As a child this is how i used to get my father out of the pubs here in Ireland 🇮🇪 great video thank you god bless

My Grandpa freed a plow horse out of a mud pit with this very winch. When he realized the horse was going to need more help than he and I could give it, he didn't say a word he just went about cutting the timber he needed, put the winch together and he and I pulled that horse up out of the mud. I've never forgotten that and I have admired my Grandpa through my entire life for the expiriences that we shared. He was a smart man.

Thank you for this. I had never seen this or heard of it. I was able to get my son’s hot wheel unstuck from a little mud pit in the backyard sandbox using two toothpicks and dental floss. Life safer!

Hi Todd, thanks for the demonstration. One way to mitigate the danger of line snapping is to make the same configuration using a loop of rope rather than a single line. Then tie paracord or some other line loosely around both of the two strands at intervals, so that, should the line snap at a given location, the encircling paracord nearest to the break will prevent the broken end from flying more than a few feet. Incidentally, using a loop will also nearly double your safe load limit.

One way to help minimize the effects of a rope snapping is to drape a blanket or some type of fabric on the rope or cables being stretched. The hope and tendency is that the broken cord will hit the blanket or fabric that is over it. This does not eliminate risk, but it lessens it, and can help you stay safer in a pinch type situation like this one. Very cool video!

Totally awesome. I wish I had known this 37 years ago when my truck was stuck on a slope at the edge of a ravine. I had a long rope that we tied to a small tree, several 3' and 4' concrete stakes, sledgehammer, and a few other tools. I knew there had to be a way to manually winch it out but couldn't figure it out. Meanwhile, my friend ran back to a ranger station he had seen a few miles back and got them to come with a 4-wheel drive to pull us out. I had everything I needed but the knowledge.

Great trick. Good idea would to be have trailing wedges behind the vehicle’s tyres so that it can go forwards but not roll back if the rope breaks. Plus a blanket on the ropes to stop whiplash if it lets go.

I have not personally seen this used in the wild, but I commend you for how you explained it. This is an ingenious strategy for a survival situation.

“If the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.” - Our buddy Red!

This is an amazing tool. Thank you for sharing this information. I couldn't help but thinking about the " ancients" moving huge loads without modern equipment and tools like this show how simple tools can move heavy loads.

Each time you stepped over that taught rope, my boys both twitched! Thank you Todd.

My Grandfather showed me the exact same way to pull heavy objects with a flip-flop rope winch and a few years back when I was younger it actually saved me a thousand bucks towing bill. My Wife and I had only been married a year or 2 and were out Elk Hunting in the REAL BACK COUNTRY with my highly modified Toyota 4x4 pick up and the old forest service or logging road we used to get way back in to our camp had experienced a land slide during a hard rain one evening after we had got in to our camp. On the way out we came upon a pile of Bark Beatle killed logs and big chunks of Granite and stuff that completely wiped out this section of road that rounded the mountain so we had to go back and cut our own road out...well we were doing just fine and had gotten past the wiped out road about a 1/4 mile down slope from the road when we had to cross the creek to get to decent terrain to make it back up slope to the road, well the rainfall had turned the entire creek bottom into a soggy muddy mess. We were doing just fine skirting it when we got stuck and I mean Stuck!, clear up to the frame stuck! All 4 wheels were in mud clear up to the hubs....so I had a old Warn 12v winch on the front that I bought second hand and had it gone through and repaired but it failed on me about half way to dry ground....so I trying to think what to do I remembered Grandpa and the Flip Flop....we got our ropes out of the back and cut a good green Ponderosa log for the handle and used a Aspen for the barrel and in about 25-30 minutes we were on dry ground and packing up to carry on up slope to the old trail. 40 min later we were on our way home after a successful Elk Hunt with a hell of a story to tell. So don't underestimate the flip flop.....it works and as long as you can flip and flop your handle....and your cable or rope don't break....your good to go. I'm positive given how far back in we were it would have cost around a thousand bucks to get us out if I had to get help.

Great tip. Wish I’d seen this when I was trying to persuade my St Bernard it was bath time.

My Grandpa taught me how to get out of the mud by tying a log/branch onto the wheel. It increases the surface of the tire and enables you to just drive out of the mud while safely seated in the car/truck. This is a great idea as well. It's definitely going in my bag of tricks. Thumbs up!

