I've heard some pretty gruesome storys about people getting mamed by wire cables when they snap. Hands litertally cut off, and so on. In fact i'm so scared of metal winch cables i don't even like to look at them when there just sitting there all rolled up. I'm a that at any random moment one will snap and gouge out my face and take out my eyes or something. Again why use something that is that dangerous when you can use something that's obviously better and not that expensive to change over. :-\
Topic of Discussion TOD: Vehicle recovery
- Thread starter Greg
- Start date
Tacoma
Et incurventur ante non
- Location
- far enough away
I've seen a few break over the years... logging, that sort of thing...
There's no way I'd put cable on any of my trucks now that rope is available. It's just way safer.
There's no way I'd put cable on any of my trucks now that rope is available. It's just way safer.
B-RAD
Registered User
- Location
- Sandy, Utah
so why do whinch manufactures still put wire rope on their whinches when they are sold new
This reminds me of a thread from a while back, a 4x4 video (45 meg) that shows a strap breaking and sending a clevis hook rocket through a car. An accident like this could probably have happened to any of various stages in life. Got to thing of these things while you are recovering
http://www.rockymountainextreme.com/showthread.php?t=9705
What are the hook called ("T" hook maybe) that tow trucks use to attach into car frames. Kind of a generic hook that can be used on any frame. Are those worth having in a recovery kit? Where do you get them? How much are they?
http://www.rockymountainextreme.com/showthread.php?t=9705
What are the hook called ("T" hook maybe) that tow trucks use to attach into car frames. Kind of a generic hook that can be used on any frame. Are those worth having in a recovery kit? Where do you get them? How much are they?
- Location
- South Carolina....no public land
B-RAD said:
Cost. They can make more money selling you the replacement winch rope after you buy the winch. Eventually, all winches will be sold with rope instead of cable. It is just a matter of time.
Good advice in formulating a plan and discussing it with your cohorts.
tiny2085
HomeGrown
- Location
- Two-will-uh
Wow! that guy in the movie is lucky!!! I have never seen a chain break, but it seems like it would also snap and act as a projectile, butsting a windshield and more. Any one ever seen a chain break?
joez
Registered User
- Location
- Elwood, Illinois
B-RAD said:
Because it is still just as strong, is cheaper, and winch rope still has its dissadvantages. Here in the midwest, rope is a horrible idea. Mud, sand, and salt get in the rope and tear it appart from the inside out quite fast. I have known a few people who bought it in this area, nobody's lasts more than a year. I will never run rope on any of my rigs as long as i am stuck in the midwest. When respected and maintained, cable is just as safe as rope, and lasts longer in the midwest. Now, if i moved out west, i would seriously consider the rope when it came time to respool.
One of the people on my site did a quick little writup for joining two straps together last year, RIGHT HERE , feel free to discuss.
Last edited:
- Location
- Bountiful, land of rocks
rusted said:
There's a multitude of recovery hooks on a 'bridle'. The 'mini-J', T-hook and J hook are probably the most used. I think something set up with a mini-J would be pretty nice sometimes, but I've never had any trouble with just using a logging chain in a pinch either.
Recovery equipment available at Rocky Mountain Wreckers (and I'm sure some other places) off 5th west and about 3500 south. They're not exactly cheap, but sometimes the right tool is worth it's weight in gold.
Tacoma
Et incurventur ante non
- Location
- far enough away
Hey, do they sell those nice tow truck shackle mounts?? I need some, like on the StupidDuty's, but not Ford stuff LOL..
Rope can indeed get the ass kicked off it by sand. All climbers are aware of that. It cuts it from the inside, so.. WATCH OUT!
Still won't rocket back at your head and kill you. Anyone see "Ghost Ship"?? heheh
Rope can indeed get the ass kicked off it by sand. All climbers are aware of that. It cuts it from the inside, so.. WATCH OUT!
