I was unable to link some photos on what can happen when trying to tow stuck vehicles with tow straps; however, you can check them out on either North Beach Recovery or Corolla Beach Idiots Facebook pages.. Some eye-opening information.
h

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I was unable to link some photos on what can happen when trying to tow stuck vehicles with tow straps; however, you can check them out on either North Beach Recovery or Corolla Beach Idiots Facebook pages.. Some eye-opening information.
h

I've also witnessed firsthand the damage that chains can cause. One way, or another, the rule of thumb is to stand clear!

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Simple rule is a tow hitch or its mount is NOT a recovery point for either the recovery vehicle or the stuck vehicle.

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I seem to remember that there is a law against ordinary people pulling out stuck cars up there. Did I just imagine that? I thought it had to be a towing service that did them.

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My boys spent a lot of time, as teenagers, getting cars unstuck in Carova. 4in lift, 2000 Cherokee. Sometimes they'd get tipped sometimes not. They always had fun.

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Hubby had a winch on his Tacoma back in the day and pulled many a vehicle out of the sand. Now, he just walks up and instructs and sometimes gets in and backs up and tries to accelerate to get them over the fluffy stuff. Kind of a mission for him. Did that the other day in Frisco.

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One year on Hat'triss we witnessed (from a distance) someone trying to un-stuck another vehicle. The tow strap was attached to the trailer hitch of the "tow" vehicle and routed under the stuck vehicle and attached to it's trailer hitch.

I've no idea what the hypothesis was, but the experiment didn't produce the desired results. The good Sarmatians unhooked and left with the thanks of the stuck folks for their effort.

Let me point out that the stuck truck was a Ford F-Whatever 4x4 with large, intelligent tires and the frame was not sitting on the sand.

We moseyed over in our bone stock Cherokee, said the hellos and asked them if they aired down. "Sure did!"

"To what PSI?"

"20."

"Let 'em down to 12."

It walked right out of the hole.

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One year on Hat'triss we witnessed (from a distance) someone trying to un-stuck another vehicle. The tow strap was attached to the trailer hitch of the "tow" vehicle and routed under the stuck vehicle and attached to it's trailer hitch.

I've no idea what the hypothesis was, but the experiment didn't produce the desired results. The good Sarmatians unhooked and left with the thanks of the stuck folks for their effort.

Let me point out that the stuck truck was a Ford F-Whatever 4x4 with large, intelligent tires and the frame was not sitting on the sand.

We moseyed over in our bone stock Cherokee, said the hellos and asked them if they aired down. "Sure did!"

"To what PSI?"

"20."

"Let 'em down to 12."

It walked right out of the hole.

Great story!! It's so funny how that works....of course, I'm clueless about that kind of stuff.

The vehicle yesterday had a problem with the 4 wheel drive not engaging and other tactics had to be administered to get out.

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I see this a lot and cringe whenever I see it.

Never ever use the tow ball as a tow point. You best way out is to air down, dig out, and use traction boards. If that does not work, use a winch to ease you out of the hole. Not everyone has a winch so the best option IMO, is not available for most.

Here in Delaware we have a Towing Company that sells a plan to get you off the beach if you get stuck. Since I drive on the beach year round, I pay for their plan every year. Last summer I forgot to engage 4WD and I buried myself. Decided that it was just too hot to dig out myself, and I was well above the tide line, so I unloaded and fished. Called the tow company and they came and hooked up a winch, and pulled me back 3 feet, and I was free.

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"when trying to tow stuck vehicles with tow straps"

Tow straps don't stretch, use a snatch strap/recovery strap. Don't use the ball because they have been known to snap off and go flying. Don't use a front attachment point to pull someone out, even with a wet blanket thrown over the center of the snatch strap as a safety measure, you might end up with a hole in your radiator.

I carry a snatch strap, never used it. I carry two shovels, never used them. I have 2 expensive traction boards, never used them. I carry 5 or 6 tire gauges and hand them out like candy to people who are stuck. The free ones from Discount Tire are surprisingly decent.

I helped a couple unstick their nice VW SUV at Ramp 59 near Ocracoke's north ferry terminal. They made it about 30 feet past the end of the ramp. He had a tire gauge. I suggested he lower the pressure from 30-something to 18. He went down to 20 and drove off the beach.

