Different Land anchors for offroading with a Winch.

[Canito is1]

BirdMan previously said:

I've been looking at this. Have NO idea if it works well, but the price is good, and design seems like it would work.

Cabela's -- Earth Anchor

I really dont see that being designed for the 4x4 off road community. Maybe ATV's...

[Titan Winch]

You can make a do it yourself Land anchor fairly easily.
One style that has been used for the last 30 years is a very basic design .
You start with 2 lengths of flat bar that is 3/16" thick 3" wide and about 30" long .
You need to drill a large hole in the end of each length to accept a 1/2"- 3/4" D- Ring / shackle.
You then need to drill 4-5 x 1/2" holes evenly spaced down the centre of the 2 lengths of flat bar.
Then you just need to get 8 -10 x 14" - 20" long 3/8" ground spikes and you have a foldable easily stored ground anchor.
To set it up you need to attach the Shackle and spread the flat bars out in a Fan shape then hammer the ground spikes into the dirt at a angle of around 45 Deg . It can take some time especially removing it but it is a simple cheap piece of insurance.
Cheers

[Toledo FJ]

I have the largest Pull-Pal, I think 14,000 lb rating or something close to that. While I've never had to anchor in sloppy mud, but I've used it quite a bit in deep, Northern MI sand dunes. It has never failed. As mentioned, it is a large and heavy piece of equipment. That is pretty much the only drawback, but then again, you can get a smaller version. I wheel alone most of the time, so for me, it is worth it's weight in gold when I've needed it. I'm not so sure how well it would do on some of the rocky soils here in Western Montana.

To answer the original question: Yes, I've seen the buried log/spare method used in sand and just plain dirt. It is a hell of a lot of work compared to using a good land anchor.

I've seen the Cabella's anchor, but it is nowhere near as solid a design as the Pull-pal.

[Fjamming]

MIGZ previously said:

I don't see a pull pal holding enough to get a car un stuck, my best advise is never wheel alone.

All I have seen are pics of the pullpal in use but anyone can stage a pic. I also saw video that showed that it alone on soft soil was not enough.

If you've watched Bill Burk's "Getting Unstucked", he demonstrated how a Pull-Pal works. It was convincing enough to me to go ahead and get one.

[Fjamming]

1911 previously said:

The issue for me is that it is large and bulky even folded up.

I keep my inside the vehicle. It's inside a carton and sits right behind the back seats. I'll snap a pic tomorrow. Actually very compact.

[1leglance]

I have used my Pull Pal many times here in the desert southwest and it is a great tool. When you have no trees or other point to winch off of there just aren't options. Oh and for all of you who say dig a hole for your spare, well we have some serious concrete like soil here.
The only area where the Pull Pal is tough to use is sand, but then again there are better methods for sand.

Oh and I have tried the Cabelas stakes and they just aren't strong enough for the FJC.

[tibaal89]

^^^ Yup... the best pullpal demonstration I've ever seen was with 1leglance's rig in New Mexico. Stuck BAD and sunk down in really ridiculous clay-like mud... pulled him right out.

[dj313]

tibaal89 previously said:

YIKES!!!


I'll take this slightly OT here, I hope y'all don't mind...


How do you hit a muddy obstacle like that, if you know what you're up against? Accelerate through it or slow and steady???

[tibaal89]

Deep mud = big throttle, spinning tires, momentum, etc.

[VT_RainMan]

tibaal89 previously said:

Deep mud = big throttle, spinning tires, momentum, etc.

Lockers would be your friend too.... taking the easier path would've been my 1st choice. I hate mud!