Are You Winching Like It's 1998? How Soft Shackles and Winch Rings Are Revolutionizing Recovery

Getting your 4x4 out of trouble has come a long way since the old days of steel cables and chunky recovery gear. Ronny Dahl knows this better than most - he’s been pulling rigs out of sticky situations for over a decade, and his latest winching guide shows just how much the game has changed.

The biggest shift? Synthetic rope has basically taken over. Those steel cables that used to come standard with every winch are disappearing fast, and for good reason. When steel cable snaps under load, it turns into a deadly whip that can slice through doors, windows, and worse. Synthetic rope still packs a punch when it breaks, but it drops to the ground instead of flying through the air looking for something to destroy. Not only that, but a given diameter of synthetic winch rope is stronger than the equivalent steel cable!

Heavy, cumbersome snatch blocks are giving way to sleek winch rings that play nice with synthetic rope. Those old bow shackles that could turn into projectiles? Soft shackles handle the job without the metal-missile risk. Even the traditional winch hook is becoming optional when you run a complete soft system.

The safest recovery kits today should have multiple parts:

• 4 soft shackles
• winch extension line
• 2 winch line dampers
• winch ring
• 2 tree saver straps
• 2 soft shackle protectors

This might seem like overkill until you’re the one stuck in a hole with 30 meters of winch line that won’t quite reach the only decent anchor point. A kit with these components gives you lots of recovery options.

Speaking of anchor points, using your vehicle as one has gotten smarter too. Those factory recovery points on most rigs aren’t actually rated for recovery loads - even the tough 70 Series just has tie-down points from the factory.

The safety side of winching has gotten more attention too, and for good reason - multiple deaths occur during recovery operations every year. Double dampeners positioned at one-third intervals work better than the single dampener most kits include. When recovery gear fails, you want whatever’s flying around to hit the ground fast, not sail through someone’s windscreen. The physics of where you place those dampeners makes a real difference in where broken components end up.

Communication during recovery operations can’t be an afterthought either. UHF radios are ideal, but if you’re stuck with the horn method, keep it simple - one beep means winch, anything else means stop immediately. When things go sideways during a recovery, they go sideways fast.

The 20-seconds-on, 20-seconds-off rule for winching under heavy loads hasn’t changed. Your alternator needs time to catch up, and your winch motor needs time to cool down. Push too hard for too long and you’ll be dealing with electrical problems or a burned-out winch on top of whatever got you stuck in the first place.

The techniques might be evolving, but the fundamentals remain the same: check your gear, communicate clearly, respect the forces involved, and always have a backup plan. Your winch is just a tool - it’s the knowledge and preparation that actually get you home.