The Case For/Against Recovery Boards

[Freems]

Here’s my current carry list for coming home…
A 8k Ramsey winch on the front and a warn 2500# on the rear receiver hitch
a pull pal (instead of digging for days trying to bury a spare tire or chunk of log)
30’ strap
8’ strap
shovel
pulasky
Tire chains (only in the winter)

recovery boards? … never used them, closest I’ve come is my front floor mats…don’t laugh I made it home with them twice, once while skiing, stuck in the lodge parking lot, solid ice floor with about an inch of flowing water over the ice. Second on a bed of loose shale rock on a side hill, kept slip sideways until the floor Matt’s came to my rescue.

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[Rusty PW]

Here’s my current carry list for coming home…
A 8k Ramsey winch on the front and a warn 2500# on the rear receiver hitch
a pull pal (instead of digging for days trying to bury a spare tire or chunk of log)
30’ strap
8’ strap
shovel
pulasky
Tire chains (only in the winter)

recovery boards? … never used them, closest I’ve come is my front floor mats…don’t laugh I made it home with them twice, once while skiing, stuck in the lodge parking lot, solid ice floor with about an inch of flowing water over the ice. Second on a bed of loose shale rock on a side hill, kept slip sideways until the floor Matt’s came to my rescue.

I have a 10,000 lb pull pal from my days with the Power Wagon. The thing weights a ton.

 

[SargeDiesel]

I see recovery boards on every vehicle offroad, and thousands of vehicles that I know will never see a dirt road, and for those reasons I already don't like them. The second reason is I love watching all the recovery channels on YouTube, and I never ever see them help someone get unstuck.

But... am I not seeing tons of people that don't need a recovery because the recovery boards did work? What's your consensus everyone, are they a useful piece of equipment? Have you every used your recovery boards?

First.... I wouldn't base my likes/dislikes on how somebody else uses it.

Secondly... you only see the cream on YouTube... they are not going to show slow boring dig outs when they get more clicks equaling more $$ showing yankem and crankem pull outs...(that doesn't sound right..does it..?)

Lastly, I'm looking at picking up a set, better to have it when you need it... bla bla bla.

Just my opinion, but I can see them being very useful... just not on the daily, but when you need them.

I've been looking at these:
* looks like they took down the one's I wanted... but they where from this company... these are their slim version.
https://a.co/d/4tvfUO5

found these also, they can double as a hi-lift stand which could be handy.
https://a.co/d/ddNLFUp

Hope you find what you are looking for.?

 

[Freems]

I have a 10,000 lb pull pal from my days with the Power Wagon. The thing weights a ton.

It has save my bacon over the years, you're spot on the heavy part.

 

[jeepstertim]

I needed mine, only twice in 3 years, but both times I was solo Jeep. Like many others, they also serve to level the Jeep when camping. I have used both these boards and the roll up rubber mats, use these now as the rubber is much heavier.

This was completely my fault, not enough momentum going over a dune crest.

 

[Florida Mojave]

I have a 10,000 lb pull pal from my days with the Power Wagon. The thing weights a ton.

I am planning to purchase this as it should be a must for solo beach trips or basically any solo trip, but at 50lbs you are right on with heavy...
I have the boards; I stow them at the head of the truck bed with a cheap ratchet strap.

 

[Jaxmax]

I carry a set inside the bed, mainly for use on the beach, but have not used them yet, have in past years used floor mats. I have a 3/4" plywood 12"x12' jack base also. I have helped a lot of people get unstuck on the beach usually help shoveling and making "ramps" ahead of tires to pull out. I will use the traction boards instead of making ramps next time.....Jack

 

[whiteglad]

Ronny Dahl tested the pull pal etc. in sand:
Sand Winching, best sand anchors off-road (youtube.com)
he liked the deadman but not the pull pal.

