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Re: Chains or Straps ?????
Tow straps, elastic recovery cords, and chains are for DIFFERENT PURPOSES.
For the situation where one vehicle has lost traction or has gotten stuck on an obstacle, and there is another vehicle on GOOD GROUND that needs to pull it, the correct tool is a TOW STRAP with little to no stretch. The tow strap should have NO METAL ENDS. It gets loaded in tension, and whether it stretches or not, it can still snap back. Metal ends are therefore potentially deadly. Tow straps should also be used to take a disabled vehicle for any distance of pulling.
In the special situation of severe mud, sometimes there is a stuck vehicle and no vehicle around it can be on good ground, even though they aren't stuck. An elastic recovery cord is then indicated. One vehicle hooks up with it to the stuck vehicle using a slack loop. Then they get a running start and shock load the cord which pulls tight. They won't be able to make any headway after that, but they can keep the wheels spinning, and the mud flying. All the while, the cord will retain the tension which can be translated to the stuck vehicle which also works to get unstuck using the additional force. This is quite a messy technique!
Chains are best used as unbelievably strong, unstretchy rope. Chain hooks fixed to the end of a chain are NOT for hooking into other things, they're for HOOKING AROUND CHAIN. One loops the chain around something and then uses the chain hook on the end to clip around one of the links (not through it). This makes for strong and rapidly removable/adjustable rigging. For example, when I use the Hi-Lift to exert a winching force, I hook a tow strap to the vehicle with a shackle, and the other end to the top of the Hi-Lift with another shackle. Then I run a chain around the anchor point and around the jaw of the Hi-Lift jack and then chain-hook it to itself to close the loop. Now, when I actuate the jack, I'll be pulling the vehicle toward the anchor point. Once I've gotten it to go 4', I'll transfer the weight of the pull to another anchor, readjust the jack jaw to the bottom, and shorten up on the chain... then repeat... until the vehicle is recovered.
A chain is not optimal for towing because it's heavy and hangs low. A strap is not optimal for jack-winching because it isn't adjustable for making any sized loop. Neither is useful for shock loading, and an elastic recovery cord is only useful for that one application.
Clear?
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-Jon-
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