Still won't rocket back at your head and kill you. Anyone see "Ghost Ship"?? heheh
James K
NO, I'm always like this
- Location
- Taylorsville, Ut
BlackSheep said:
but isn't wire better for wear,say when it is contact with a rock or through a snatch block?
I would think that rope would not be beneficial in those uses.
joez
Registered User
- Location
- Elwood, Illinois
Yup, it has WAY more abrassion resistance. I know that the reply i always get is that there is that there is a 10' rope sheath that you can slide to protect it. Arround here we have hillclimbs where that cable is contacting more than 1 point, and that little sheath doesnt do squat.
I see having the option to order a winch pre-spooled with rope, but not every winch will come spooled with it, it still has to many downfalls, and always will.
I see having the option to order a winch pre-spooled with rope, but not every winch will come spooled with it, it still has to many downfalls, and always will.
RockMonkey
Suddenly Enthusiastic
Yes, a cable will resist abrasion from rubbing on a rock better than a rope will. As dude above me said, the rope comes with a webbing sheath that you slide to any point that is resting againt a rock. My rope actually has two sheaths on it. I've never used a snatch block with my rope, but I see no reason it would hurt it. There is no abrasion there. It's not like it's rubbing on the pully, it's just spinning it. Here's something to think about. If you have cable and it breaks, but you still need to use your winch, you're SOL. With rope you can tie it together temporarily and still use it until you get off the trail and can properly splice it. Most of the time I have seen winch cable used it gets a kink or two in it, which of course ruins the cable, which now needs to be replaced. In my experience, if you use your winch a lot, rope will far outlast cable. I've been using the same rope for 3 (I think it's three...) years and I have no reason to replace it yet.James K said:
RockMonkey
Suddenly Enthusiastic
Hey, somebody said something about "properly maintaining" and cable. Can you expand on that a bit? How do you "maintain" it?
- Location
- Bountiful, land of rocks
RockMonkey said:
From my wrecker experience: Don't know if this is right or wrong, but it worked pretty good for us. In the winter we used motor oil on the winch cable. It helped it spool better with less pinching (I don't know of a way to TOTALLY get rid of that problem) on side pulls (you'll get a few of those on recoverys or repos) and kept the salt at bay a little better. When we had a little down time, we were encouraged to clean up our winches and wind our cable correctly on the drum. It gave you a good opportunity to inspect it from the bottom of the spool out and you could cut off any bad/damaged parts. The downside is sometimes you'd only end up with about 50 ft. of usable cable, but I noticed that lasted a LOT longer than 150 ft.
joez
Registered User
- Location
- Elwood, Illinois
Like guy above me said, use a little bit of oil on it during the winter if you leave it uncovered, dont wind over big loops when under a load, keep it spooled decenty straight, and dont let knots get tied in it.
I dont want to seem like i am praising cable, i am just trying to give a different perspective for you westerners. We pull a lot of cable arround here, and the rope just doesnt hold up like cable does in this environment.
I dont want to seem like i am praising cable, i am just trying to give a different perspective for you westerners. We pull a lot of cable arround here, and the rope just doesnt hold up like cable does in this environment.
- Location
- Grantsville, Utah
One way to mess up a brand new cable is by not re spooling it after you buy a new winch. The cable is not spooled very tight from the factory. Pull it all the way out and wind it up slow, maybe by even dragging something to keep tension while spooling. If your cable isn't spooled tight, it can slip between the gap and pinch.
Hickey said:
This is so true... I respooled mine after I got it, but did it alone with only the vehicle weight, this wasn't enough to prevent pinching. When spooling have someone drag the brakes a little to put even more tension on the respooling efforts..
RockMonkey
Suddenly Enthusiastic
Oil on the cabe huh? Okay, everyone. Be honest now. How many have ever put oil on your cable? Of those, how many do it regularly? I know I never have, and I have never seen anyone else put oil on the cable. It seems to me it would just attract more dust and turn it into an oily, dirty, nasty mess.