Robert Pepper discussed the heavy side loads possible with a bridle strap connecting two recovery points on the bumper:
What you don't know about 4X4 bridles (equalisers) (youtube.com)

Similarly, you can find reviews of recovery boards and which brands work well. Here are two of the many I found with a search:
Maxtrax vs Treds 4WD recovery boards (youtube.com)

Which is the best 4x4 Recovery Tracks (youtube.com)

 

[Josh00333]

I have a set and a winch and a shovel, well and a strap.

Boards shovel and strap are all new never used.

I still carry them.

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

If space is a concern, you can also get stubby traction boards. Maxtrax also makes a stubby set with a board and a jack base. The jack base is a stubby board with the interior filled in with stiffening material. I just picked up a set for my new bottle jack.

https://a.co/d/6q057IN

Also, if you’re looking for a bottle jack that’s well made but don’t want to spend the money on a U.S. Jack brand, try Jet. These jacks are made in Japan rather than China. That’s a 12 1/2 ton Jack with a Safe Jack custom screw collar for their 20 Ton to 6 Ton reducer. I like Safe Jack’s accessories. I don’t like their rebranded cheap Chinese jacks.

 

[HooliganActual]

Winches are great... if you have something to hook a winch line to. A shovel, recovery boards, and some sweat is the best way to get out of being bogged in sand or mud when you don't have any solid anchor point. I usually wheel in Moab, where nice big trees are found in picture books. You can, if you're lucky, find a boulder to throw a strap around, but there are lots of places where you are out on the flats on sandy ground and the biggest thing for a half a mile is sagebrush.

Sweetums, lasso some tumbleweed as it goes by and hold on!

Laugh about the tumbleweeds but it’s almost true. I wheel all over the western states and several times in my wheeling “career” I have done exactly that…sort of. I carry a 100’ length of 9mm climbing rope in addition to all the typical “proper” recovery gear. At least a half dozen times I have used that 9mm rope to loop around the base of multiple sage brush or scrub bushes in a multiple “W” style bridle and hooking my winch to them like bridles. You can recover yourself off of enough sage brush when there is nothing else available.

 

[Bigb55]

I have used traction boards and the equivalent DIY method probably over 20 times in 20 years. But never on a planned wheeling trip.

Most of my wheeling has been done during camping trips into many of the primitive sites/areas in the southwest. I believe the younger generation call it "over landing" now a days.

The forest service roads used to be far less traveled. So a good rain/storm can make traction impossible with limited anchors for a winch. Majority of the time, I got stuck leaving camp after rain or snow. The other times were only a small area on the forest road.

Shallow slick mud and shallow snow they work great to get you onto hard pack. Much faster then the winching or digging

 

[Sweetums]

Laugh about the tumbleweeds but it’s almost true. I wheel all over the western states and several times in my wheeling “career” I have done exactly that…sort of. I carry a 100’ length of 9mm climbing rope in addition to all the typical “proper” recovery gear. At least a half dozen times I have used that 9mm rope to loop around the base of multiple sage brush or scrub bushes in a multiple “W” style bridle and hooking my winch to them like bridles. You can recover yourself off of enough sage brush when there is nothing else available.

It's possible, but I've seen it fail more frequently than I've seen it work.

 

[307Mojave]

I have used my Maxxtraxx boards several times over the years, as they have hoped from build to build. I just put them to use last week here in Colorado where we got 20 inches of snow. I used them to quickly recover two stuck pedestrians, but also my JT when I got bogged down in deep heavy snow with an ice underlay. Although I carry a lot of recovery gear including kinetic ropes, a winch, etc. I find that quality boards are an easy/safe way to quickly recover in situations as cited.

 

[AEsco48]

Not wanting recovery boards because other people have them and don't use them... For starters who said they have to be on display...

I have not used them on myself in Colorado, but have used them to help others.

100% sure than on 100% of the trips i did in Egypt over 3 years, they were used....

This last pic is on the border with Lybia and Sudan, abandon smuggler camp.

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