Must-Have 4WD Recovery Gear

Published 14 September 2020

Recovery gear is the biggest must-have for anyone that gets out on the tracks, the beach or just off-road in general. A good recovery gear set up will let you get out of most situations without another vehicle around, so it’s well worth taking the time to look at the gear that you need.

So what recovery gear do I need for my 4WD?

At the absolute basic end of the spectrum, you need a two recovery boards, a snatch strap and two rated shackles. For some added safety you should have at least one damper blanket as well, but if you don’t have the budget for this, save it for the next payday.

The reason that yo need these is simple. The recovery boards can be used to gt out of bogs yourself when there’s no other vehicles around. The snatch strap is great for a quick recovery when you’e got someone else there to help you out.

If you can, also get rated recovery points on your vehicle. Some cars do have these, but not many – and no, tie down points are not rated recovery points. While these can look similar and can be used to recover vehicles if there’s no other option, they are simply not rated for the strains needed in a normal recovery situation.

Is there any recovery gear that is good, but isn’t *really* needed?

For something more you can look at installing a winch, along with the various bits of recovery gear that go with that.

There’s also a lot of other options out there that work, but aren’t needed by everyone, like exhaust jacks, hand winches and a wide range of recovery track alternatives.

Is there any recovery gear that I should avoid?

There’s no recovery gear that’s really bad – just bad operators. One bit of recovery gear that most people have, but almost no one knows how to use properly, is a high-lift jack. These can work well, and can help to get you out of a lot of sticky situations, but they are one of the most dangerous bits of gear around, and have injured a whole lot of people, as well as actually killing a few. If you’re going to carry a high-lift jack, be 100% Sure that you know how to operate it safely, and stick to that no matter what.

Safety with Recovery Gear

The biggest thing to remember is that you should always have a “weakest point” somewhere along the recovery line. This would normally be your strap, but it may be a shackle or some other equipment.  Whatever it is, make sure that it’s a fabric component, like a strap, and not a big chunk of metal that can break and go flying.

Check out or store to see our range of recovery gear, 4WD recovery kits and more.