Flares and tow straps!!!

[bigtiller]

In all my vehicles I carry a 4' long 5/16 G70 chain. On one end they have a snap hook for the looped end of a tow strap. The other end has grab hook. My strap never touch the vehicles I tow. It either goes in my tow hook or in the snap end of the chain then the chain goes on the disabled vehicle. Doing so means your strap will last a lifetime.

Chris

Is your snap hook a slip hook with a spring loaded safety thingy or something heavy-duty? Any pics?

 

[Diamondpilot]

Is your snap hook a slip hook with a spring loaded safety thingy or something heavy-duty? Any pics?

It's a slip hook with a spring loaded safety thingy.


Sorry, no pic but it's dirt simple.

4' of 5/16 G70 chain. One snap hook. One grab hook.

I made them up 15 years ago at my local Rural King. Back then they were maybe $15 to make.

Chris

 

[sparc]

In all my vehicles I carry a 4' long 5/16 G70 chain. On one end they have a snap hook for the looped end of a tow strap. The other end has grab hook. My strap never touch the vehicles I tow. It either goes in my tow hook or in the snap end of the chain then the chain goes on the disabled vehicle. Doing so means your strap will last a lifetime.

Chris

A short piece of old fire hose slipped over the chain woould give some protection.
You could slip it over the end of a strap too and slide it to where ever you need protection.

 

[kevin37b]

Sparc , how about them pallets?

 

[Gem99ultra]

Diesel Lover - That's a very inspiring accounting. You will, or have been, rewarded. I only wish you were my neighbor. We need more people around like you. Thanks for caring. And yes, I do carry a flare in my truck.

 

[3930dave]

Looks like #5 should cover you if you are doing road side repair.

Chris

DL - good to hear the new job is coming along. That was a great thing to do, helping somebody out late at night, who really needed the help !

I don't know the IN code, but just wanted to make a general comment on light colour (color down your way ).

Check what is acceptable before you buy/use an add-on flashing light. Example, here - Green is volunteer fire, Blue is often used for snow removal equipment, Orange on farm or construction equipment. I picked up a Blue LED flasher mag-mount at my NH dealer a few years ago, that I use on my tractor at night. Still on original AA batteries.... might be a good option for your use, as you don't have to futz with using a cord on somebody else's vehicle (blown cig lighter fuse....) if that is where you need the flasher to be.

If you are on the side of the road helping someone, I'd hope an understanding LEO would cut you some slack, if you happened to have the wrong colour flashing light in use for your area.

Moving along the road with the wrong colour of Non-OEM flashing light is usually a big No-No in most areas (Red being the obvious problem), but again, I don't pretend to know your specific state law.

Not nagging about lights, would just hate to see somebody with good intentions get a ticket (and/or lose license points) when trying to help somebody out...

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

Question on flares.... how long can you expect for trunk storage life, assuming they are kept dry ?

Rgds, D.

 

[juddspaintballs]

Dave, that's a good point, but down here, yellow/orange almost exclusively means "warning/danger" in almost all states so construction equipment/trucks, snow plows, tow trucks, etc. use yellow/orange. What's interesting is that I recently moved from Maryland with Pennsylvania being just north of it and Virginia being just south of it. In PA, a flashing blue light means volunteer firefighter and red for police. In Virginia (and West Virginia), flashing blue means police and red means fire apparatus both career or volunteer. In MD, the police use red and blue flashing lights. It's easy to drive from southern PA through MD and into northern VA in about an hour. Talk about confusing some people!

 

[diesel lover]

Question on flares.... how long can you expect for trunk storage life, assuming they are kept dry ?

Rgds, D.

Mine are stored in a gallon ziplock bag and have lasted 2 years. From my experience flares are almost like ammunition. Keep them dry and they should last a while. I do not mess with striking them on the ground, I always just light them with a lighter.

Search: flare | Safety Flares | AutoZone.com I purchased this set at Autozone last week. They come in a sealed bag. They are the same flares that I bought at rural king which are 15 minute flares.

Amazon.com: Smittybilt L-1409 Universal Flashing Object (U.F.O.) LED Safety Light: Automotive These are said to be very good!! They operate off their own batterys.

 

[diesel lover]

DL - good to hear the new job is coming along. That was a great thing to do, helping somebody out late at night, who really needed the help !

I don't know the IN code, but just wanted to make a general comment on light colour (color down your way ).

Check what is acceptable before you buy/use an add-on flashing light. Example, here - Green is volunteer fire, Blue is often used for snow removal equipment, Orange on farm or construction equipment. I picked up a Blue LED flasher mag-mount at my NH dealer a few years ago, that I use on my tractor at night. Still on original AA batteries.... might be a good option for your use, as you don't have to futz with using a cord on somebody else's vehicle (blown cig lighter fuse....) if that is where you need the flasher to be.

If you are on the side of the road helping someone, I'd hope an understanding LEO would cut you some slack, if you happened to have the wrong colour flashing light in use for your area.

Moving along the road with the wrong colour of Non-OEM flashing light is usually a big No-No in most areas (Red being the obvious problem), but again, I don't pretend to know your specific state law.

Not nagging about lights, would just hate to see somebody with good intentions get a ticket (and/or lose license points) when trying to help somebody out...

Rgds, D.

Did not thin about colors. That's a very good point. I will have to look into that. People around here using the magnetic yellow/ orange lights on their tractors and pickups for snow plowing. They cost from 20$ to 80$ on the lower end. I will definitely check with what colors are allowed