Flash wrote:I'm not a fan at all of putting a big rubber band between two 3.5tonne vehicles and loading it up with energy.
Any cable under tension has the potential for something to go wrong if being careless, stupid or just performing the wrong type of recovery for the situation. (Talking about people in general here, not pointing a finger at you).
In that respect winching is no safer or more dangerous than snatching.
I've done my share of snatch recoveries, from just getting someone with poor tyres off a slippery patch of ground to un-bogging a 4WD that's axle deep in mud, and never had a problem.
They don't go wrong because of the their kinetic nature, they go wrong because people do something stupid or make a mistake.
e.g.
Using chain or a non elastic rope.
Connect the strap to a tow ball or other unsuitable recovery point.
Recovering vehicle pulls away at an angle or while turning and flicks/tips.
Pulling the bogged vehicle into a bank when the wheels are hard against it instead of away from the bank.
Treat a recovery like an adrenaline sport and do it
pedal to the metal with a 10 metre run off.
Have all their goofball friends standing around the vehicles hooting at the spectacle.
I'm sure you know all the usual offences.
Any snatch strap will have a min. breaking strength of 8 tonne or more, you won't even generate half that in a recover when done sensibly.
Pull in straight lines, choose the right direction for the pull, low range first (maybe second if you need a little more oomph), and no more than 2 metres slack on a dampened strap. A couple of pulls and they're out.
If that's not going to do it then a different recovery method was needed from the start.