Hi,
When people say to lower tyre pressure for sand, I get why, but what is 'low'?
I usually put 31 psi (2.1 bar) in my Uniroyal Rallye 4x4 streets
20 psi?
15 psi?
25 psi?
I know not to drive on tarmac at lower pressures
I also read that knobbly tread isnt good on sand so my Uniroyals might be OK?

I'm not going to drive on the beach here, just on sandy tracks with some very sandy patches
The first track I intend to try is one I did by mistake over 25 years ago in my 1971 VW camper that I had put a VW Porsche engine in (with dual carbs, not injection). I started down it and it got worse and worse with no turning possibility so I just kept momentum up as much as possible whilst also trying to spend as much time on the seat as possible, and made it OK (and got back too).

Or will I destroy my tyres?

Cheers

Bife said:

Hi,
When people say to lower tyre pressure for sand, I get why, but what is 'low'?
I usually put 31 psi (2.1 bar) in my Uniroyal Rallye 4x4 streets
20 psi?
15 psi?
25 psi?
I know not to drive on tarmac at lower pressures
I also read that knobbly tread isnt good on sand so my Uniroyals might be OK?

I'm not going to drive on the beach here, just on sandy tracks with some very sandy patches
The first track I intend to try is one I did by mistake over 25 years ago in my 1971 VW camper that I had put a VW Porsche engine in (with dual carbs, not injection). I started down it and it got worse and worse with no turning possibility so I just kept momentum up as much as possible whilst also trying to spend as much time on the seat as possible, and made it OK (and got back too).

Or will I destroy my tyres?

Cheers

Click to expand...

10 PSI is the lowest you can go with out tyre damage (for short soft/sand runs) but then you will need to air back up once on firm ground.

best thing for sand is to have maxtraxx or similar recovery board and drive out if your stuck.

And tie the board to the vehicle so you can get well clear before stopping to get your boards back

shaynecm said:

10 PSI is the lowest you can go with out tyre damage (for short soft/sand runs) but then you will need to air back up once on firm ground.

best thing for sand is to have maxtraxx or similar recovery board and drive out if your stuck.

Click to expand...

Thanks!
I started looking for Maxtraxx, recovery boards, sand ladders, waffle boards, and it quickly got out of hand in terms of both price and choice
Since I am not about to disappear into deepest Africa for years at a time, I am not looking into investing heavily in this
Any reasonable quality/price suggestions, please?

Or even better, a DIY approach?
Routed scaffold boards praps?
How long should they be, roughly?

please ...

Bife said:

Thanks!
I started looking for Maxtraxx, recovery boards, sand ladders, waffle boards, and it quickly got out of hand in terms of both price and choice
Since I am not about to disappear into deepest Africa for years at a time, I am not looking into investing heavily in this
Any reasonable quality/price suggestions, please?

Click to expand...

the cheapy sets off amazon will get you by but they will crack and get chewed up after a few uses.

Bife said:

Or even better, a DIY approach?
Routed scaffold boards praps?

Click to expand...

you could make your own if using wood/plank i would add few battons on the underside to dig in for grip and to feather an edge for the tyre to get up easier. you can then add grip tape or route the top for traction.

Bife said:

How long should they be, roughly?

Click to expand...

mine are just over 1m long.

I've seen things like this a few times...



Might be a cheaper alternative or something that can be made up at home. Definitely take up less space in the car than boards!

I haven't gone out to check on my F1 to see what sort of clearance there is around the wheel for the block not hitting bodywork or the strap fouling brakes, pipes etc.

I have some scaffold boards in the garage, a couple of half ones too.
I am going to cut them to the longest length that fits sideways in the boot on the floor (since they are 9" wide, 120 cm long will fit laying down flat) and screw 3 or 4 of battens to the bottoms (offset so the boards fit more closely back to back) and rout the top sides (currently thinking of pattern) and chamfer the ends a bit.
Total price = €0

Then I'm off to the local 'Chinese' shop (there a loads of these Chinese run 'bargain stores' here in PT) and get a little shovel I have seen there for €bargain

Next stop is a local marine supplies store (for ships, not a chandlery) where they do proper lifting strops and things for very reasonable prices. I'll see what lengths they have with end loops in, and probly get the longest ones (and some galvanised shackles). Will get strongest I am willing to pay for.

Then I will be set for a mini trip to the deserted North side of the local lagoon I guess. If I get stuck I have people to call and its not far from home anyway.

15 quid shovel
10 t breaking load towing strop with 2 t WLL shackles (FOS is approx 5 for shackles)
plus, I made these:
I will splice some three strand 15 mm nylon rope ( approx 5 t breaking load) through the holes to attach to the tow bar. Over sized to allow for chaffe.