Thread: Another snatch strap death

Originally Posted by chinaplate

I am new to my D4 and at the risk of asking dumb questions and getting a bit off topic are there any STANDARD points on my D4 that can be used safely with a snatch strap?
Chris

I would imagine that the towball receiver can be used in conjunction with a recovery hitch, elsewhere on the vehicle I don't think so.

Originally Posted by chinaplate

I am new to my D4 and at the risk of asking dumb questions and getting a bit off topic are there any STANDARD points on my D4 that can be used safely with a snatch strap?
Chris

On the front - look under the vehicle in the centre, behind the bumper bar. There is a recovery point there.
On the back, take off the plastic cover to expose your electrical sockets for towing - there is a recovery point between the two sockets.

After seeing a video that was posted on another forum about this incident, I'm of the belief that a damper on the end of the strap is going to do very little if it lets go with a shackle attached - it might help slow it down but nowhere near enough to wash of enough velocity to stop it punching through a windscreen and ending up in your head. This particular video just a broken strap (no metal attached) there was enough energy to lift and move a sandbag damper over the strap. I think a safer option would be use other methods first and if all else fails then make sure the shakle is secured to another seperate point on the vehicle so if it does let go then the secondary tether will prevent it from becoming a projectile. If a strap breaks on its own then it may cause some vehicle damage but there shouldnt be enough energy to penetrate a windscreen and come in contact with an occupant.

Originally Posted by BMKal

On the front - look under the vehicle in the centre, behind the bumper bar. There is a recovery point there.
On the back, take off the plastic cover to expose your electrical sockets for towing - there is a recovery point between the two sockets.

I wonder if the Hummer H3 has recovery points as std?

Other than that and perhaps some other low volume vehicles, what you will find is that they are typically Tow Points.

There are Tie Down Points, weak, Tow Points, 'medium' strength, and Recovery Points, full strength.

A snatch strap alone without anything else has enough stored energy and mass to do some horrific damage if it comes adrift or if it breaks.
Add a shackle or towball to the mix and it gets even worse.
This is why it is vitally important to inspect your snatch strap for ANY damage or wear and bin it if it isn't 100%, Also letting the strap "Relax" between pulls during multiple snatches will restore the stretch somewhat as well.
Many people tend to keep their old worn out/buggered strap (Just in case) This is a really Bad idea, Bin it if it doesn't come up to scratch.
A snatch strap is probably the cheapest tool in you recovery arsenal to replace so why would you keep an old worn out strap? Much like keeping an old oil filter.

Back when snatch straps first came out we were travelling up in Cape York and came across a swb Nissan MQ Patrol that was bogged to it's floor plan in mud. Shortly before we arrived they had tried to snatch it with an old Tojo tray top that had a rear canopy which was fully loaded up with camping gear. The snatch point they used on the MQ was the towbar. If anyone can recall, a lot of towbars on MQ's were a very heavy fabricated piece of steel that bolted through the rear cross member. With the vehicle so badly bogged, the snatch had caused the tow bar to pull clean out of the rear cross member, leaving a huge hole. The dislodged towbar became a flying projectile, and after losing a lot of it's velocity from items packed in the back of the Tojo, it still managed to put a massive dent in the rear wall of the cab.
Needless to say, we didn't hang around.

Cheers, Mick.

Originally Posted by chinaplate

I am new to my D4 and at the risk of asking dumb questions and getting a bit off topic are there any STANDARD points on my D4 that can be used safely with a snatch strap?
Chris

Chris,
never be embarrassed about asking questions.
It's always better to ask a dumb question instead of making a stupid mistake.

Cheers, Mick.

An old snatch strap that is still in good nick, hardly used, kept away from sun and chemicals etc, if it was originally rated at 8t, has possibly downgraded to 5, 6 or 7t. So while it shouldnt be used for snatching, especially since it has lost stretchiness, it should be fine for towing, which involves an order of magnitude lower forces.

Have a look at dedicated cheapie tow ropes, they look much weaker than a snatch strap.