Thread: White Knight

Originally Posted by Gary Stewart

Hi there. Should I require to fit a tow hook to my Defender at the front of the vehicle to be towed, what or where is it recommended?

You probably need a recovery point on the front of your Defender. The lashing eyes are not suitable. Question is: what is the best option. Tow hooks as you usually see on Yotas and the like are sufficiently 'strong' in themselves (they are rated we are often told), however the critical part of any recovery point is where and how the recovery hook, or ring, etc., is attached to the vehicle. Many of us use recovery points built into bullbars (which should be well fixed to the chassis). And the chassis is the issue. In a Defender the chassis is made of mild steel and is not very thick (only 2 mm). Simply drilling some holes and bolting on a recovery hook is not safe (indeed it is dangerous IMHO). There are a range of options available to you and I suspect you will get a range of opinions in the thread. The issue has also been well cover in earlier threads. I believe the best option is JATE rings. These are shackles that replace the lashing eyes. They are a military part originally used for helicopter lifting. They are readily available. The original forges ones are best. Price is not prohibitive. They should always be used in pairs with a bridle. And they are not rated!

For a good discussion of some technical aspects of vehicle recovery see: Vehicle Recovery Points And some technical aspects****************************** by Mike Lauterbach.

Cheers
KarlB

I would not attach to the bullbar, I have seen plenty pulled either off or through. 2mm Defender chassis?? I can assure you mine is significantly thicker than 2mm where I have attached, maybe reinforced.. I have 2 attached to the chassis, 1 either side. This also allows you to distribute the weight evenly across the vehicle for recovery. The use of hooks vs jate rings is a bit of a debate. I have standard hooks, jate rings can be expensive compared to hooks and you need a shackle to attach your strap to them (the ones I have seen anyway).
The way I set mine up was on the bullbar mounting points on the chassis this giving the strength of the chassis and the plate of the bullbar mounts with high tensile bolts. If you are worried about the strength of the chassis you could also have a reinforcing plate welded onto the chassis. I have done many recovery's with my set up and have not have had any damage to bolts or chassis and no mounting holes elongated.
As for your initial question, yes I would fit 2 recovery points to the front. You can now actually buy a load distribution sling when hooking up to a snatch strap or winch recovery.
As said do not use any transport lashing rings that may exist.
Cheers
Craig

Each defender chassis rail has 4 "hardpoints" at the front. These have tube welded between the sides/top and bottom of the chassis rails. Two are used to mount the bumper. The other two are further back on each of the rails. one has a 10mm bolt and the other a 12 mm bolt. A straight piece of 1/4" x 2" angle will span both on one rail if you mount a recovery hook on the end of the 2 " angle it will be plenty strong. ( no welded joints in tension). Grade 8 bolt should be Ok to 80,000 psi in shear. 1/2' bolt (.5x.5 x 3.14 = 75/4= close to 20,000 lbs) yield point. UTS is 15% greater than that. if you use both of them you are at 30,000 lbs plus. my winch and recovery points pick up all 4 of these ponts, say 60,000 lbs, so if I use a bridle, I have safety exceeding the capability of the winch or snatch straps , usually about 10,000lbs. Only use bolts gade 8 or better.

Errr fellas

Not sure here, but is this post genuine?...

Although its not exactly clear from his question, isn't the OP asking about where to mount a hook to improve the ease of towing a Land Rover?

Apologies to the OP if the post is genuine, but the guy signed up just for that.

Cheers

Alan