Yesterday I was assisting a friend in towing his son's late 80's Acura Integra home when. When we were in his driveway the tow rope broke! This tow rope was purchased online and was new out of the package.

My message to all of you is how do I go about finding a reliable tow rope? Should I have used two ropes instead of just one? Can anybody point me in the right direction as I need to replenish my car kit with a new tow rope.

Thanks!

What is the "REST OF THE STORY"?

Was it rope or strap? What was the rating?

IMHO - Most tow ropes do not break. They are cut by by either the knot or what they are around. Being it happened in the driveway, I would guess the rope was around the bumper or some other sharp item.

Few tow ropes or straps are sold that have a breaking strength of less than 10,000#. Most tow straps cannot be broken with a pickup tied to a telephone pole. A 50' tow strap/rope is ready to break at ~75'. It will stop a pickup and pull it back.

The round hitch ball shaft is one good point. A round axle is another. If there is only sheetmetal, you must have a metal tow hook intended to not cut the rope. This is where the extreme danger come into play.

The metal tow hook is like a paper clip on a rubber band. It will kill you. If you must use the hook, tie a heavy jacket or the like on the rope near the hook end. That will help. Get everyone away from the rope. Improperly attached, the hook will destroy whatever it hits. Don't let it get away.

I bought mine at Tractor Supply, not sure if you have them around your area or not but any tractor/farm business should handle them. Also here are a couple links to good ones.


http://www.uscargocontrol.com/recoverytowstraps-c-48.html?gclid=CIeb1e3bppACFRuhFQod9Hac7w

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/s...matchallpartial

http://www.tractorsupply.com/webapp/wcs/...p;ip_perPage=20

What kind of tow rope were you using? Ordinarily I'd recommend a beefy tow strap rated much higher than than you think you'll ever need. The shock forces involved in towing a vehicle can be surprisingly strong. I think my strap is rated somewhere around 20,000lbs. I'd also stay away from the straps with tow hooks.
The tow hooks can become very dangerouse if they slip off because the tow strap will slingshot the hook at one of the two vehicles.


The tow hooks can become very dangerouse if they slip off because the tow strap will slingshot the hook.



Also I will have to respectfully disagree with the previous post about using a ball hitch as an attachment point. I have heard many horror stories about these balls being sling shotted just like the tow hooks. You would be better off removing the ball, inserting the looped end of the strap into the reciever hitch, then passing the pin through the eye of the loop inside the hitch (as if you were securing your tow ball)

In addition the tow straps that come with tow hooks attached to them tend to be weaker, lighter, and generally of poor construction. However, an Acura probably will not have tow points designed for a hookless strap, so you may want to buy a few D-rings to go with it. These can generally be found at offroad supply shops, auto parts stores, home depots, Gi Joes, etc.





How far did you tow the vehicle? Maybe the strap was damaged from being drug on the ground? Could maybe try putting a sleve over the strap.

Rio hit the nail on the head. Use looped straps with D-shackles. Never use the hitch-ball itself as an attachment point, they can (and do) break and fly off.

If you absolutely must use a strap or chain with hooks make sure the open end of the hook is facing straight up in the air (that way if the hook breaks it will usually fly downwards) and tie some heavy cloth around each end of the strap/rope near the hooks.

When you say "the tow rope broke" what do you mean exactly? Where did it break or fail? Was it in the middle? Where it crossed under the sharp edge of the bumper? Did the stitching forming the loop come out? Did it break at a hook? Or did it simply break in the middle and well away from any splices, stitching or joints?

Each of these would mean different things. If it failed where it went over a sharp edge, like the bottom edge of a bumper, then there may be nothing wrong with the tow rope. This would qualify as a user error.

I have seem a similar effect where a manufacturer used a cheap formed sheet metal hook and within a use or two the hook had already cut half way through the rope.

Failed stitching is a manufacturers defect. Even fairly high quality equipment can show this. Don't rely entirely on the name. Nobody is perfect. Always inspect closely, inch by inch, before buying.

Some people who have reason to do a lot of dragging vehicles out of holes prefer to use chains. Chains show when they are worn or have been overloaded, the links wear and/or deform. They are much more tolerant of abrasion and sharp edges. Unlike ropes, particularly nylon, if and when the chain breaks it doesn't spring back as far or as fast. It pretty much just drops with minimal spring back.

On the down side chains are heavy, subject to rust, and require both more powerful vehicles and a change in towing practice to be used effectively. With a nylon rope or tow strap you can get a running start so a small and/or weak vehicle can often shift a much larger one.

Try that with a chain and both vehicles suffer from the shock loads. Given a running start on a chain it isn't all that hard to tear off tow hooks that aren't well mounted and/or rip or distort a unibody. So using a chain you have to slowly inch along to take up the slack and then slowly add power. It takes a larger and more powerful vehicle, or winch, to get the job done.

