Reddit reviews Keeper 05611 Black Forged Steel Tow Hook
We found 1 Reddit comments about Keeper 05611 Black Forged Steel Tow Hook. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Constructed of durable, black forged steel10,000 lb maximum load weightMounting hardware not included
Normally trail riders want easy access to these tow points. Yes, they absolutely can be used, but standard OEM mounts are a hassle.
Generally if they aren't easy to see and get to on the trail without climbing under a rig, the average cable puller will not consider them tow points, and some trail leaders might not let you go on a trail without purpose installed after market hooks. Usually vehicles only have one front and rear tow point and you need two front and two rear for safety and convenience. Hooks are considered basic off road items.
However, all this depends on how you plan to use it off road. Are you wanting to trail it, or camp, light excursions?
They are cheap and easy to install and can be tucked under the bumper if you like. Just bolt them to the frame, don't weld them there. Welds will generally fail before bolts because lets face it, you will be "snatched" more than pulled if you are stuck and not high-centered.
Get at least one (or two) good tow rope(s) and attach it before you go out and just toss the free end in your window, or on your roof. This way when you get stuck, you can climb out and just toss the rope to the rig in front of you and your are out in a jiffy. This will really go a long way to good karma on a trail if you aren't asking others to come get you, or slowing down the others because you unhook after every pull. You will end up using your rope 4x more than a winch anyway unless you are alone on a trail.
Any wheeling will be horrible on gas milage, but if you want to be tidy and keep your rig looking clean, I have seen more than a few people use hitch-mounted winch mounts with handles and only have the winch there when wheeling. And you can toss it in the back and lock it up when your not using it as a daily driver.
Installing a tow hitch in the front and rear to move a winch from front to back as you need is not perfect, but it is very acceptable when done safely, so you get two-for-one winching. Make sure you take good measurements, or have one custom made, or even just go to your local 4x4 shop and get them to help you with the measurements. Never significantly cut/alter an OEM hitch for obvious reasons.
A secondary benefit to a tow hitch on both ends is you can use it as a tow point instead/in addition to tow points and move this around as needed also.
As far as a winch, you don't need a 18k monster, but enough to tug yourself out. General rules are 2-3x your vehicles weight. On a trail, most often if you are in a caravan, a good trail leader will put you sandwiched between two experienced trailers, so about 1/2 the time you will just pull rope to the rig in front and use it as your anchor. So weight shouldn't be a big issue.
Also get a snatch block and a tree saver so you can pull yourself out if you need to. This way you don't harm the tree, but still use it to get yourself out.
But first, tires.
Ask anyone that has been on a trail, MT tires (not AT's) should be your first investment. You can get a really good MT that will last a very long time as daily use if you do not get an overly aggressive tread. And they look badass.