The one question that I get asked time and time again from new Jeepers is, “what’s the first mod I should do to my Jeep?” Of course, my answer to them is always the same, “recovery gear”. The fact of the matter is, whether you’re new to the world of off-roading with a right off the show room floor stock Jeep, or a long time veteran with a highly modified built up trail rig, everyone gets into a jam sooner or later. Of course, if you just happen to be God’s gift to off-roading and feel you don’t need recovery gear because you never get stuck, please do the rest of us a favor and get some anyway so that you’ll have what it takes to help us mere mortals get out of the sticky situations we get into all of the time.
At the top of my list of things that I think every Jeeper should have on their Jeep is a set of tow hooks, D-ring mounts or some kind of recovery point (like a hitch receiver) on the front and rear of their Jeep. A good tow hook or recovery point will bolt directly to your Jeep’s frame or to an aftermarket heavy duty steel bumper (like Jeeperman, LoD, PUREJEEP, Rock Hard 4×4, Bestop, or Shrockworks makes for the Jeep JK Wrangler) that has been reinforced to act as a frame crossmember. And, without this basic and very affordable modification to your Jeep, you won’t be able to help anybody get out of a rut and they certainly won’t be able to help you. You see, virtually every other piece of recovery gear you could own is designed to work off of these recovery points as they are strong, secure and will help prevent unnecessary damage to your Jeep.
Now, the one piece of recovery gear that I think every Jeeper needs to have and carry with them at all times is a good tow strap that is at least 20-30 feet long, has NO metal hooks or clips on it (these are extremely dangerous and should never be used) and has a pulling capacity of at least double the weight of your Jeep. And, in the case of a Jeep JK Wrangler Unlimited that weighs a little over 4,000 lbs., I would recommend a tow strap that has a breaking strength rating of least 10,000 lbs. or more. For me personally, I use a 30 ft. ARB Snatch Strap that I picked up from Northridge4×4 as part of a complete ARB Recovery Essentials package. With a 100% nylon webbing construction, reinforced eyes, a genuine stretch of 20%, and a breaking strength of 8,000 kg or 17,640 lbs., this strap is more than enough for the needs of my Jeep JK Wrangler Unlimited. But, what separates the ARB Snatch Strap apart from its competition is its unique safety warning indicator that comes built into the strap itself and reveals itself in the event your strap is ever overloaded.
In addition to the ARB Snatch Strap that I got with my ARB Recovery Essentials package, I also got a 10 ft. ARB Tree Trunk Protector that looks a lot like a Snatch Strap but has a 3″ webbing made out of 100% polyester and has a breaking strenght of 12000kg/26,000 lbs. And, as it’s name suggests, an ARB Tree Trunk Protector is designed to be wrapped around a tree that you intend to use as an anchor point and use it to attach a shackle or hook to as opposed to just wrapping a winch cable or recovery chain directly to the tree and damaging its bark. Needless to say, if a lot of the trails in your neck of the woods is in the woods, this is a piece of recovery gear that is highly recommended.
Another piece of trail gear equipment that I got with my ARB Recovery Essentials package and I would highly recommend as a part of your trail recovery gear essentials is a pair of ARB 3/4″ D-Ring Shackles. Because they are extremely strong and can be separated with ease, D-Ring shackles are perfect for use in securing a tow strap safely and quickly to a vehicle that has a tow point on its frame (as opposed to a tow hook) or an aftermarket bumper like Jeeperman, LoD, PUREJEEP, Rock Hard 4×4, Bestop, or Shrockworks that come equipped with D-Ring mount tow points built into them. D-Ring shackles are also great for safely linking two tow straps together, securing a snatch block to an ARB Tree Trunk Protector and for just giving you more options when helping to recover another vehicle or when getting the help from them.
Speaking of snatch blocks, if you’re fortunate enough to have a winch on your Jeep JK Wrangler, this is one of the best pieces of recovery gear equipment that you can add to your essentials kit. As has been the case with many of the other pieces in my personal arsenal, I got my ARB Snatch Block as a part of my ARB Recovery Essentials package, but, even if one didn’t come with the package, I definitely would have gotten one anyway. Why you ask? Because a snatch block is a pulley it will allow your existing winch to double its capacity making even a modest 8,000 lb. winch into a formidable power house. And, with more pulling capacity comes a greater chance that you’ll be able to pull yourself and/or a friend out of jam and do it more safely than ever before. But, more than just a device that’ll increase your pulling capacity, a snatch block will also give you winching options like never before. Attached to a fixed point like a tree or another vehicle, you can also use a snatch block as a vector point to triangulate your pull. This option can be especially useful in areas that are difficult to find solid ground or where obsticals and/or terrain prevent you from establishing a safe straight pull.
Although my ARB Recovery Essentials package came with all the essential items I would recommend you carry with you when wheeling, I have added a few more items to my kit that I have found to be quite useful in the past. First and foremost, I think a good pair of leather gloves is a must especially if you’re still running a steel wire rope on your winch. Gloves do a great job of helping you to have a better grip on your equipment, protect your hands from rope burns and help prevent steel splinters from lancing you when handling wire winch rope. Next on my list is a small collapsable shovel because sometimes digging is the only way out. And, because sometimes all you really need is a bit more traction to help you along, tire deflators and a tire guage is something I would recommend as well. Less air in your tires (5-10 psi) will give your tires a wider foot and allow your tread to wrap around uneven terrain giving you significantly more tractions. Last but not least, I like to carry a recovery chain in my bag as well and is usually used as a last resort to provide me with more options when helping to pull a vehicle that has no tow hooks or built in tow points. The chain can be hooked or wrapped on to a secure part of a vehicles frame that a tow strap might otherwise be at risk of being cut by sharp objects or melted by coming into contact with the exhaust.
