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Flex Trax is a great system designed to increase the traction of wheels on vehicles. This advanced traction system is designed to provide the required extra traction on your vehicles when driving in snow, mud, and other adverse driving conditions. Flex Trax also boasts unique self-tracking, self-cleaning, self-tensioning, and positive-locking features.

Flex Traxs design is not only unique, but aesthetically pleasing as well. The engineering design prevents side skidding and requires little maintenance because they are self-cleaning. They are available in a range of sizes that fit small passenger cars as well as large trucks.

Self Cleaning Flex Trax
The self cleaning design of Flex Trax may explain why they are so popular in the commercial and automotive traction industry. The diamond shaped mini-chambers of Flex Trax have cavity walls that consist of inverted tapered step ledges. The mini-chambers combine to form larger chambers that taper inward once they are installed on the tire.

The diamond shape of the chambers create dual opposing chevron angles that support loads in all directions and allow for maximum gripping in forward and reverse directions. Their uniform placement creates a quick release of fluid solids and enhances gripping forces. It also helps prevent sideways skidding.

Snatch straps are great for recovering stuck vehicles. The strap is attached to a strong point on the stuck vehicle and the other end is attached on the recovery vehicle. There is usually a few feet of slack on the snatch strap in between both vehicles.

Snatch straps should not be used to extend a winch cable during vehicle recovery because they will stretch and store energy. Winching hardware and cables might be launched if the straps break. Ideally, the winch cable does not stretch at all or only a small amount.

Using Snatch Straps
Snatch straps should be attached to strong points that are able to withstand the huge forces generated. Only adequate towing strong points should be used to attach snatch straps and not shackles. For example, ordinary tow-balls are not designed to withstand the strong forces generated and most bull-bars are not approved for use as attachment points for snatch straps.

If a strong point becomes detached during recovery, the heavy metal object can become a lethal projectile and is capable of punching a hole through vehicles or through any people that are standing in the way. The snatch strap alone can inflict injury if it breaks. Recovery hardware must be used properly and innocent bystanders should be kept away from any recovery area.

Recovery kits are recommended for primary rescue and recovery vehicles. You can find both simple kits that contain standard tools to work with winches and kits designed for higher capacity winches for those that often perform winching operations. Typical recovery kits may contain equipment such as snatch straps, pulley blocks, and choker chains.

For vehicle recovery in harsh conditions, a four-wheel drive recovery kit is essential. These kits usually contain a snatch strap, a tree trunk protector, and a pulley block. All straps in the kit should have leather wrapped eyes for abrasion resistance from tow hooks and shackles. The pulley block in recovery kits allows the user to double the load capacity while winching and only requires a greasable zerk fitting. Other pieces of equipment in recovery kits may include heavy duty shackles for multiple rigging options.

Towing Recovery Kits
There are recovery kits available for towing a disabled vehicle long distances. Even through difficult terrain, recovery kits allow you to tow vehicles without fear of dragging or running the tow strap. Items in this type of recovery kit might include bungee cords, chains, and snatch straps.

Bungee cords are standard in many towing kits. They are usually placed inside a protective sheath that allows the tow strap to expand and contract as the tow vehicles move farther or closer apart. The sheath protects the tow strap from abrasions in case it drags on the ground. This feature is also helps avoid dangerous situations where the tow strap may wrap around the brake lines

Manual winches are a very important recovery item, especially for four wheel drivers. Whereas electric and hydraulic winches are fixed to the front of the vehicle and can only effectively pull forward, manual winches can pull a vehicle backwards, forwards, and sideways. Manual winches can often provide a way out of trouble if you need to tow a vehicle.

Using Manual Winches
All manual winches should be used with a pulley block. This reduces the physical effort by half and doubles the winching load. They come equipped with two levers which are operated by a telescopic handle. One lever moves the cable one way while the other lever does the reverse. For example, 20 meters of steel cable on a reeler is usually labeled the winch rope.

Shear pins are fitted to manual winch units in order to prevent overloading. These powerful winches can pull a four wheel drive vehicle out of mud, sand, and holes. Using these units, one can winch a four wheel drive car forward, backwards, sideways or even back onto their wheels.

In addition, manual winches feature a neutral function in order to allow the cable to be pulled through the machine quickly. The winches feature a pin or a hook on a fixed end that can be attached to a tree trunk protector or winch strap. Before purchasing a manual winch, make sure you are properly trained on the use of this recovery item.

Recovery winches can come in a variety of powered forms, including electric and hydraulic. However, electric recovery winches can only pull so far until the motor overheats and requires a cool-down period. Hydraulic winches obtain its pressure from a vehicles existing power steering pump so there is no need for an expensive pump.

The hydraulic system of these recovery winches allow users to operate them continuously with no intermittent use as would normally be required in electric winches. You will no longer have to worry about battery drain or the slowing down of your motor as the motor draws power. Some hydraulic recovery winches even have reversible mounting and are completely sealed so they can be used underwater.

Safety Precautions with Recovery Winches and Cables
In order to minimize the risk of recoil during a recovery operation, always ensure that winch cable is the weakest link in the recovery equipment chain. This means that the vehicle recovery point, the shackles, etc. should have breaking strengths that are higher than the winch cable or rope. There have been recorded incidents of projectile objects flying dangerously through windshields and injuring innocent bystanders so it is important to learn how to use recovery equipment, such as winches, correctly.

It always helps to know the breaking strength of all the components you are using in your recovery effort. If you are working with a shackle or a piece of rigging gear that is only stamped with the Working Load Limit (WLL), you can safely assume the breaking strength is four times that amount. Also, carefully inspect the attachment point on the vehicles themselves and never hook to a tow hitch or bumper that is not reinforced.