Sand Ladders???

[OutbacKamper]

Here is another sand ladder option:


http://www.maxtrax.com.au

Check out the videos

Cheers
Mark

 

[FortyMileDesert]

The few times that I've seen any kind of sand ladders used in N. Nevada for snow, mud or sand; they've always become missiles.

If you think that you might need something like that; you'd be better off with a second or third truck along.

 

[elcoyote]

There is a small company in AZ making sand ladders. www.sandmats.com
I gave a pair of them to Scott awhile back to review. Matbe he has some input here as to how effective thay have been (hint-hint)

 

[pwc]

The few times that I've seen any kind of sand ladders used in N. Nevada for snow, mud or sand; they've always become missiles.

If you think that you might need something like that; you'd be better off with a second or third truck along.

They can shoot out if you've got no throttle control and let the wheels spin. But used correctly, they can help you out when that second or third truck is not in FRONT of you and you want to go forward.

 

[Beowulf]

A good trick is to attach the ladder to your bumper with a length of rope. It will not only stop them from becoming profectiles but help in recovering them. Usually, you will want to keep forward movement for quite a distance until you feel you are safe ground. Instead of having to trek the distance back to where you were stuck and then dig the ladders out, they will be trailing you just the distance of the rope.

 

[jayheats]

British Pacific has 'em

http://www.britishpacific.com/landroverparts/LRsandLadder.html

they also have bridging ladders

http://www.britishpacific.com/landroverparts/BridgingLadder.html



cheers
-isaac

Many of you call these Waffle Boards, take a look at these sand ladders at terra-trax. They can also be used as bridging ladders. They are shipped out of Utah at $195 a pair plus shipping. www.terra-trax.com

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

cheapest I have seen them, and they are genuine "sand ladders" is at some of the big military surplus houses...

 

[HarryT]

Sand Ladders

Has anyone tried a couple of sections of chain link fence as a traction device?

Harry
SC

 

[HenryJ]

www.amgrating.com will also do them. use the 2x2x2 grid in whatever length and width you think is best for your vehicle.

I have been watching and looking for quite a while now. Finally I placed an order.

This self recovery helped to sell me on the stuff: Youtube video
I ordered two pieces of grating material from American Grating LLC , ( http://www.amgrating.com ) I have been dealing with Colin Kendrick. He has been very helpful.
I purchased two pieces Molded Grating, Isophthalic Resin, 2" deep with 2" mesh, Light grey with a gritted surface, 18" X 48" $70 each. They should arrive first part of next week.
Light weight and strong. The plan is for it to function as traction and bridging material.

I have a couple places in mind to carry them. One would be a frame mount to the side bars. The other would be attached to the tailgate.

Terra-trax appear to be a similar product. The cost is higher at $195 + $29 shipping and they are narrower.

Wider is better if your aim is not real good I do like the options these will offer. My approach angle may need some help now and then and stuck in sand is not fun either.

UPDATE 7/4/2008:
They showed up a few days ago. They are plenty wide. Over 25 lbs each. I want to keep that weight low and centered if I can.
Things did not go exactly as planned.

First, I do not need ramps 18" wide. 12" is plenty. The tread width on my truck is only 7".
The material was just way too wide to be carried practically. I could have saved 1/3 the price by ordering less.

I thought I could store these above the side bars, in between the frame. Nice idea, but just did not pan out. 10" is as wide as might fit in there. I wanted a little wider , so I stayed with 12". Right now they are nyla-tied / zip-tied to the side bars and frame from the underside. I do not know if the ties will hold up long term in this application. I would like to try a tire winch removed from the spare tire mount, or some slide in racks. Custom sliders may be the ultimate solution.

They do not reduce my ground clearance at break over since they are above the bottom of the frame. I am not crazy about the current location, but we will see how it goes.

To cut the material, don't waste time with a reciprocal saw. A table saw ripped through them easily. I wasted three blades and a bunch of time on the first one with the sawzall.

I have two pieces four foot long and just over four inches wide to play with , left over. It should be fun to do some testing with those.
Black would have been nicer to hide them. This makes the Terra Trax a little more attractive. Price makes these attractive.

 

[HenryJ]

Finally made time to find a solution to the installation of the traction mats. I knew zip-ties were not the answer as they require too much effort to put the mats in place. I ran several ideas through the last few days and settled upon a tried and tested method. Spare tire winches.

