.. anything over 30k is a waste. but thats just my opinion..(Now if you have a 7000lb f350....)If you want a 6"wide double layer 120k strap.. go for it..
It would make a great conversation starter if nothing else lol.

A good quality basic strap about 30$-50$ depending on length and rating.
or you can ebay for military surplus ones.

Rand

 

if u go with pro comp..from 4wheelparts..got mine for like..40$ shipped to me i think..the one im gettin is like 86$

 

I don't HAVE the strongest strap, but my friend has a 350k pound rope. It was used on one of hte cruiseships in town. Strongest ever.

Aaron

 

i have the autozone yellow straps with the metal hooks, and let me say you guys aren't giving them enough credit, i've had them since i've had my truck and used them PLENTY of times, they are still solid, i've used them with running starts to pull my truck or other ppls out, and i've also used it time when it DID NOT get the rig un-stuck.
and btw the way you guys are saying it the strap that is attached to the metal hook is the weakest part, meaning if it snapped just the rope would go flying off without any harm, unless it hit someone directly in the eye...

all im saying is that it is decent for novice wheelers like myself

 

Dead on!

Straps should be rated with a "working" or "service" load, and a "breaking" or "maximum" strength.

Do not buy a strap with a breaking strength less than 3 times the weight of your truck. Very bad practice. Generally, service or working load is 1/4 to 1/5 of the breaking strength, or at least that's what I usually see.

The reason for the discrepancy primarily involves shock loads, but also the fact that it's not just the WEIGHT of your truck, but other factors as well which influence how much pull is required.

Those of us who have been in mud have seen or experienced the 8000 pound winch that can't extract the 4000 pound truck because of suction from the mud. Similar problems can occur with vehicles with wheels behind steep obstacles, etc.

Shock loads come from "jerking" to free up a vehicle when the pull required exceeds the traction of the pulling vehicle. This is similar to what railroad freight trains do when they back up into the chain of railroad cars behind them, before surging forward. Without that, they might only just spin their wheels.

At that point, the instantaneous stress on the strap (or the railroad couplings) is much higher than that suggested just by the weight of the load. This can and does cause things to break.

So, a strap rated for 5000 pound breaking strength would be suitable for pulling lightweight autos on the street, but not offroad.

Again, if you can't find both the working and breaking strength ratings for a strap -- I suggest you don't buy it!

Edit: On reflection, all you need is the breaking strength, and you can divide by 4 or 5 (depending on how conserative you want to be) in order to obtain a reasonable working load.