If you're an off-roader, the question is not WHAT IF I GET STUCK?
The question is what do I do WHEN I GET STUCK? Sooner or later, if
you dare to wander off-road, you are going to bury that sucker
right up to the frame rails.
With this in mind, here are some time proven tips and
tricks that will help get you rolling again:
AIR DOWN. The very first thing you should do
when you get stopped in mud, sand, or any other soft stuff, is to
let air out of the tires. How much? You can safely drop the air
pressure to 10 pounds and gain plenty of traction. In deep sand, I
have personally dropped the pressure to four pounds without having
the tires slip off the rims. Of course, you should air back up as
soon as possible.
ROCK IT. As soon as your vehicle ceases
forward motion, stop and study the situation. If you're not buried
deeply, you can often get out by using the old Low-to-Reverse
trick. Here's how it works: Put the trans into reverse and raise
the engine speed with the brakes on. Then roll backwards a bit, and
quickly slip the tranny into low. Repeat the process, and if the
tires don't start sinking deeper, chances are you can work your way
out.
So you're stuck in the sand,
dummy. What's the best way to get out?.
If you've got a shovel, dig a nice graduated exit
from the sand. Do it in front of all four tires.
DIGGING OUT. When buried in sand (or mud or
gravel), remove the sand directly in front of all of the tires.
This removes the immediate barrier that impedes
rolling.
ARE YOU LOCKED UP? Don't laugh, many is the
time the driver simply forgot to lock the hubs, or the lockers were
not fully engaged.
CARRY A SHOVEL. It can be a real hassle trying
to dig out of sand with your bare hands. Always carry some sort of
shovel in your 4x4. The short handled camper types are good, but
the folding military fox-hole diggers take up less room.
Jack the rig up in the air
until the tire clears. Rocks, twigs, branches and anything else you
can find can be placed under the tire for some
traction.
No shovel? Use a license place, a chunk of wood, or
whatever … like this rowing oar.
EMERGENCY SCOOPERS. You can used a wide
variety of things to help dig out, including a wheel cover, a chunk
of wood, or even the license plate from your rig.
QUICK TRACTION. If your wheels are spinning,
hunt around for something to put under the tires. Sticks, brush,
stones, tin cans, pieces of wood, trash, rags, or just about
anything that will offer traction, will help.
JACK IT UP. If the tires are buried, get your
jack out, raise the vehicle and shovel dirt (or most anything else)
under all of the tires.
Savvy off-roaders carry a
chunk of carpet or shop comfort pads rolled up somewhere in the
rig. Jack the tire up, slide it underneath and
…
… gas it gently. Once you're moving, keep
moving and aim for hard-packed ground.
EASY DOES IT. When trying to get free, do not
hammer the throttle. More often than not, easing on the gas will
keep the tires from digging in. By using a combination of the
brakes and throttle, you can control the wheel spin.
AVOID CHATTER. Once you start moving, you can
give more gas to the throttle, but avoid too much throttle. How
much is too much? Once the wheels start hopping and chattering, you
not only lose traction, you can break drive line parts.
Sometimes if you're really stuck bad, a serious
winch is the only way out.
KEEP MOMENTUM. As your stuck 4x4 gets moving,
don't back off the throttle. Once a vehicle starts moving, it's
easy to keep it moving, or to accelerate gently.
KEEP THE WHEELS STRAIGHT. Before you try to
extract yourself from an "unstuck" situation, make sure that your
front wheels are perfectly straight. The more they're turned, the
greater resistance they'll offer to rolling. Don't try to turn at
all until you get up to a reasonable speed.
AIM IT. As soon as you get moving, try to aim
for firmer ground. Often, this means simply moving to the edge of
the trail, or just out of the ruts.
FINDING FIRMER GROUND. If you see weeds, brush
or rocks, head for that. The ground will always be more solid
there.
WINCHING IT. If you're lucky enough to have a
winch on your 4x4, hook it up and pull. Winches work best when
there's another person inside the cab giving a steady application
of power while the winch is working.
SAFETY TIP. When using a winch, put a jacket,
towel or floor mat over the cable. This way, if the cable breaks,
or comes loose from its mooring, it won't jump back and blow out
your windshield, or worse.
PORTABLE POWER. If you can't afford a winch, a
Come-a-long is a handy tool that's small enough to carry in your
4x4, and prices start at around thirty bucks. Make sure you get one
that's capable of at least 2000 pounds pull.
You might not need a winch
if you air your tires way down and utilize the increased footprint
and traction. I've gone to the 4-6 p.s.i. range at
times.
Rocking back and forth often helps.
INCREASED LEVERAGE. You can double the pulling
power of your winch (or Come-a-long) by using a
snatchblock.
WINCH WARNINGS. If you're being winched out by
another vehicle, don't attach the cable to your bumpers, hitch
balls, suspension parts, axles, or axle shafts. Attach to a
built-in tow hook, or to the frame rails, or cross
members.
LIFTING TOOLS. You gotta have a good jack,
and one of the time-proven favorites is the Hi-Lift. It's capable
of hoisting literally tons of vehicle three feet vertically.
SINK-PROOF. Smart off-roaders carry a small
block of wood to place under the jack to keep it from sinking into
the soft ground.
TOW STRAPS. A stout tow strap is a must for
any off-roader. One end can be hooked to a towing vehicle, and the
other to the stuck rig. The towing vehicle can use a technique
called "yanking" to help extract a stuck vehicle. It's done by
leaving a small amount of slack in the tow strap, getting a run,
and literally yanking the vehicle out of its trap.
HIGH-CENTERED. This is a condition where the
vehicle is supported on the frame rails and the differentials, and
the wheels are virtually free-spinning. The only way out of this is
to jack the 4x4 up one end at a time, and place dirt, sand, rocks,
brush or anything else you can find under each wheel to lift the
frame clear.
You can hook the winch line
to a heavy log, or a stout tree to pull out.
If you're in sand and not near a tree, there are
all kinds of anchoring devices that will bite deep into the sand
and let you winch out.
THE RIGHT RANGE. While trying to get unstuck,
you're going to abuse your trans and drive train. To reduce the
stress, make sure that you're in 4-Low. This will give you the
stump pulling power you need to overcome the Worst Stuck
scenario.
BE PREPARED. It's too late to wish for
the equipment you need to get unstuck when you're buried up to the
hubs. Serious off-roaders prepare for the worst stuck situations. A
stout winch will extract just about any vehicle.
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