It’s amazing! Tighten ropes is a very powerful means of engineering! Just a suggestion: using a small piece of wood tightening alongside to the wheel, slightly wider than the size of the wheel, would have the similar of the result of self pulling out of a dip! When the wheel is moved either forward or backwards, the piece of wood will dug into the ground with extra friction to the wheel might be enough force of moving the vehicle! Worth of a try!

70 years ago my Grand Daddy called this method the "Ground Hog Pry". Thanks a lot for showing it.

Thank you for the update with the barrel log stakes and the paracord loops on the load line for the lever log. I used this basic method years ago as a young Marine to get a vehicle back on the road. We had plenty of muscle available but this method worked without anyone getting hurt. I respectfully suggest driving the barrel log stakes in at an angle so that the log is less likely to slide up the stake and spin around. I also suggest using loops of paracord on the stakes for the barrel log. There are deadly forces stored in this device that will break bones and skulls faster than a man can react. I would only move in the areas around this winch where I would be safest if something goes wrong. Thank you for posting

I could have used this trick a few times, being stuck deep in the bush in the Yukon. Having knowledge like this could save a life, Thanks for sharing.

Fricken amazing, thanks for crediting Mr. Kohansky.

Ingenious! Never seen this before. Thanks for sharing. Cheers! 👍

Always good idea to throw a blanket or coat over the rope to the truck to keep it from whipping if it breaks

well it's quite a lot of leveraging to gain a couple of feet ... YET , a couple of feet can make the difference between getting stuck in the middle of nowhere or getting your vehicle out of a mud hole or sand strip , so ... all in all, this is BRILLIANT ... it's simple , needs basically no tools and gets the job done ... for me , it deserves two thumbs up

Throw a t-shirt or jacket over the haul line so if the chain, rop or cable breaks it will stop any chance of it killing anyone. I have used it on steel cable of 1.125 inch cable and they stop in a pile under the break every time. Far too many folks get hurt bad that need not get hurt at all. I have been in the bush my entire life and haven't seen one of these. I am truly impressed ! Stop by for a visit new friend ! ! ! Soooo many times 4 to 6 inches is the difference between stuck and not eh !

This video is gold. If you want to be self reliant, especially in back-up-plan situations, knowledge is power. Great use of that prussik knot, btw. Thanks for the video!

A little slow, but much faster than walking home! I haven't seen this done before. Great idea!

Thank you for adding something to KZfaq that advances knowledge. Very clever. Very very clever.

I watched you do this when you first did it and then I lost the link. KZfaq put it in my "Pull Pile" and now, I've got the LINK back. THANK YOU AGAIN !!!

This is a brilliant and simple fix to what could be a devastating problem. Think beach and rising tide. Thanks for providing.

out of the countless hours I've spent watching youtube videos, I must say this has been the most informative 12.5 min. I'm impressed.

brilliant improvised winch, I'll be showing this to the scouts. it's always good to have alternative ways of doing things

Loving it. It's so irritating to learn tricks like this, but never need to use... and so you forget all about it.

I'm am 58 yrs old and have been in the woods or close most of my life in 4x4s starting with mom dad uncles and cousins in a willys army jeep at 3 yrs and Chevy 4x4 at 15 when I got my license. This is the first time I've seen this type of wench but needed one more times than I'll say. Thank you. Keep up the great work.

I needed to see this 40 years ago when I was a young buck doing all kind of stupid things young men do with their trucks. Thanks for the video.

