Outer Limits 4x4 Board

Is there any "rule of thumb" as to what breaking load of a snatch strap to the weight of the vehicle? My 4x4 is 1792kg (emtpy) 2365kg GVM and my snatch strap is rated to 8000kg breaking load. Is this ok?

Also what is the difference between standard and deluxe straps from the same maker apart from one being white and the other yellow?

And last but not least is 20% streach ok?

There's some new ones that are more like a rope looking, with a kevlar core or something like that. These sound pretty good. But have never seen one myself.

Nev
You will find all your answer's in a previous edition of 4WD MONTHLY,they did a very big test on just about all the snatch straps around and they list which came in best..

Hope this helps...

Jamie

Yes that article was very surprising! some of the better brands got their arse whooped!

dunno about a rule of thumb but 8000kg is generally accepted as ok for a patrol or cruiser.

deluxe may have a liner inside the end loop or maybe an "worn out" indicator


20 percent stretch is the optimum but most dont quite make it that far.


hope that helps.

You will find all your answer's in a previous edition of 4WD MONTHLY,they did a very big test on just about all the snatch straps around and they list which came in best..

You've gotto take those articles with a pinch of salt as its more like which manufacturer gives them freebies rather than an objective test report.

I ran a "cheap, no name" style that I purchased form the local Autobarn..... it lasted 5 years and never gave a hint it was about to break.....untill it did !!!!

I never really "maintained" it other than to wash it occasionally under a tap. I have replaced it with another no-name strap and also purchased a well known brand to.

As for a "rule of thumb", I think common sense prevails, bad hooks, rubbing on body/bar/springs etc all cut the strap to some degree thus shortining the life expectency. I've been told most straps dont last much over 50 recoverys..... the one I broke would have done double that and then some, none of which were slight pulls but more like full on maxed out snatches, in some cases using 2 straps joined together !

My "rule of thumb" is pretty simple now days, look out for small cuts in the webbing and as soon as they appear the strap is only used for light recovery work or towing and a new one is purchased.

There's 3 straps in the back of my rig....
1: a brand new strap ready to go that is still unopened.
2: the strap thats currently in "work"
3: an old strap with a few cuts just for towing/light recovery work.

Kingy

Fourwheelin wrote:Nev
You will find all your answer's in a previous edition of 4WD MONTHLY,they did a very big test on just about all the snatch straps around and they list which came in best..

Hope this helps...

Jamie

Nev, do a search and there's a post about the 4WD Monthly test - I typed in most of the results.

Found your post dave, Thanks. I brought the megastrap 8000kg and it looks like it should be fine for the Raider.

Thanks to one and all.

rojac wrote:You've gotto take those articles with a pinch of salt as its more like which manufacturer gives them freebies rather than an objective test report.

they specifically said in the article that they went and bought the snatch straps over the counter at local stores so as to test the same thing that the general consumer would get

20 percent is what you would aim for if you do a lot of beach work (or mud for that matter), the stretch percentage is important in this instance as the stretch of the strap is what does the work to remove a bogged vehicle, and a higher stretch factor is more gentle on your recovery points. Less stretch is okay for general trail work, where you are towing, more than a dedicated 'snatch strap recovery'. These cheaper straps can prove cost effective in the long term, especially when you look at the situations sometimes - ie dragging over rocks, belaying around trees etc will fray and weaken the strap for a true snatch strap recovery, but will work fine for skull dragging duties for years. Buy a quality name brand strap for true snatch strap recoveries, keep it in good nick, and get a cheap rated strap for general use, like a sacrifical lamb, ie belaying, dragging firewood, and you can even use it for basic recovery!

Quite often the cheaper straps are shorter, (I've seen them as short as 6 metres) and can be a real boon in those situations where you only need a little snig through a section, not a total strap for 200m...

For the standard, flat nylon stle straps I think there are only about 3 manufacturing joints around so quite often the only difference between the cheaper and more expensive ones are the fancy logos and eye loops that are sewed on to each of them.

they specifically said in the article that they went and bought the snatch straps over the counter at local stores so as to test the same thing that the general consumer would get

I'm just skeptical when it comes to "fair and honest" reports by the mags after all advertising is money. It would be interesting to see ( I've given up buying these ) if the best brand straps as per the report have paid ads within the mag.

rojac wrote:

they specifically said in the article that they went and bought the snatch straps over the counter at local stores so as to test the same thing that the general consumer would get

I'm just skeptical when it comes to "fair and honest" reports by the mags after all advertising is money. It would be interesting to see ( I've given up buying these ) if the best brand straps as per the report have paid ads within the mag.

