becomes the anchor point. In this case, be sure to put the transmission
in neutral, apply the parking brake and block the wheels to prevent it
from moving.
The anchor point should allow you to pull straight in the direction the
vehicle will move. This allows the rope to wind tightly and evenly on the
winch drum. An anchor point as far away as possible will provide the
winch with its greatest pulling power.
Winching hand signals
In some situations, recovery could involve two people. While one person
drives, the other person provides navigation assistance and ensures the
rope is winding properly. Understanding the right hand signals help
provide clear understanding between the driver and the navigator. Also,
if the driver controlling the winch can not see both hands of the
navigator, the winch should not be activated. The following are some
suggested hand signals to review:
1. Hold your arms out with thumbs up and tilt your hands in the
direction you advise the driver to steer.
2. Hold your forefinger in the air above your shoulder height and draw
small circles in the air to indicate to wind the winch.
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Driver Controls
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3. Point your forefinger down and draw circles in the air about waist
height to indicate feeding more wire from the winch.
4. Tells the driver to wind the winch in short, quick bursts. Open and
close the two fingertips until you want the winch to stop.
5. To signal to stop the winch, clench fist, palm to driver, held high
enough for the driver to see and other arm straight out at shoulder
height.
6. Cross palms together to tell the driver to apply the foot brake.
7. Tells driver to give the tires more drive force to assist the winch
process.
Vehicle recovery (single line)
The following steps outline how to recover your vehicle with a single
line; multiple lines follow the same basic steps but use a snatch block to
assist the process. Refer toRigging Techniqueslater in this chapter.
1. Put on leather gloves.
2. Disengage the clutch to allow
freespooling of the winch drum.
Freespooling conserves the vehicle’s
battery power.
Always use the supplied
hook strap to hold the hook
when spooling wire rope in or out.
Note:Never attempt to disengage the clutch while the wire rope is
under tension. Never engage the clutch while the drum is rotating.
Always make sure the clutch is fully engaged or disengaged.
Note:Never leave the remote control plugged into the winch while
freespooling, rigging or sitting idle.
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Driver Controls
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