[ihc] Re: Tow Straps and thermostats

[John Hofstetter <hofs@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> At 6:19 PM -0600 12/10/03, Peter Ferris wrote:
>
> All I can say for sure is years ago Stant and Robertshaw were two very
> different companies.  And today they appear to be very different companies.
> Perhaps you somehow stumbled across a distributor page and mistook it for a
> corporate/parent page?  I dunno.  Offer no explanation for what you saw. And
> I certainly don't question your genuineness. .
>
> That's not the case today anyhow. But so be it. We all agree on that point.
At least you and I agree on this point, Pete, and I don't want to 
cast aspersions on what others have said, but I think they made a 
mistake, perhaps in the way you suggest.


>   But this got
> me thinking... My strap seems to have gone MIA lately! But a question
> arises: Is there really as big a difference in tow straps as there is in
> PRICES for it.
Yes, from experience I know there is a huge difference among tow 
straps. I don't know that the quality necessarily depends on price, 
but certainly the two relate for the most part. Some of the 
distinguishing characteristics are:

Stretchability and the ability to snap back. You can jerk out a stuck 
vehicle using this rubber band effect when a straight pull wouldn't 
move it.

Resistance to abrasion is important because it is very difficult and 
rare for a strap not to sustain some damage with each use.

The kind of ends on the strap is important. The best, in my opinion, 
are the straps with loops formed into the ends rather than hooks. You 
can run the strap back through the loop without sustaining damage 
whereas you shouldn't use a hook to come back onto a strap.

Ideally, again in my opinion, you carry two straps a cheapie to use 
as a tree protector, and a good snap-back strap for getting others 
and yourself out of a "stick".

Years ago, I buried our 1210 in the quicksand of Canyon de Chelley a 
number of times. It sank clear to the body pan which gave enough 
surface area to stop the sinking. But, in addition to more than 7000 
lbs. of vehicle our winches were pulling many many pounds of mud. 
Anyway, we broke winch cables twice, but that strap never faltered. I 
had paid about $60 for it from Dick Cepek in 1972. So it was 
expensive, but worth every cent.


>  Looks as if most of the white stuff
> has melted.  How 'bout where you are?
Here in our part of California , we got a little snow this morning 
after lots of rain last night. Should get in the high 50's this 
afternoon. Life here is hell.


> Stay well all...
Hope your little guy gets better soon.

John
--
John Hofstetter
www.goldrush.com/~hofs