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The words and opinions expressed here are my own, and do not, in any way, represent the views of my employer (OnCourse).
You are here: Home / Archives for recovery gear

How I Store Hand Winch Wire

Published September 21, 2015 By Mick Farmer

Hand Winch Wire Storage

Hand Winch One of the most versatile pieces of recovery kit. Couple with a pulley block or two and a length of synthetic rope, to extend, it can do a lot (obviously the synthetic won't work in the winch). … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: Equipment, recovery gear, winch

Why This Winch Wire Is Dangerous

Published May 4, 2015 By Mick Farmer

Winch Hook Set Up -Bad-Shape

Warn Out This vehicle turned up for a training session recently. It wasn't part of a recovery course, thankfully. We found the clutch in the free spool position which is probably the reason for the rats nest.  Lots of bumpy unsealed roads could do that to the wire. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: Equipment, recovery gear, winch

Raised Air Intakes – Are They Really Necessary?

Published April 9, 2015 By Mick Farmer

Raised Air Intake - 110 Defender

It's hot, it's dusty and it's dry - so why should you consider fitting a raised air intake? … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: Mechanical, off-road driving, raised air intake, recovery gear

Not All Winch Anchors are Equal

Published October 29, 2014 By Mick Farmer

Damaged Winch Anchor - Side View

The first winch anchor (aka ground anchor) we bought was dubbed "extreme". It came from a UK supplier. It was a bit of a monster to carry around but it did sort of work for a while. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: Equipment, ground-anchor, land-anchor, recovery gear, winch-anchor

Total Recovery & Extraction Device (TREDS) – Work Well.

Published June 18, 2014 By Mick Farmer

Treds - Recovery

Been using these on our recovery course; they work very well. Especially when you have difficulty reversing out of the situation you've just driven into. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: Equipment, recovery gear, review

Switching to Synthetic Winch Rope

Published February 26, 2008 By Mick Farmer

We recently decided to fit synthetic winch rope to our winches. The decision was made from a purely safety stand point. Winch wire tends to get easily damaged especially when you've got a class full people who have never used a winch before. We were getting increasingly concerned of the consequences of one snapping. The probability of it happening was pretty low as we maintain the gear well. But..... you never know. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: recovery gear, synthetic winch rope

A High Lift Jack is an Invaluable Piece of Equipment

Published July 29, 2005 By Mick Farmer

High Lift Jack w. Defender

A while ago I wrote an article on winches and asked the question as to their viability. In the article, I discussed that unless you were a complete 4wd nutter like myself or working / living in an environment where you are likely to get stuck on a near daily basis then -- pretty much a waste of money. One piece of equipment that is, in my opinion, invaluable is the high-lift jack. There are various makes including hi-lift and jack-all but they all do much the same thing; only some have a higher … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: Equipment, high-lift jack, recovery gear

Do You Need a Winch?

Published November 29, 2004 By Mick Farmer

landrover winching

Picking recovery equipment for your vehicle is a bit like selecting a 4wd. First, you need to examine where, when and what you are going to be doing - then selecting the equipment most suitable. I tend to overkill on the equipment I carry around, mainly because I have been stuck in situations where I had wished I had brought such and such along. But then again I go looking for it. Its my job and my hobby!! Why Fit a Winch? A lot of people want to get a power winch. Why? Because they look … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: off-road driving, recovery gear, winch

Pull-Pal Review – Product Tested in Uganda

Published July 12, 2001 By Mick Farmer

Preparing Pull-Pal

First impressions were "why would anyone want this monstrosity in the back of their vehicle?" Just unpacking it from the box was an ordeal in itself! Only joking. Although, it does take up a lot of room in the back of your 4x4. When you start to use the beast, you can see why it's a popular piece of equipment. We had the use of an 11,000 lb Pull-pal; there is a smaller 9,000 lb version available. We put it through it's paces by first getting our Land Rover stuck in our mud strip (the Congo … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: Equipment, ground-anchor, land-anchor, off-road driving, recovery gear, winch-anchor

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