Thread: Yet another recovery death

workmate of mine lost a good friend a couple of years ago on straddie i think.tow ball came thru windscreen ofhis defender into his head.

Originally Posted by bob10

I can see where attaching a strap to a towball is not very smart, what's the thought on the recovery hitch that slides in to the tow ball receiver, and uses the same pin to secure it?. This has a rated shackle attached, but surely the pin is the weak point? I have read where some use the pin alone, passing it thru the strap. Are there rated recovery points for the rear of a D2, or any Rover? Bob

I believe the pins are rated along with the tow bar?

The pin is rated to the bar. It will however bend with only a strap attached. I just had some tested for a project as follows.

I have made some sample 4140 receiver hitches for 6.5T 1"pin shackles and 4140 pins to go with them. Having the parts destruction tested as an assy and individually but had the std pins tested already. As part of the bar where it's loaded at a smaller area (just around the holes) it passed 4T without deformation or any visible damage or NDT test damage.

The receiver hitched I made are solid and only drilled for pin and shackle and have only 6/5mm off each side to allow the shackle to pass over. Initial test of the pin material as a bare length 250mm long, with a shackle in the center and one each side to pull elastic deformation (given 400,000psi tensile strength) was over 8T and plastic deformation over 10T.

Next is destruction test of same material and method then assy testing for both elastic, plastic and destruction.

I know you can buy them and they average $40- or so but I can make for less incl test cert and much stronger.

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Except this was not an accident!

• It has happened before.
• It was foreseeable.
• It wasn't an act of God.

It was pure and simply an act of negligence with tragic consequences.

I wholeheartedly agree with you.
Maybe instead of calling it an accident, I should have said "death and destruction"......
I find it utterly ridiculous that people still play with their and other people's lives by taking a shortcut and just looping the snatch over the towball instead of spending a few minutes to secure it properly - those few minutes saved will haunt them for the rest of their lives!

Originally Posted by bob10

what's the thought on the recovery hitch that slides in to the tow ball receiver,

The shear forces are different. Not too keen on using just the pin but with a proper shackle bracket, no problem.

Originally Posted by bob10

Are there rated recovery points for the rear of a D2, or any Rover? Bob

Yes there are. Check any of the leading brand recovery equipment makers.

Alan