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Learning to Winch? Learning to Winch?
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Equipping the Overland Vehicle Vehicle accessories - Making your home away from home comfortable, safe and reliable.
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  #1  
Old 14 Apr 2009
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FWIW - gentle winching - okay maybe I should clarify... my definition of gentle winching:

lets say soft mud and you have lost traction - you would use your winch then no? As opposed to completely absolutely bogged and you need a double line pull with literally tons of force to get you out. My point is that most overlanding really does not need uprated recovery points.
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  #2  
Old 14 Apr 2009
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For the sake of £20 i would rather purchase a pair of jate rings (in the case of a LR) than take my chances on the lashing eyes.
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  #3  
Old 14 Apr 2009
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gilghana1 View Post
FWIW - gentle winching - okay maybe I should clarify... my definition of gentle winching:

lets say soft mud and you have lost traction - you would use your winch then no? As opposed to completely absolutely bogged and you need a double line pull with literally tons of force to get you out. My point is that most overlanding really does not need uprated recovery points.
I think that is a little naive Gilghana? Who's to say just 'how stuck' you are going to get? - if you could chose that you probably wouldn't be getting stuck in the first place?!

I would say any vehicle that is going to be used on road/trail conditions that might need recovery (either self, or by another vehicle) ought to have secure recovery points - as Griffdawg says, they are not expensive, and could prevent more serious damage or injury?

Yes you can often make do in a situation (just last weekend I saw some guys in a 2WD Ford explorer wrapping a tow-strop around their front suspension A-arm for goodness sake?!) - just like you can drive/ride round the world on crappy tyres if you want... but surely a few sensible precautions (which is what vehicle preparation is all about) makes such a situation far safer?

xxx
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Old 15 Apr 2009
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Well, for twenty quid I am not going to argue with anyone. On the point of naivety however I would - but not here as it is not constructive for anyone.

BTW Darrin I think it would be interesting to know how you get on with the training if you do it!
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  #5  
Old 15 Apr 2009
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Originally Posted by gilghana1 View Post
Well, for twenty quid I am not going to argue with anyone. On the point of naivety however I would - but not here as it is not constructive for anyone.
That's fair, I didn't mean it to sound personally insulting, only that in general that noone can foresee the extent of a recovery required? I was using it as a pointer for the less experienced to consider?

xxx
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  #6  
Old 15 Apr 2009
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All cool - as a matter of interest I have chosen an ARB locked rear and truetrac front rather than "external" recovery aids - will post up some rainforest testing soon...
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Old 20 Apr 2009
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Slightly off topic but,

Looking at this from a slightly different point guys, there may be a time when your "stuck" vehicle has to be recovered by someone whilst you are not there to control it.
You could be hospitalised, and the "local recovery team" can do a lot of damage to your pride and joy if they just attach cables to a weak lashing eye and pull the crap out of it.
Fitting good recovery points should be a no brainer.
If theres an obvious recovery point they will use it, we see accident damaged cars come in for work on the back of trucks where the recovery drivers have caused just as much damage as the crash.


Gaz
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Old 20 Apr 2009
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Originally Posted by gilghana1 View Post
I have chosen an ARB locked rear and truetrac front rather than "external" recovery aids - will post up some rainforest testing soon...
so your relying on a rear locking diff and LSD front to get you out of trouble? They will certainly help, but your traction will still be limited by your choice of rubber. Atleast with a winch or recovery vehicle these factors do not come into it. If your travelling with a group this may not be a problem, but as a solo vehicle, i wouldnt risk it (terrain dependent).

G
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  #9  
Old 20 Apr 2009
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Hi Darrin,

As mentioned there are a lot of clubs that will do some winch training - you could ask at your local AWDC (All Wheel Drive Club) as one option.

- but there are also a lot of weekend warriors out there who dont have a clue what they are doing, so going down the LANTRA route is a good way of learning all the aspects of what a winch can and cannot do safely to a set standard with no omissions.

There are lots of LANTRA providers out there with lots of different prices, but if you go this route choose someone who has been around a while with a recomendation or two.

Though not the cheapest I can recommend the Land Rover Experience Malverns nr Cheltenham - excellent terrain and top Instructors, with lots of Rovers to play with.

I worked at LRE West Country and at LRE Malverns before I moved to Canada.........Its amazing what you give up for Love...Doh !!!

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  #10  
Old 20 Apr 2009
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Everything has it's limitations. I have found situations where an electric (or engine driven either mechanical or hydraulic) winch would be useless. If you try to cover every base you will end up with a Unimog with front and rear winches - and they also have limitations (size, fuel use, speed etc). I would be really interested how many overlanders really end up using winches - normal overland trips, not looking for trouble. I am not relying on them per se - I am well aware of the vehicle's limitations. This has been learnt the hard way most times. If people can drive around the Sahara in a 2cv then my HZJ78 should manage some more of Africa with no winch. I have a winch - just elected not to fit it after seeing how little (like none!) use I had for it in traveling. Everyone is different though. i.e. Darrin knows he probably needs one I know I probably don't. Likely we will both be wrong at some point. However I am quietly confidant in my ability to survive getting stuck a few more times - has happened a fair bit. I just happen to like fooling around with diffs and the control they give in situations other than stuck.



Quote:
Originally Posted by Griffdowg View Post
so your relying on a rear locking diff and LSD front to get you out of trouble? They will certainly help, but your traction will still be limited by your choice of rubber. Atleast with a winch or recovery vehicle these factors do not come into it. If your travelling with a group this may not be a problem, but as a solo vehicle, i wouldnt risk it (terrain dependent).

G
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