It sounds like you were using one rope?

That's the problem. I prefer straps myself, becuase I don't own a rig beefy enough to need chains, but always run with two of them. You are less likely to have things like this happen.

And having two 18' lengths of four ton test strapping in the car is a lot more useful than one 12' rope.

Like using a come-a-long, there are some safety issues that most here have already brought up. Where to attach, using a coat over the line etc.

If you are pulling out of a hole, having the hood up will help protect the driver in the event of the slingshot picture shown.

I have used on old nylon climbing rope to tow a truck for miles. It
was worn clear through the sheath before we started and it held
up well, I believe because of the stretch. When I tried a similar
thing with a new poly truck rope of the same diameter, it broke
on first tug.

If possible use a no knot, no fastener connection. Wrap the line
around a smooth surface several times, then use the shackle to
make sure it can't come unwrapped.

Tow ropes for towing, not extracting a stuck vehicle are dangerous. The towed vehicle is at best lacking full brake capacity.

"...The towed vehicle is at best lacking full brake capacity..."

And, the towed vehicles driver is guilty of following too close, unless it is a really long tow rope. In CA, you would also have to have two ropes, the primary towing device, and a "safety chain." Towing for any distance at all, at any speed faster than a walk, is unsafe...

Hi all,

Thanks for all your feedback. I guess I didn't elaborate enough. The tow rope broke about a foot from where it was attached to the F150 - it had not been wearing on any part of the truck or rubbing on the ground. When it broke we were in my friend's driveway that was about 30 degrees incline.

**Update: I decided to buy the 6"X30' tow strap with loops from tractor supply - it is rated at 55,000 pounds! I know it is probably overkill but at least I can be 99% sure it will not break this time! Now I am wondering if I should buy any hooks to go with it? Or should I just make the loops work?**

Get two or three of those D-shackles. You should be able to rig something up with them most of the time.

X2, unless one of the rigs involved has tow hooks (or built in shackles,) you'll need at least 1 D-ring. If you're already going with a 6" strap, adding a few d-rings won't take up much more space, and will allow you to attach to just about anything.

I have pulled many vehicles out of tough situations but I do not think I would tow a vehicle on a public road again with a rope after a very scary experience I had about 25 years ago.

A friend of mine in college had 2 cars; a large old beater that his wife drove to work and a smaller car that my friend used to commute to school. The big car broke down in the city and my friend and I went in the very early morning (well before rush hour) to tow it home with the smaller car. We used a heavy thick synthetic rope to connect the vehicles together (I do not remember what type) and there was about 30 feet between the cars. I was in the vehicle being towed and remember I had steering and some braking, my friend knew the 50 mile back-road route so he drove the front vehicle. We made it out of the city OK and onto the country gravel roads, we went over some railroad tracks and started down a long hill that had a one lane concrete bridge at the bottom. The large rear car I was in started gaining on the small car in front so I lightly applied the brakes, this is when things went very bad. The rear car I was in swerved sideways across the road repeatedly as we quickly headed for the bridge and river. The front tow car was also being thrown around and looked like it was going to broadside into the bridge, then be slammed by the car I was in. As luck would have it the rope broke between the two cars, with the rear car ended up in the adjacent ditch and the front car on the road facing the wrong direction!

I was really freaked-out by this but since we had no money for a proper tow truck, traffic was backing up and we had to clear the site before the police came, we re-tie the rope together (now even shorter) and slowly managed to get the car home (where it was later sold for scrap, DUH).

You do stupid things in your youth and this adventure was one of mine. This event could have ended tradically for both my friend and I or especially if another innocent driver/pedestrain happened to be at the site.

Since that time I have not towed any vehicles any long distances with a rope; its tow truck, flatbed, solid towbar or nothing.

My 0.02 cents,

Mike

Ok - what size/dimensions of a D-Shackle do you recommend? Can you give me any links please?

Thanks!

I would recomment that you get your recommendation from a local supplier in your town. Look up rigging. Show them what you are trying to do. Let them explain the loading requirements. IF YOU CAN DO YOUR OWN CALCULATIONS - here is a hardware supplier.

http://catalog.thecrosbygroup.com/maininterface.htm

I have a few Warn 3/4" D rings (came with my winch), but brand doesn't matter that much. Just run down to Home Depot, or an industrial / farm equipment store, and save yourself the shipping costs.

