Recovery Brackets

Thanks for that Malcolm - will check out again but was sceptical as to "rating'' from some of the suppliers

Thanks Bob, sadly they don't stock for HZJ75 but an interesting website that I may use for other parts, thanks again, "Simba"

Thank Alan, this link looks positive??

They had tie down loops at the front, for the sea journey to wherever, but they couldn’t be classed as “safe” recovery points, Batts. Had one straighten after a snatch.

Bob

You should never ever snatch, or do a heavy recovery with a winch or heavy vehicle, using only one recovery point.

You risk chassis deformation if you do so. You should always only utilise two chassis recovery points (one each side) when the pull loading is heavy.

For the same reason, you never pull heavily from the centre of a I-beam axle on a 2WD, as many trucks, and old heavy duty utes, are fitted with.
You will bend the I-beam faster than you can say Jack Robinson.

When I ran a heap of equipment, on earthmoving/mining operations, damage to bogged vehicles was initially excessive, as highly undesirable procedures were used to debog vehicles.

Pulling or pushing with graders, loaders and dozers, invariably ensured vehicle body and chassis damage, even when the operator thought he was being "extremely careful".

Towing with chains attached to one chassis rail often resulted in diagonally twisted chassis'.
Even towing, using a "dedicated" eye-type tow attachment, mounted in the centre of a front chassis crossmember, would see the chassis crossmember rivets torn out, with a heavy pull - much to the shock of all concerned.

I ended up getting a heap of windscreen decals made, and fitted to all our road-going vehicles.
This decal read -
"This vehicle will only be debogged via the attachment of tow chains or cables to proper attachment points on BOTH chassis rails".

Once that was done, the level of vehicle damage caused by serious debogging operations reduced to a very acceptable level.

Cheers, Ron.

Ron you'd have to be going crazy pulling a 4WD to damage things yes some people who have no idea and go like a bull at a gate are usually those that have the most trouble. I totally disagree with not using just one recovery point I've never had trouble just using the factory mounts on one side or the vehicle or been with others who have had an issue either. Been bogged a lot and done a lot of recoveries, 4WDriving over the yrs most of the work is prepping it ready for extraction so the recovery is less stress full on the vehicle, gear and hopefully it comes out first go which it doesn't always happen. I've even recovered an 8t truck and a 5t Pantech, a unimog using a 4WD without damaging things.

Not sure how you go about damaging heavy earth moving equipment during a recovery sounds like you or others go to hard at it. I've done a few recoveries in that field and haven't broken any thing. May be we take more time and set up better. Tried to recover a haul truck not long ago using another one as the tow vehicle when I got there I said straight up the front needs to be dug out with a smaller digger first. They wanted to try so we did nothing happened so they bit the bullet prepped it correctly and got it out.

Saw a dozer try to recover a haul truck he took the weight they both accelerated nothing happened so the dozer backed up a few mtrs and took off I knew straight away what was going to happen but couldn't stop him. He broke the last recovery sling on site smart bloke so they had to ring around and borrow one from down the road.

Batts, I am talking about very heavy pulls on bogged vehicles.

Whenever something gets seriously bogged, there's always someone who turns up with something capable of some extremely serious pulling ability, and they then tend to use it to the max.

I wasn't referring to earthmover damage, I was referring to damage caused to vehicles by using earthmovers, tractors, etc as recovery vehicles.

It's surprisingly easy to distort a chassis diagonally with a heavy pull on one side.
I've seen the results in repair shops and in auction salvage yards.

Chassis' are built to withstand the load of the body on them and power driven through the spring perches and suspension mounting points, if independent suspension is used.

But they are not designed to cope with heavy pulls on one side of the chassis - because the cross-members are designed to resist longitudinal twist during vehicle operation - not diagonal twist caused by a heavy pull lengthwise, on one chassis rail, on a deeply-bogged vehicle.

A mate was once restoring a car with a ladder-frame chassis and couldn't get the body to line up properly.
He called in an old chassis repair man, who promptly set to on the bare chassis, checking all the critical reference dimensions - which are provided by the manufacturers.

The mate was stunned to be told by the old chassis man, that the chassis he was working on, had nearly 50mm variation in diagonal dimension measurements!

It's not uncommon for ladder frame chassis to suffer this kind of distortion after relatively low-speed crashes, where the impact is primarily on one side.
A heavy pull on one chassis rail while a vehicle is deeply bogged can result in similar chassis distortion to a low-speed crash where the impact is primarily on one side.

Cheers, Ron.

Thanks Batt's, sadly my vehicle had only "tie downs" and I've been seriously warned about using them - n0w removed, hence need for "rated recovery brackets" "Simba"

It would still have to be one hell of a pull to cause damage as I mentioned poor prep work bull at a gate. Some people have trouble thinking straight when they have a lot of power under their right foot.

I

It's interesting to note, that the eBay seller in the link posted by Phil G above, outlines the recovery bracket use conditions, IN BRIGHT YELLOW, highlighted print! - and they reinforce everything I have already written in my posts above.

I have taken the liberty of copying and pasting the exact wording in the eBay ad, and it reads as follows (and the capitals are his) ...


"ALWAYS USE TOW POINTS AS A MATCHED PAIR WITH AN EQUALISING BRIDLE.
Failure to use tow points correctly can result in tow point fatigue and/or bending, and will void your warranty.
Never use a single point combined with a side load/pull.

If a recovery is to be performed, it is imperative both Tow Points are utilized, with the use of a bridle strap.
This will share the load through the front of your vehicle, giving increased strength and safety margins, the use of a bridle strap will also keep all components tethered in the case of a failure, reducing the risk of serious injury or death.

Always INSPECT the Tow Points and shackles before each use.
Do not use if there are visible signs of damage or wear (including cracking or elongation).
Do not exceed the Working Load Limit (WLL) of the shackle or Tow Points.
Always STAY A SAFE DISTANCE away from the recovery area – at least 1.5 times the length of the recovery strap.
Incorrect use of recovery equipment can result in serious injury or death.

Always ensure that adequate PREPARATION for the recovery, to minimise the strain on either vehicle, has been undertaken i.e. Digging, Rock placement etc.

If you do not understand how to use this equipment safely or are uncomfortable with your abilities in the use of recovery equipment, please complete a course that specialises in four wheel driving & 4WD vehicle recovery."

Cheers, Ron.