Getting stuck /unstuck

[NMMarauder]

So far my wheeling has been limited to forest/logging roads while out hunting/backpacking. My truck is my daily driver so I'm pretty careful about what I am willing to attempt. Just thought I would get the opinion of more experienced wheelers.

What are the things you consider essential for not getting stuck in the first place and what items do you consider essential for getting yourself unstuck?

This is assuming that you are out solo and that you don't have another vehicle with you to pull you out.

[scabbyota]

A winch, hi lift and lot's of cable and chains comes in handy.

[NMMarauder]

After I posted this, I thought of a better way to phrase my question.

Let's say you were part of a contest and in the contest they gave you a stock 1994 22re 4x4 and say $4000 in cash that you could use to modify it. Then they were going to send you on a cross country trip down forest roads, logging roads, highways, and the occasional deer trail. What would you spend your 4K on?

I'll take a stab at answering it and maybe some more experienced wheelers will chime in.

1. I'd do something about the stock diffs. It seems to me that having all four wheels driving even if they were stock tires would be better than having two 33 inch mud tires driving. It seems not getting stuck in the first place would be better than recovery afterward. A truetrac for the front end runs about $420. A soft locker for the rear runs $628. (I'm not attached to these choices. I'm just picking them for sake of comparison) I have no idea how much it would cost to install them (or how hard it is to do it yourself) so I'll guess $400 to get the both installed. (I may be way off)
2. I'd buy a wench and its associated equipment next. You will need a bumper to mount it to. I'm guessing $675 for the bumper if you install it yourself. $900 for a winch and associated straps
3. With only a $1000 left I guess I would get the largest tire that would fit under without a lift kit. So maybe $600 for tires. Toss in a high lift jack $70, shovel $40, maybe some tire chains $100 and that would be most of the 4K. Just about $250 left.

I did a quick search for lift kits but I couldn't really figure out what all is needed. Anyone have a ballpark figure on the lift kit? Could you do it for $250? Would you spend it on something else? I guess you could by 42 six packs instead.

Thoughts are welcome. Are my numbers totally off?

[missouriman]

weld rear spiders
locker front
wide 33 inch tires with heavy side wall.
tire chains
receiver hitches front and rear
receiver hitch mounted winch.
wiring for plugging in winch.
winch pulley
tree saver
several shackles
three or four good steel fence posts and a driver.
(you drive them in, in a line, tie the top to the bottom as you go back for a winch point. use the winch to pull them out after you are not stuck.)
a floor jack, (I hate high lifts, but do carry one).
two traction ladders.
a 2x12 chunk of wood about 3 feet long.
maybe a second battery

most of all a well charged cell phone.

if you get stuck and can't get un stuck with all that and your motor still runs.
leave a note so future generations will know why this truck is sitting out there.

[Gnarly4X]

Originally Posted by NMMarauder

After I posted this, I thought of a better way to phrase my question.

Let's say you were part of a contest and in the contest they gave you a stock 1994 22re 4x4 and say $4000 in cash that you could use to modify it. Then they were going to send you on a cross country trip down forest roads, logging roads, highways, and the occasional deer trail. What would you spend your 4K on?

I'll take a stab at answering it and maybe some more experienced wheelers will chime in.

1. I'd do something about the stock diffs. It seems to me that having all four wheels driving even if they were stock tires would be better than having two 33 inch mud tires driving. It seems not getting stuck in the first place would be better than recovery afterward. A truetrac for the front end runs about $420. A soft locker for the rear runs $628. (I'm not attached to these choices. I'm just picking them for sake of comparison) I have no idea how much it would cost to install them (or how hard it is to do it yourself) so I'll guess $400 to get the both installed. (I may be way off)
2. I'd buy a wench and its associated equipment next. You will need a bumper to mount it to. I'm guessing $675 for the bumper if you install it yourself. $900 for a winch and associated straps
3. With only a $1000 left I guess I would get the largest tire that would fit under without a lift kit. So maybe $600 for tires. Toss in a high lift jack $70, shovel $40, maybe some tire chains $100 and that would be most of the 4K. Just about $250 left.

I did a quick search for lift kits but I couldn't really figure out what all is needed. Anyone have a ballpark figure on the lift kit? Could you do it for $250? Would you spend it on something else? I guess you could by 42 six packs instead.

Thoughts are welcome. Are my numbers totally off?

Verty interesting topic...!! I'm sure you will get a wide range of viewpoints and experiences.

Numbers $$$ can vary.

I think you thought it out well.

NOT-STUCK is way better than UN-STUCK. The Boy Scout moto: BE PREPARED works really well.

Not getting stuck is important if you’re out solo. Here in AZ, you could find yourself in some potential danger without proper gear or water. When I first moved to AZ, I took my Toy truck out exploring quite a few times by myself. I always told my wife where I planned to go, how long I intended to be out, and left her the topo maps of my intended route. Although I had a cell phone and CB, it wasn’t always in range. I packed plenty of bottled water and food. I carried a gun, and a change of clothes and wore a good pair of boots, and a small back pack. Fortunately, I never got “stuck” or broke down while out by myself.