Of course, now that you’ve got all the trail recovery gear you need to ensure you’ll have a great time on the trail, having something to carry it all in is, in my opinion, a must. For one, keeping everything together in one bag or container all the time will make it easier to pack in your Jeep and it will help prevent you from forgetting to bring anything. What makes the ARB Recovery Essentials package so convienient, is the fact that it came with a great heavy duty storage carrying bag. And, what I love most about the ARB Recovery Bag is the fact that it’s compact, has a carrying strap and comes compartmentalized so that I can organize and safely store all my recovery gear.
By comparison to a lift, wheels and tires or other mods that you can do, assembling a complete set of trail recovery gear is cheap, infinitely invaluable on the trail and in my humble opinion, the single best mod you can do for you and your Jeep.
Eddie
FYI: If you are intersted in purchasing the ARB Recovery Essentials package that I got, it is available as a special through Northridge4×4.
Very nice write-up Eddie.
I think this is the kit we’ll be ordering for our Jeep. I’ve been searching around for individual items and trying to figure out what I’ll need when we travel. We’ll just carry this kit and know we’ve got the basics covered.
Thanks Beel_MT. In all honesty, I ended up using every single piece of equipment listed in this article recovering a couple that rolled their rig down a 50′ gulch about 2 weeks after writing it and boy was I ever glad that I had all the right gear.
Eddie
Thank you for the info I am a first year 4 wheeler. This helped out a lot. I found most of the gear at a real bargain at a farm supply store. The strap alone was a super bargain at around $18 bucks. Farmers need this stuff, as they 4 wheel all the time in the tractor. So keep that in mind. I think the kit is a great idea and the bag super useful.
Thanks for the help.
BJ
Hey BJ, glad to hear this article was of help to you
Eddie
Thanks, I’m ordering this before my next off road run.
Hi,
well done Eddie. love the write-up. Just what i was looking for
keep up the good work
AJ
I have a 2008 JK 4-dr Sahara. I am currently looking for a winch, and realizing a replacement bumper will cost me more than the winch, especially if I want to maintain the factory fog lights. I don’t expect that I will be doing much real rock terrain to justify a steel bumper.
Is there a way to mount a 9500~12000 lb winch to the front factory bumper?
Yes, WARN makes a winch plate that attaches to the factory tow hook mounts and the frame which can be used with the facgtory bumper.
Eddie
What is this, a paid advertisement for ARB? You mention “ARB Recovery Essentials” seven times in your article and you don’t mention any other products at all. No one else makes snatch straps? You think everyone has the dough to pay a premium $199 so they can get a fancy bag with a logo on it?
If you’re going to write an article called “Recovery Gear Essentials”, then list the essentials. Say this is good and that is good and you should have this, and here are some manufacturers. Instead I get an inventory of the ARB kit.
Oh please, the ARB kit is just something I happend to like and if you took the time to look, you would see that they are NOT even a sponsor here. So, I guess I am guilty of commiting the crime of giving a company free advertisement. Look, if you don’t like ARB gear, fine, knock yourself out and buy something else. :rolleyes:
Not sure there is a good category for this question yet, but does anyone make buttons to replace the factory button ‘blanks’ next to the ‘hazard’ and ‘esp off’ buttons on the dash in front of the shifter? My Sahara has 3 ‘blanks’ that I would like to replace with a winch power cutoff, auxilliary lights, etc. My local dealer was clueless.
Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure that the switches come altogether as a switch-pack.
Just to add one more thing. I agree on everything you said, but just thought it was a little silly you mention a snatch block which requires a winch set up that costs a bundle and leave out the jack. I personally would love a winch on my Jeep, but just can’t afford the grand it will take to put one on. It didn’t really bother me until I read some entries replying to your write up and realized a lot of them where new to wheeling. A winch and a snatch block are AWSOME pieces of equipment and can get your rig to most places on the planet, but an “essential”…
Also they take quit a lot of experience to use together correctly and can be down right dangerous…but then again so can a high lift jack (:
And thus, why I did not include a Hi-Lift Jack in the equation - while I do think they have a useful place an purpose, I personally feel they can be more of a hazard than a help especially since many people seem to think they are good for doing tasks such as changing tires. I am however a real believer in the use of winches and a snatch block is what I would consider to be an essential piece of equipment to compliment one. As far as experience goes, how would you suggest one should acquire it? As for cost, a grand is less that a new set of wheels and tires.
Eddie
Hey, WayOfLife that Warn winch plate will work on the non Sahara or Rubicon model JKs? If so I have other areas I would like to spend my money besides $300-500 on a bumper right now. Thanks
Yes. Another option you might want to look at is the winch plate made by Rough Country. It’s only $69.
Thanks, this is my first Jeep & i’m still putting around the right set up. I have been shopping around & I think I have decided on a good offroad setup of 35″ Toyo M/T’s, 4″ Rancho suspension w\ RS9000x shocks ($999.99) OUCH, Olympic Rescue Bumper $299.99 & Smittybilt XRC8 Winch $299.99 for Florida terrain. But after seeing some of the videos w\ your Jeep (which is bad by the way) I feel like I am going to big. Do U think there is a better way to go money wise & still get good articulation W\ 35’s. Remember I unfortunatly do not have that awesome terrain u have on the West coast.
Hi David, all you really need to clear 35’s is about 2.5″-3″ of lift and you might want to consider just installing a 2.5″ budget boost or basic 3″ lift. You’d save a lot of money and I think you’ll find that it’ll do the job for you just fine.
Eddie
That 3″ setup looks good & shows good clearance below & on the wheel wells & that winch plate does work. Good call saves about $800.00.