I hear you rojac, but in this test the big looser was ARB, a large advertiser in the mag, I believe the tests were "fair and honest" on this occation.
I have one of those round "rope like" straps, turps was refering to and I have no idea what is inside but it is protected by a sheath of rubber self amalgamating tape (cool) and it is a good 1-2m longer than a regular flat strap.
Peter.

rojac wrote:

they specifically said in the article that they went and bought the snatch straps over the counter at local stores so as to test the same thing that the general consumer would get

I'm just skeptical when it comes to "fair and honest" reports by the mags after all advertising is money. It would be interesting to see ( I've given up buying these ) if the best brand straps as per the report have paid ads within the mag.

True but in this case the test was carried out by a NATA approved lab .. and by the large number of $$$$$ they have in their equipment etc .. I see no benifit to them to fudge the results .. As far as I can tell they called it as they saw it .. ( Hey the ARB strap came out as one of the lower ranked units and they would be one of the Mags biggest advertisers)

[
I have one of those round "rope like" straps, turps was refering to and I have no idea what is inside but it is protected by a sheath of rubber self amalgamating tape (cool) and it is a good 1-2m longer than a regular flat strap.
Peter.[/quote]

Peter
How much did the rope like strap cost as in the moarket for a new one. As the old one is about 4yrs old.

turps wrote:[
I have one of those round "rope like" straps, turps was refering to and I have no idea what is inside but it is protected by a sheath of rubber self amalgamating tape (cool) and it is a good 1-2m longer than a regular flat strap.
Peter.

Peter
How much did the rope like strap cost as in the moarket for a new one. As the old one is about 4yrs old.[/quote]

Turps, I don't recall the price but it was dear, it is very tough with its rubber outer and I feel it will last a very long time (I drive a Sierra so I don't need it as often as other guys ) I will probably loose it before it breaks.
The biggest downer, is it's very bulky compared to flat straps that roll up into a compact size, you can't slip one of these under your seat.
I wrap mine around my spare tyre when I am doing a trip so it is ready to pull all the other guys out and it works well for me, I would buy another one if I was in the market for a strap in the future.
Peter.

Nev62 wrote:Is there any "rule of thumb" as to what breaking load of a snatch strap to the weight of the vehicle? My 4x4 is 1792kg (emtpy) 2365kg GVM and my snatch strap is rated to 8000kg breaking load. Is this ok?

There are some clever formulas around that will help you work out a lot of this sort of information... they use a mixture of rule-of-thumb figures and real numbers to determine what the loads are going to be.

If you check out the new Fourwheeler magazine - there is an article in there about winching - this has a lot of the info in it...

An example of the way they work is as follows:

Each surface has a certain amount of force holding the car, these are determined as a percentage of the vehicle weight. The other consideration is incline - and this will also affect the amount being snatched...

e.g. car weight x surface percentage of car weight = towed amount.
e.g. 1000kg's x 50% (if car is stuck up to axels) = 500kg being towed.
Note: these are just examples, the real rule of thumb percentages were in that article i was talking about.

However, I don't know about forces regarding snatching - sorry.

Turps... i remember reading my 4wd monthly mag, cheezy sells the straps you are after.

Peter, is it the black snake snath-ums strap?

They are advertised for $140.
www. cheezyracing.com.au

+dj_hansen+ wrote:Turps... i remember reading my 4wd monthly mag, cheezy sells the straps you are after.

Peter, is it the black snake snath-ums strap?

They are advertised for $140.
www. cheezyracing.com.au

Yes, that is them.
Peter.

droopypete wrote:

+dj_hansen+ wrote:Turps... i remember reading my 4wd monthly mag, cheezy sells the straps you are after.

Peter, is it the black snake snath-ums strap?

They are advertised for $140.
www. cheezyracing.com.au

Yes, that is them.
Peter.

Thanks for that, hopefully they will be at wandin on sunday and will have alook.