Extra Front Recovery Point

[nissannewby]

Technically speaking you shouldn't exceed the tow rating either should you? So you can have some rated to 4.5t everyday of the week but the highest any patrol can tow is 3.5....

????????? The OP has installed a second hook on the passenger side chassis rail. I can only assume this is so they can do a major recovery using both!!!!!

But yeah what would Nissan, the OP's 4WD club and the OP know!!!!!!!

I still stand by my original statement as above.

I'm with Yendor. Apart from the fact that anything snatching a vehicle theoretically shouldn't exceed its tow rating in doing so, Nissan and I would say the 4wd clubs use these points as they were designed. They probably weren't designed for tyre deep sticky mud either but they are there for a reason. Sure there are stories of them being straightened but who can be sure they were actually being used correctly in the first place.

It doesn't matter what you believe etc etc everyone is guilty of exceeding something during a recover the only way anyone wouldn't have is if they havent been recovered or recovered someone there selves.

[Clunk]

Better to use those then have the strap hooked over a bull bar

[mudski]

????????? The OP has installed a second hook on the passenger side chassis rail. I can only assume this is so they can do a major recovery using both!!!!!

But yeah what would Nissan, the OP's 4WD club and the OP know!!!!!!!

Yeah sorry Rod I just saw the pic....I was assuming he never had one and was just putting one back on the rhs... It would be good to actually see an OEM hook being put under stress testing just to see how strong, or weak, it actually is. Then this never ending issue might be laid to rest.

[mudski]

I still stand by my original statement as above.

I'm with Yendor. Apart from the fact that anything snatching a vehicle theoretically shouldn't exceed its tow rating in doing so, Nissan and I would say the 4wd clubs use these points as they were designed.

I agree with you there Matt but if we are technically speaking. Who is going to pull up to a recovery, knowing good that the equipment they have is more than sufficient to do the job but they say no they won't just because it will exceed the said rating and leave the stuck person to fend for themselves?

They probably weren't designed for tyre deep sticky mud either but they are there for a reason.

There for light recoveries? What sort of recovery? Within saying that I would say using two of the aftermarket plates in conjunction with a bridle strap would be designed more so for a situation like tyre deep sticky mud. And from my well, very limited 4wd experience, that would be a high percentage of the type of recoveries you would use these points for. But then again this is where a winch would come into play maybe. Tyre deep sticky mud would be a killer on any sort of recovery gear...

Sure there are stories of them being straightened but who can be sure they were actually being used correctly in the first place.

excellent point you make there...

It doesn't matter what you believe etc etc everyone is guilty of exceeding something during a recover the only way anyone wouldn't have is if they havent been recovered or recovered someone there selves.

Never! We are all saints and do everything by the book. Lol

[taslucas]

Isn't the tow rating to do with the braking abilities of the vehicle not the actual draw bar strength?

[Stampy]

Hey guys, just thought i would put my 2 cents worth in.
I recently purchased an ARB recovery point for the hefty price of $180, i know that they do charge alot for majority of their gear, but lets face it, what you pay is what you get, and ARB engineer and test all of their gear and i've not once seen a product fail (if installed correctly)

I've got a few Shots comparing the genuine nissan hook and the ARB point.

Below you can see it installed



And here you can see it compared to the genuine. Note; my genuine hook is no longer looped around and has streched out after ONE... yes ONE "light" recovery, i am lucky the snatch did not slip off during otherwise the damage might be more than just a bent recovery point. I would not trust these in any recovery situation after seeing this.



Viewing from the front you can see the main strength of the point runs alongside the chassis rail, but there is also a substantial support plat running underneath the chassis rail.



And a view from underneath, 2 more high tensile bolts.



Overall there is 5 High Tensile bolts securing this to the car, 3 more than the standard 2 bolts.
And also it gets bolted to two sides of the chassis rail not just the underside.

Only downfall to this i can see is it might hang a tad low and get caught up on some undulating terrain, but in my eyes its a small price to pay.

Would be nice to see a point for the Passenger side to bridle the two for equal load aswell, id be more worried the chassis will bend before this point gives away

[Kurt Bergmann]

As I read through all the threads no has mentioned that with the various after market ones is that they need shackles to hook up the various straps.....The one of the reasons why the club recommends using the 2 hooks is to avoid chassis flex and avoid flying shackles if one lets go. The shackle could be another weak link in the chain.

[Stampy]

As I read through all the threads no has mentioned that with the various after market ones is that they need shackles to hook up the various straps.....The one of the reasons why the club recommends using the 2 hooks is to avoid chassis flex and avoid flying shackles if one lets go. The shackle could be another weak link in the chain.

That is a fair and Valid point, but would you not think that shackling is safer than resting the strap on a hook (providing the shackle is rated) as it could easily slip of the standard hooks, i nearly experienced that first hand

[Kurt Bergmann]

yeah, as with all recoveries we have to be careful and do it safely. I think that's why their has been so many opinions. I used to have a Pajero with only one hook and never had any issues.....being a Pajero it was getting recovered a lot.

[cgm]

As I read through all the threads no has mentioned that with the various after market ones is that they need shackles to hook up the various straps.....The one of the reasons why the club recommends using the 2 hooks is to avoid chassis flex and avoid flying shackles if one lets go. The shackle could be another weak link in the chain.

I think in any of these situations common sense has to be applied on top of all the guidelines. Sometimes things aren't going to line up as per the "rules" or the angle you want, etc. Removing a shackle from the equation is generally "common sense". For example everyone knows it is "bad" to join straps with a shackle, but that is mostly because the strap could break and the shackle will then fly, not because the shackle will break. A quality shackle will be marked with a WLL (Working Load Limit) and being made for the lifting industry should have a breaking point at least 5 times that WLL. So, again think it through, the shackle is probably one of the less likely items to break in your recovery.

To me personally, I think the shackle to a good rated point makes more sense as you know it won't come off and that both the shackle and the recovery point designs have been tested and labelled. The original hook is just that - a hook that you wonder how much it is rated for (it is not documented anywhere and there are a few, hard to find, stories of the hook stretching)? Spreading the load across 2 points is just obvious - sometimes you won't bother because you just need a light pull, but if you're really stuck then again it just makes sense.