Snatch Straps

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Stan Mitchell

New Member
This last weekend we went out and played. In the course of playing, one of us got stuck. We used a snatch to get him unstuck. First time I'd ever done a snatch. Quite frankly, snatch strap recovery ss care me shirtless. Mine was the recovery vehicle and it was my strap used. All went well, although I was very relieved/glad when it was over.
That brings me to what I think is a very relevant question. What is the life of an unused snatch strap?
One reason I was nervous is coz my strap is now 5 years old - I think.
 
Aaron Schubert

Aaron Schubert

Moderator
Stan Mitchell said:
This last weekend we went out and played. In the course of playing, one of us got stuck. We used a snatch to get him unstuck. First time I'd ever done a snatch. Quite frankly, snatch strap recovery ss care me shirtless. Mine was the recovery vehicle and it was my strap used. All went well, although I was very relieved/glad when it was over.
That brings me to what I think is a very relevant question. What is the life of an unused snatch strap?
One reason I was nervous is coz my strap is now 5 years old - I think.
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I think condition is much more important than age. Providing its been kept dry, out of the sun and hasn't had any abrasion, cuts or grease etc on it I wouldn't have an issue using one that was much older than that.

I make a habit of inspecting anything used for lifting/rigging/snatching before putting it to use. Damage is usually obvious.

Aaron
 
Hoyks

Hoyks

Well-Known Member
Mr Rum said:
But what about? (with or without my sway bar attachment)..
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I wouldn't. There was a bloke killed in Tassy that used the receiver, but with a a shackle through where the tow ball bolts on.

The inside of the receiver had corrosion and the weld lacked penetration. End result was the L shaped lump of steel tearing away and getting driven into his head. I referenced the coroners report elsewhere.
Not worth the risk in my book.
 
CaptainBanana

CaptainBanana

Well-Known Member
Why would you attempt to use the cast load leveller head when you could just use the pin in the hitch and eliminate massive chunks of weight and failure points? I mean this is if you're unwilling to by a rated recovery receiver for a measly $40 or $50..
 
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rogerazz

rogerazz

4x4 Earth Contributer
When doing a recovery of any sort you must try and ascertain as much as possible what load you are trying to recover. That is weight, mud, sand, depth etc. If a short snatch does not work, or a second or third snatch, increasing speed, length, etc. then stop and look at alternatives, like winching, digging, using recovery tracks, jacking, etc. etc. Do not always rely on using the fastest way out. On one occasion in Toolangi Forrest it took us four hours to get 500 metres down the mountain, one broken hand winch, lots of hard work, getting dark, frustration, however we got home safely to our loved ones.
If I said would you wait one day to get out or die in one hour getting out, what would be your answer?
 
cam04

cam04

Well-Known Member
Mr Rum said:
Well, I wouldn't say I agree with him, but at the same time, I don't entirely agree with you either. Mainly because you used the word "tow".

If a vehicle is lightly stuck because of a lack of traction, and the tow vehicle can just creep along using a chain that's rated to the task. It could safely TOW the stuck vehicle out with little risk.
Would I hang around if someone tried using a chain for SNATCHING though? Not on your life.
Horses for courses.

I have never seen a tractor or truck pulled from a bog with a snatch strap either, it's either been chain and/or cable, and I'm yet to see either fail.
To be clear, I'm not saying it can't happen, just that in my experiences, it hasn't.

I've also seen a length of chain used with tent pegs as an anchor point for winching.
Lay the chain along the track, drive a peg in through every second or third link, attach winch hook, and pull.
Again, constant load, no shock load.


While I'm making comments of a controversial nature, what are people's thoughts on this?
(Excuse the tie down strap and floor mounted towbar, but it'll do for illustrative purposes)

We all know you shouldn't..
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But what about? (with or without my sway bar attachment)..
View attachment 45384

I did see/hear this method once somewhere a long time ago, but I haven't seen or heard mention of it since.

I have no need to ever do this with my vehicles, as they all have removable tongues and recovery points, but I thought it could make for an interesting discussion.
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That is the method we used in the bad old days to attach chain to a welded towbar. No such thing as a receiver hitch back then. Speaking of which I’d use the pin in the hitch every day before I used that method. I have no issue using chain in any recovery where dynamic loading is not going to occur. It works great in mud and stones, especially if you are relying on dyneema winch rope. If it breaks first you are using the wrong chain.
 
D

Deleted member 69390

Guest
Its a tow rope not a snatch strap. No issue if towing from the tow ball but never snatch from a tow ball.
 
Bomber2012

Bomber2012

Well-Known Member
Ive heard before that towballs in South Africa are rated and ok for snatching , has anyone else heard this ? Happy to be proved wrong.
 
T

Tink

Well-Known Member
Bomber2012 said:
Ive heard before that towballs in South Africa are rated and ok for snatching , has anyone else heard this ? Happy to be proved wrong.
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Synchro said:
Tow balls in Australia are also rated.
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Yes, for towing, not for snatching, there are different ratings for different purposes due to different forces being imposed upon the “rated” component.
Tink
 
99pc chimpanzee

99pc chimpanzee

Well-Known Member
That's interesting if towballs are rated for snatching is south Africa?I wonder if their snatch straps have the same coupling,wouldnt want to see them appear online for sale here that's all.

Tink do they have separate towball ratings in Australia for direct towing with rope do you know?Curious,cause as you say with snatching and towing,I would think the forces are different again with towing a fixed weight like a trailer than towing with a rope.when the tow rope goes slack then taut for e.g

Synchro yes its a tow rope in name however if you look at the ratings for breaking strain/working load one might think it could pull a semi out of a boghole or snatch a fourby all from the towball and with the coupling its all too tempting/easy for the unwary.I think thats the point of the article....its a dumb look and sets a bad example.imo.
 
T

Tink

Well-Known Member
99pc chimpanzee said:
Tink do they have separate towball ratings in Australia for direct towing with rope do you know?
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Umm, when I said towballs are “rated” for towing, I thought it was obvious that I was referring to towing, as in hitching a trailer to the towball and towing a trailer, meaning if a towball is “rated” to tow 3.5 tonnes, you can hitch up a 3.5 tonne trailer and tow it safely.
I was NOT meaning hooking a rope or strap to the towball and towing another vehicle. I doubt any towball has been “rated” for such a task.
Tink
 
D

Deleted member 69390

Guest
And the same applies to tow bars where many of us connect "rated" tow points.
 
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