Most excellent demo on the simple machine winch. Thanks for taking the time and doing all this work for us. So to spell it out for those that obviously need help in the negative comment section. One should always apply some math to fit your particular situation. Survival Sherpa obviously did his as the rope did not break. So let's apply some logic to how this demo benefits us. 1. Going off road with an electric winch that weighs 100 pounds or more mounted on the front of our 4x4 may seem cool until you are stuck and need it on the rear bumper. The added weight uses more gas and the winch is great as long as the cable is long enough and it doesn't breakdown while you are needing it. The winch has the same capacity restrictions as a rope. In other words, 2,000 pound capacity is 2,000 pound capacity. Both will have the kinetic energy you apply to it. Both have the potential to snap and whiplash when the load exceeds capacity. Just for fun which would you rather be hit with? 2. The rope obviously needs to be rated for the load you are using it for the same as the winch cable. The rope is lighter to haul and has more uses than just pulling you out of a ditch. For those that may be math challenged or simply feel synthetic could never be as strong as steel, consider doubling the rope. Survival Sherpa could have easily tied a second and a third rope to his bumper and applied the same technique with the same logs (assuming he had enough rope). 3. Rule of thumb on how to rate rope and cables: Take the maximum weight of the load and multiply by 1.2 which will give you a 20% safety factor. The rope O.E.M. has also included a safety factor but we pretend not to know about it. You could easily hang a 5,000 pound truck by the frame with a 6,000 capacity rope and feel good about it. Connection points, shackles and proper use of knots apply. Now of course this is a simplification and a mere starting point as angles, cutting edges, dead load vs live load and other things come into play. There is no shame , when in doubt double down. For good information search Rigging Techniques online. 4. So there you have it. Rope and Knife are your friend. Do the math and get the proper rope for your maximum potential load and travel safer and more self reliant.

Just when you think you have seen it all. That just made my day!!!

That's definitely 1 of the more intelligent things I've watched. Thanks

I am a 36 year( experience) field geologist and I have never seen this technique. Thank you, I will be sharing this with my staff.

With 45 years in construction & using all sorts of lifting and moving devices, and learning all sorts of tricks, I’m delighted to add this one to my arsenal. Very clever! I do a lot of swamp buggying in the Everglades and this is certainly a handy trick to know. Can’t wait to share this video with my swamp buggy buddies. This would work with chain or cable also. Now I’m thinking I should carry some non-stretching Kevlar or Spectra line on the buggy. Nice video! Thank you, sir.

This is phenomenal! I love Mors but never seen this setup! This is absolutely an amazing technique when and if in need of pulling and or lifting something! Thankyou

Yes! This should be video of the year!

Almost got stuck in the Costa Rican rain forest. Now it doesn't matter with your video. Thanks and Godspeed. JUST SUBSCRIBED !

This video made me have one of those "Now why didn't I think of that?" moments. Thanks for sharing. It just makes sense!

This is the kind of video that needs no words

This is one of the more informative videos that I have watched on KZfaq.

Ingenious, amazing what necessity spawns when need arises. I’ve been rigging in the line work trade for 4 decades, I’ve never seen this used. Thanks for sharing.

Brilliant. Will definitely keep this one in mind.

Outdoors engineering with simple materials.. a beautiful thing

Very easy, practical improvisation. Yes watch the full video ref safety measures in case the rope snaps. It is covered. Thank you for sharing. All the best.

Very cool! It's probably best to practice this one a couple of times so you know it a bit before you have to do this in the dark. If it's a vehicle make sure it's not hung up on something that will damage it if dragged out. I'd check underneath after a rescue anyway to make sure break lines and everything else is intact after a pull out also.

A buddy of mine was talking about this earlier today so he sent me the video. This brilliant!!

Wow, what a great idea! I would never have thought of that by myself. It's amazing what you can do with basic materials and some ingenuity.

Very nice! Wish I knew about this mechanism about 40 yrs ago! Thank you!

Watched My Grandpa and His friend do this 40+ years ago in the woods to free the tractor. I wasn't paying attention, I could have learned something (Though in My partial defense I was told to stay far away for now obvious reasons).

I had my doubts but they dissolved as the demo progressed. Awesome!

Great presentation. But what I really enjoyed was listening to the hawk screeching in the background.

Such a handy tip. Thanks for sharing your knowledge

Todd: I would recommend that you take precautions Me: sounds good Todd. What precaut- Todd: Listen to your gut

Mr.Mors Kohanski was my professor / instructor at University of Alberta component of our PE degree anchored with an Outdoor Education course. Little did I know until later( now 56 retired teacher) that we had THE WORLD LEGEND AS A TEACHER. Most humble, unassuming, clarity and precision teaching Ive ever experienced. What an absolute priviledge. RIP.

Thank you for sharing this knowledge 👍

Neat, sweet and simple, above all controllable and, within common sense, safe. Thanks for sharing.

I've watched and re-watched this video several times in about three years. This is ingenious!