I have a friend that 4-wheeled into a trail and got stuck and had to walk out about 12 miles… that took him almost all day!! Walking out of 4x trail is a little slower than walking down a sidewalk.

Before I had lockers (essentially 2 wheel drive), suspension, and aggressive off-road tires, I just used my head and my gut. If something didn’t look good, I just didn’t go through it or over it. After lockers, tires, and suspension parts, then I got a little more daring.

Lockers are probably the best mechanical asset you can have on 4x4 for traction. Good tires are obviously important. Then some body armor.

If I were going to go out in the “boonies” exploring now, by myself or just me and my wife, I’d have a good winch, extra cable, and snatch strap. I’ve always carried three tool boxes full of my tools, extra parts, cans of motor oil, a CO2 tank for airing up the tires. Since my trucks have been white, I carried two cans of florescent red paint. Before I had a GPS, if I were going into an unfamiliar trail, I’d reach down out my door or get out and spray a 6" circle on a rock where I turned. I also figured that if I ever got stuck or injured and had to stayed with my truck, in an emergency I would spray the top cab and hood with “help” in big letters – in case someone sent out some aircraft.

Bare minimum I carried before I had a winch was a come-along with extra cable and a hi-lift. An
8K winch on these little trucks adds some weight on the front end. My Ramsey 8000, with just the bare mounts weighed 163 lbs!! It was very noticable on my 1986 Long Bed IFS.

So, if it were my truck, I'd do a rear locker first, then some larger more aggressive tires (keeping in mind it's my daily driver) Next I'd put a locker in the front. My next purchase would be a Marlin Crawler. Then a winch.

Airing down the tires can have a dramatic effect on traction-not to mention smoothing out your ride! On my Toy trucks, I usually aired down my 33" BFG Muds to 10 lbs. as a start for most wheeling. In the sand, mud and snow I'd go down to 5 lbs. I have gone many miles on the highway at 10 lbs, driving under 60 with no problem, but I don't think it's safe to do, and it's better to air back up. My 20 lb. aluminum CO2 tank will fill up my 33" between 50 and 60 times on one tank. I could fill up all 4 33's from 10 lbs to 25 lbs in less than 5 minutes. Depending on the ambient air temp, the 4th tire goes a little slower because the CO2 gauges tend to freeze up.

That's just my worthless opinion.

[NMMarauder]

Gnarls - Thanks for taking the time to type out such a thoughtful reply.

Did you have to do anything about the extra weight of the bumper and winch? Crank up torsion bars or anything?

I don't have a hand winch but I did just buy a hi-lift and the winch kit so that I could hand winch if needed. I have yet to try it but I like the idea that I can winch forward, backward or even sideways with it. (At least in theory) I'll practice doing each before I have to do it for real on the trail.

Is there a better hand winch that I should buy until I can afford a front bumper/winch?

I find it interesting that you would pick the crawler even before the winch. I live in New Mexico so the terrain should be pretty similar to AZ.

I like Missouriman's idea with the fence posts as a winch anchor. That seems like a good poor-man's pull pal. Sometimes there just isn't anything to anchor to if you don't bring your own.

[Gnarly4X]

Originally Posted by NMMarauder

Gnarls - Thanks for taking the time to type out such a thoughtful reply.

Did you have to do anything about the extra weight of the bumper and winch? Crank up torsion bars or anything?

I don't have a hand winch but I did just buy a hi-lift and the winch kit so that I could hand winch if needed. I have yet to try it but I like the idea that I can winch forward, backward or even sideways with it. (At least in theory) I'll practice doing each before I have to do it for real on the trail.

Is there a better hand winch that I should buy until I can afford a front bumper/winch?

I find it interesting that you would pick the crawler even before the winch. I live in New Mexico so the terrain should be pretty similar to AZ.

I like Missouriman's idea with the fence posts as a winch anchor. That seems like a good poor-man's pull pal. Sometimes there just isn't anything to anchor to if you don't bring your own.

Come Along Hand Cable Winch's

There's the type of come along I was referring to.

My choice for a Marlin Crawler over a Winch is simple... the Crawler gears in the T-case will make your vehicle's ability go from a pussy-cat to a cougar!

The stock gears are just not effective in negotiating serious obstacles. The stock gears work OK for snow, sand, mud, but as soon as you need to go very very slow... they are not low enough. My MC was #184, I believe, and it was $1034 delivered to my door with my T-case sent back as a "core". I don't know what they cost now. An 8K winch is probably close to the same price now. I only used my winch about 3 or 4 times, and it was always to help someone else.

With lockers front and rear and a MC you'll be amazed at where you can go. This makes your vehicle more capable, but also makes you more likely to get "stuck" because you can go into places you would never have been able to get your truck into before.

As far as winch anchor, a 3 or 4 foot piece of big rebar and a sledge hammer will probably be just as effective when you can't find something to anchor to.

On my 86, I had cranked up the torsion bars, but it's a trade-off because it limits the amount of articulation the IFS has.

I hope this helps.