I checked out several types , starting with the one removed from my truck. Most were rather large. I settled on the fullsize Dodge 2500 winch. Small, flat top four bolt mount, 5/32 cable.
The lift plate was not going to work. I found that the mid ninties Nissan truck lift plate was perfect for a two by four inch hole. Cut one bar and It fits like it was made for it.

Now to attach the Dodge winch cable to the Nissan lift plate. The Nissan uses a chain lift. Removal was simple. By creating a loop in the cable I had exactly what was needed to attach the plates.

Brackets were easy. Two pieces of 4" angle. One side bent upward to align the winch to pull in and up. Four nutserts in the frame to mount it and hang the winch.

It probably took about three hours to complete. Time will tell if it was time well spent.

As you can see I am not 100% trusting. I still have one zip-tie on each mat as a safety

 

[HenryJ]

I am satisfied that this material will work just fine.

That piece is four foot long and four inches wide. It did flex, as you can see it bowed in the photo. I jumped on the front bumper to bounce it and rolled the truck back and fourth to see if I could break it. No luck. It held up just fine. Once the weight was removed it returned to shape with no bowing. Grip is good. It moved about an inch during the test. The tire was not centered very well and It did not look bad. I did hear some creaking, like stressed fiberglass can do. It was probably the gravel as it moved a little . I could see no deterioration of the material.
My 12" wide mats should spread the load better and be more than enough.

 

[TheRoadie]

THANKS! Been hoping somebody would do a strength test. Now I've got the confidence to buy some. Where you're storing them should work for bridging ladders, but in case of deep sand or mud aren't you hosed? If your traction device is trapped under the stuck vehicle, you'll end up having to put something else under your HiLift to get at them, won't you?

 

[HenryJ]

Where you're storing them should work for bridging ladders, but in case of deep sand or mud aren't you hosed? If your traction device is trapped under the stuck vehicle, you'll end up having to put something else under your HiLift to get at them, won't you?

I am leaving the hi-lift home for now.

As long as I can get to my shovel I am good. I only need a couple inches under the back or front to lift it high enough to pull the traction mats, using the air bag jack. I am hoping I will quit before I get in that deep anyway. I have thirteen inches to the mats where they are mounted.
I may change my mind later, but for my usual terrain, I should be OK. I don't frequent the muddy stuff. Sand is my main concern.

Weighing all alternate locations on my truck this made the most sense. Next placement will be in the back under the loaded gear. That would have been a pain to unload everything to get to them.

Time will tell.

 

[TheRoadie]

Appreciated. I used to live in Oregon - I hate mud. I thought you might have the air jack after seeing the video, but I thought the cat/muffler heat issue would make it hard to use on one side. There must be places you can put it so you can lift one tire up at a time preferentially.

Heck, depending on how many pointy parts the vehicle has, you could even inflate the jacking pumpkin and drive off it without using the mats, if you're only stuck on one side.

 

[HenryJ]

I have a shield on the rear Isuzu tank under the back that will work well for lifting the rear. With IFS The front shields will work for raising. From the sides The transfer case shield covers the left side and partially protects the cat. The torsion bar runs below the cat to the right side as well. My cat is pretty small and rides up four inches from the bottom of the frame. It would, hopefully be out of harms way.
I carry a thick piece of belting in the bag for the air bag and use that as protection. I don't know how long it would offer protection on a hot cat if contact was made. Hope I am not in a position where I have to test that.

The rest of the system is tucked up pretty well. I have a custom 3" pipe cat back installed after a 2" body lift. The muffler is just in front of the rear axle and pretty close to the tire. I would hope I don't need to jack at that point. Under the rear fuel tank would probably make more sense in that situation.

My side bars may not look like much , but they can be deceptive. They are filled with structural foam and the brackets were custom made. Reinforced and tied to the frame, I have lifted the truck from them. If needed, I could stuff the jack under a bar to raise it enough to recover the mats one at a time. Boy! I hope I never have to do that

Worst case would be the mats buried to a point of irretrievable. In that case I hope I could use the winch for recovery. Unable to bury a good anchor point or find one, I hope the cell phone or radio can reach assistance. That is quite a few options. Even then the SPOT is looking attractive

I have no experience with the mats and bag as recovery tools. The mats and air jack weight about 15 lbs more than a Hi-lift. Placement of the weight is better and versatility also as good or better. I don't know if its the answer for all terrains, but sure hope it is right for me. One of those things that sure looks good right now.