Been a long time since I was introduced to this application of the lever. Thanks for the reminder.

Thank you for sharing your wisdom! Very much appreciated here! 🍻

Tidy Bach , simple but very effective. Handy tip to have in your armoury.

Watched this 3 or 4 years ago. Wanted to refresh my memory. Great video and instruction. A blanket or similar laid over the rope, or chain for that matter, will help dampen the violent nature of a snapped line.

This is an outstanding video, for lots of reasons. Others have mentioned the danger of rope or tow strap breaking and doing a LOT of damage. That reminds me of my dad teaching me to drive 4wd. "if you can't see where you're going, get out and look." and "if you think you'll get stuck or damage your vehicle, you're probably right. Make a new plan."

This is what I call a Spanish Yoke and it's got me out of trouble a couple of times. Thanks for posting

I like this and thank you for sharing, I work in the oil fields in Alaska, and I will be able to use this EVERYDAY. Very useful knowledge!

We used to use these in the scouts for different activties, they were briliant.Thank you for reminding me. Good onya.

I had been wondering how to get my car out if it gets stuck in a pit, since my car has no winch on itself. This is the answer to my question. Great tip to know!

Awesome tip. Great for when your snowmobile is stuck and you're alone. Cheers.

Knowing this could have saved me hundreds of $. Enjoyed your video greatly! THANKS ! !

I think this might be the best video on youtube

thanks! work smarter not harder and working off grid - often alone - this is a great demo for me.

I've watched this video before and I love it! Obviously a person has to be somewhat mechanically inclined. But if you pay attention to what the man says it's a very important lesson in physics. Awesome and thank you for the video.

Very well done. Thanks for sharing.

When you have nothing else, I see the value in this.

Amazing how someone can come up with an idea such as this. Simple but extremely effective. Good work!

Thanks for the in-depth demonstration! I would've never thought to do something like this, this is truly innovative! Truly impressive, I learned a lot today. Keep up the great work!

One of best things I've seen in ages. Thank you for teaching me that simple but extremely useful technique.. we don't carry blocks and tackle around. But we often have rope and a axe.. nice

Thank you so much for taking the time and the effort to teach this very clever technique which might help a lot of people to escape a dire situation !

I love those who do something good for the humanity. Thank you Sir.

That is an excellent video. thank you for sharing your knowledge. Appreciate it.

This is invaluable information. makes me feel smarter knowing how to do this.

Outstanding demonstration. Thanks for showing an easy way to do a natural winch technique without unnecessary tools.

this is a real life saver situation posibility. truly . witty , THANKS SHERPA

never seen this one Thanks for sharing!

Remember, this idea was formed by a person with time on their hands and a problem.Maybe they could have used their legs... 30 miles, 6 hard hours, probably get dark, shamefaced call a buddy. Instead, used their brain, took stock and worked it out, probably drove home with daylight to spare, well pleased with themselves.

Videos such as yours are the reason why I love surfing KZfaq. Thanks for sharing!

Thank you for sharing. I can think of many ways this could be applied other than getting a truck unstuck.

This is easily the best demonstration of the flip-flop winch that I've seen on KZfaq, thank you for this! I had the privelage of attending a training course with Mors Kochanski some years ago, what a fellow. Cheers from Toronto, Ontario.

I remember seeing this in action as a kid. Thats for helping me to remember this great technique

That's a massive mechanical advantage with very basic kit. Thanks for the detailed explanation. It's great to see how you can control the forces on your own with a bit of forward planning. I guess it's about an hour or so to get setup?

That is brilliant. Putting that in the memory bank.

One of the most fascinating videos I have ever seen.

Brilliant, loved the video and the concept, well done Sir.

Excellent, thanks. Reminded me my Dad teaching me to make a Spanish windlass more than 50 years ago (RIP, Dad). Not that they serve the same purpose but these are both good tools to have in your mental toolbox.

This is awesome!! Couple of pieces of kit to add to the old jeep for sure!! Thank you for the demonstration!

Thank you for sharing this information.If my poops wasn’t so stubborn he would still be here.Old fashioned Montana ranch boy.He was highly knowledgeable as well.Taught me a whole lot of things. Knowledge and wisdom.

Good information, thanks & Thumb up.