Recovery Damper
- Thread starter CELICA XX
- Start date
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As the cable shoots back it pulls the cable towards the ground.
Also effective laid across the steel line, heavy blankets, heavy tow strap, heavy branch, really anything heavy.
Also effective laid across the steel line, heavy blankets, heavy tow strap, heavy branch, really anything heavy.
Its not a failsafe, but in the event of a break it helps direct the energy towards the ground rather than towards what its hooked to.
Floor mats are a handy alternative.
- Thread starter
- #5
I can understand maybe 50 feet of heavy blanket coving the entire winch line, but how is something so small going to make any difference ?
From the videos I've seen online, a cable snap is a relatively violent event.
From the videos I've seen online, a cable snap is a relatively violent event.
It will also slow the cable down a bit.
The cable is heavy and has lots of force on it. If it snaps, despite the weight of the cable, the added air resistance/high drag releases much of the energy that would otherwise go into the cable lashing into your face
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
a cable snap is rarely a violent thing. The "damper" is nit there for weight. The weight of the cable would be sufficient if that was the case. The thought is that the "damper" acts as an aerodynamic brake as the cable flies.
When I see people put stuff on their cables as dampers, more often than not they wind up doing it in such a way that it would not be very effective anyway.
In actuality very few cables that fail in the types of use that we see in offroad rigs like we use are going to have the ability to do much damage anyway.
Mark...
When I see people put stuff on their cables as dampers, more often than not they wind up doing it in such a way that it would not be very effective anyway.
In actuality very few cables that fail in the types of use that we see in offroad rigs like we use are going to have the ability to do much damage anyway.
Mark...
JohnnyC
Long ago TLCA# 2231
I always had put my carhartt on the cable...learned it from an older scruffy guy who used to say "if it rips my carhartt I'll kill it" sort of scare the cable into not snapping...i hadn't had one snap yet 
- Thread starter
- #10
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
Serious? of course I am.
How would I describe it? Well, how bout... Not violent.
We are not talking about bridge cable here, aircraft arresting cable, heavy recovery equipment with flexed booms storing energy.
Light vehicle self recovery winches and 5/16 -3/8 cables are in a different class than all of those and are not the things that all the old wives tales and "urban legends" tell us they are.
Mark...
How would I describe it? Well, how bout... Not violent.
We are not talking about bridge cable here, aircraft arresting cable, heavy recovery equipment with flexed booms storing energy.
Light vehicle self recovery winches and 5/16 -3/8 cables are in a different class than all of those and are not the things that all the old wives tales and "urban legends" tell us they are.
Mark...
Found this on the tube. Idiots using a winch cable as a recovery strap. Could have easily died.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1NnL83UpuQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1NnL83UpuQ
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
Idiots, yep. I hope that he was drunk too and not as stupid as that all the time.
Using a winch cable to snatch with!. Good way Hurt someone... to destroy a winch... and whatever else it was that it was attached to at the other end (which did fail, obviously).
Mis-use and stupidity can make anything dangerous.
Mark...
At least he should have had the hood open.
I am surprised that the windshield stopped the hook as well as it did.
That video shows just how fast it can happen though.
I am surprised that the windshield stopped the hook as well as it did.
That video shows just how fast it can happen though.
Its has pockets on each side for you to put rocks, sand, or a small child in it to weigh it down.
Isn't it generally worse when the mounting point breaks than when the cable itself breaks?
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
Yep, depending on how it fails, a mounting point failure can create rebound, add a LOT of mass and fail almost instantly.
When this happens, the cable is just along for the ride as whatever has snapped off of the vehicle being recovered takes off in a straight line with the cable dragging behind it.
A failed attachment point is the biggest hazard I can think of to beware of when winching.
Mark...
When this happens, the cable is just along for the ride as whatever has snapped off of the vehicle being recovered takes off in a straight line with the cable dragging behind it.
A failed attachment point is the biggest hazard I can think of to beware of when winching.
Mark...
Southeast Overland
Get lost! Go explore!
Think of it this way - it would probably hurt for someone to smack you with a thick piece of rope, but add a heavy object like a rock to the end and your day just got reeeeeally bad.
rusty_tlc
Dain Bramaged Member
I'd love to see Myth Busters take this one on. The one on a snapped cable cutting someone in two was busted.
MythBusters Episode 62: Killer Cable Snaps
MythBusters Episode 62: Killer Cable Snaps