Here are a few examples to give you an idea of what to look for:
http://www.quadratec.com/products/product_search.php?kw=d+ring&submit=Go%21

As far as D Rings go (I call them shackles which is what we refer to them as in the construction industry)) There is some difference concerning the manufacturer of them. The Crosby Group is in my opinion one of the best manufacturers of shackles and lifting gear. At work we have Crosby shackles and then we have the china shackles. The load limit on them is really quite significant. I use shackles and nylon straps quite extensively at work (ironworker/rigger/structural welder) and that is what i have in my vehicle for off road recoveries. As far as towing a vehicle while i have done it a dedicated tow bar is the best method rather than straps or chains and having to rely on the malfunctioning vehicle's braking system.

Then again my recovery bag contains wire rope, a come a long, various shackles and straps and on my three way tow hitch i have welded a picking eye so i can use that as an attachment point at the rear.

regarding your tow rope Colbyhouse is it actually rated at 55,000 lbs because i would like to see that strap it must be a four or six ply in my opinion.

Does anyone have one of these straps (from Cabela's)?

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templa...p&noImage=0

It is billed as a "recovery strap" which implies the elasticity I'm after. However, listed right beside the above strap at Cabela's is a sibling strap, a "recovery strap" that has HEAVY METAL ATTACHMENTS, which would be terribly unsafe!

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templa...ndexId=cat20145

I'm not sure if Cabela's knows what a "recovery strap" (a.k.a. "snatch strap") implies ... elasticity (my planned usage is not towing, rather getting cars unstuck from snow). Also, they list the non-metal recover strap as being 3" and having a rating of 27,000 lbs. Most 3" straps I've researched are more in the 15,000 lb range. Is this more evidence that Cabela's "recovery strap" may not really be a snatch strap?

p.s. - I'm considering the Cabela's strap only because I have a bunch of Cabela's club points that basically make the thing "free" for me. I'm also looking at this "receiver shackle" from Cabela's:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templa...ndexId=cat20145

Any comments on this device? I think Warn is a respected manufacturer of these type of things.

colbyhouse


Try one of these,I have never used one, it looks like it should work. I'm going to order one unless anyone has a good reason not to.


http://www.cabelas.com/prod-1/0038447522016a.shtml

I've had tow straps fail where they were sewed. The stitching rotted while sitting in my pickup over the course of several years. I've since gone to a tow chain. When straps or rope break they tend to snap and anything that is attached, like a hook, flies also. With a chain if they break they tend to fall to the ground.

The down side is they are heavy, tend to rust, or leave oil stains on the carpet of the vehicle. I currently use a logging chain with both chain hooks and large hooks on each end. This setup hasn't failed me and seems to be fairly universal.

Take Care and Stay Safe,


P.S. Merry Christmas

If that thing ever disengaged, you'd have one great flying killing machine. Now, the question is, could it become dislodged? If that little cable loop thing in the picture could be used to corral ALL parts of the looped webbing strap I'd feel better about the deal. But it doesn't show that cable thing being using in that manner in the picture.

This brings up a good question: How is the best way to attach a snatch strap with loops on both ends to closed loop tow hooks on each vehicle? It's easy enough to loop and feed the strap through itself on one vehicle, but what about the other? You'd need something that can open and then securely close, like a D-Ring. Is it safe to attach a D-Ring to an existing (closed) tow hook? Should D-Rings only be attached directly to the frame? Assuming you can find an adequate place to attach them - you'd need a hole in the frame at a good spot, wouldn't you?

Good point about the possibility of disengaging, I do think that the cable loop shown is intended and included for that purpose. Still something to consider, thats why its good to ask around before buying some thing's.

regarding D-rings (not the carabiners), how do you use them? Is it welded to the vehicle, or do you throw the ring around an attachment point and then hook the tow rope to then directly?

This is how I do it on my truck:




But, as long as you can find something solid to attach it too (like a factory mounted tow loop) it can be used in various configurations.

Thanks for mentioning the D-rings. It just reminded me again to go out and get a pair for my SUV.

A few weeks ago, at our first good snow of the season, I came across a van who had slid off the road into a ditch. I was second on the scene and the 1st guy (Jeep Cherokee) was hooking up but he looped his tow rope right over his ball joint. Although I thought that was pretty dangerous, I still helped out by being the go between and gave them directions while he pulled the van out. Needless to say, I stayed well clear of the path of the tow rope in case it gave way.

I volunteered to use clean my rope but he was adamant that his dirty, oily rope was sufficient. :-( Fortunately it worked out OK in spite of this.

Followup:



I ordered this 3", 30' long, 27,000 lb tow strap from Cabelas (NOT the sibling with the hooks attached).

I received it today. It is indeed an elastic "snatch" strap. It talks about the elastic capability and mentions doing a "snatch recovery" on the packaging, and how you slingshot the stuck vehicle to get it unstuck. It is made in Canada by Erickson, model #09800. This thing looks like it could snatch an elephant right off its feet!