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Ok. Clue me in. What is wrong with using the rear towing hitch to hook a strap to for pulling a stuck vehicle out? I've never done it but if needed that would be my first place to hook the strap. If if tows my 36' camper it should be fine????

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Ok. Clue me in. What is wrong with using the rear towing hitch to hook a strap to for pulling a stuck vehicle out? I've never done it but if needed that would be my first place to hook the strap. If if tows my 36' camper it should be fine????

I've done it many times without mishap, but it is possible that the hitch ball could break off and become a deadly projectile. Nobody wants a 2 5/16" steel ball coming at them at warp speed...

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Understood. What about looping the tow strap through a clevis hook that is attached to the hitch where you would hook the safety chains?

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I wouldn't trust the chain attachment points.

Second choice for me would be to put the strap loop in the hitch if it will fit and then put the pin through it. The problem? If the pin bends enough it will take a saw to get it out.

First choice for me is a D-ring for the hitch. Harbor Freight has one for $28 or you can go with a brand name for $50 to $100.

HAUL-MASTER 2 in. Hitch Mounted D-Ring Shackle

OR, HF has another one for $12.99 www.harborfreight.com/d-ring-receiver-hitch-66212.html

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I was unable to link some photos on what can happen when trying to tow stuck vehicles with tow straps; however, you can check them out on either North Beach Recovery or Corolla Beach Idiots Facebook pages.. Some eye-opening information.
h

The Oregon Inlet Idiots FB page is pretty good also. It is always funny to watch people and their vehicles on the beach during the summer. Pretty much everyone who's ever driven on the beach there has been stuck- happens to the best of us. What is funny is to see the people who think their Camry/Civic/Accord would make a beach vehicle, or who think that it is somehow beneath them to actually air the tires down.

Edit to add this- prior to my current beach vehicle I was on the receiving end of "good samaritan" assistance several times. Now that our current beach vehicle is great in the sand I offer to give folks a pull if I think I can get them out without getting myself stuck as well. Most of the time people say "thanks, but we're good," at least I've offered. There was a F-250 that was sitting on the chassis south of ramp 38 back in May, and I didn't even pretend to try to yank them. Jarvis Towing got them out.

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I was unable to link some photos on what can happen when trying to tow stuck vehicles with tow straps; however, you can check them out on either North Beach Recovery or Corolla Beach Idiots Facebook pages.. Some eye-opening information.
h

I've also witnessed firsthand the damage that chains can cause. One way, or another, the rule of thumb is to stand clear!

Any of y’all from the Harrisonburg VA area may recall an extremely good euro car mechanic…folks brought him stuff to tweak from all over…one day (late 80’s) while trying to straighten the frame of an old school 600SEL…via chain pull…it broke off the frame and blew through the rear window of the pickup he was driving and spotting though during the pull. How he wasn’t killed was a miracle, but he never was the same again.

It happens so freakin fast..

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I'm from Broadway Va. I've heard of Harrisonburg but I try to stay away due to all the gang violence.
I don't remember that incident.

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Ok. Clue me in. What is wrong with using the rear towing hitch to hook a strap to for pulling a stuck vehicle out? I've never done it but if needed that would be my first place to hook the strap. If if tows my 36' camper it should be fine????

A tow hitch and it's mount is made to hold static energy ( a trailer sits or is pulled or is breaked against it)
Using it as a tow point or a snatch mount introduces massive dynamic forces on a hitch. Picture a 5000 lb truck trying to pull out another 5000 lb truck and all the energy when it yanks on it is centered on a 2" tow hitch.

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And that 2" ball has a 1" shaft.

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There is nothing wrong with using a hitch to pull out a stuck vehicle. I think some of the confusion here is people use incorrect terminology. The hitch is the part that is attached to the frame of your vehicle. You should never use a ball to pull out a stuck vehicle.

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That truck is in the mud up to the hubs and they didn't bother to shovel even a small ramp out at all.

Meanwhile, combining a non-stretching tow strap with a 10-inch-drop ball mount ended in a fatality.

www.exploringoverland.com/overland-tech-travel/2022/7/28/another-hitch-ball-recovery-another-fatality

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Too much leverage.

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A horrible ending

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