Scale Tow Straps

[Numbcrawling]

I got done with my first scale comp today, and after using tow straps a bunch to tow others out and get towed out, I figured that I would go home and make my own.

I started off with some nails I pulled out of a bucket full of them in my garage, they are steel, and pretty strong. I bent them into a sort of "S" shape with a loop at the end, after clipping the nail head and point off. (The first few that I made are the ones in the last picture, and they aren't the greatest, but I got better the more that I made)



After that, I took the string I was using, and sewed the loop into place with a needle and thread. I did this just to have some strength in the line. The more thread that is used to hold the loop, the stronger it will be.



Finally, I slipped a section of shrink wrap over the sewed part of the loop and shrunk it up. (put the section of shrink wrap on the tow strap before sewing)



I know people have put this kind of stuff up before, but I figured I would show my take on it, and how it is very strong.

[Rig Rocker]

Awesome! I prefer to sew mine too

[Numbcrawling]

Originally Posted by Rig Rocker

Awesome! I prefer to sew mine too

Thanks man! Yeah, I thought about it for a while and ruled out tying a knot in it due to the bulk, and I figured that just the shrink wrap wouldn't hold the weight of a rig. My solution has held up nicely so far, it definitely holds the weight of my pig of an AX10, being pulled by my honcho.

[YYCADM]

Looks good! If you want to increase the scale appearance a bit, 550 paracord is great.
Either strip out the inside cord completely, or strip out only the last two incehs or so from each end. This lets the cord flatten out and it's easier to stitch. Sew it together, do the shrink tubing thing, and you're left with a cord that had a flatter loop ( more like webbing looks), and a round body to the tow rope itself

[Numbcrawling]

That's an awesome idea! Thanks for the suggestion, I will have to give that a try.

I am also working on making a servo winch with some braided cable I got at walmart for $1.67. It is for hanging pictures and has a 50lb test weight. It is definitely strong enough to hold the weight of my rig, and it is thin enough to wind around a small spool without issue. Now all I have to do is make find the proper way to attach the spool to the servo, and the servo to the chassis. I kinda hack jobed the loop on that, so if anyone has a way of making the loop on this kind of material, I would be very appreciative of the info.

Thanks for the feedback guys. If anyone else has any suggestions, I am open to try anything as long as it won't cost me a lot of money.

[imperium]

Originally Posted by Numbcrawling

That's an awesome idea! Thanks for the suggestion, I will have to give that a try.

I am also working on making a servo winch with some braided cable I got at walmart for $1.67. It is for hanging pictures and has a 50lb test weight. It is definitely strong enough to hold the weight of my rig, and it is thin enough to wind around a small spool without issue. Now all I have to do is make find the proper way to attach the spool to the servo, and the servo to the chassis. I kinda hack jobed the loop on that, so if anyone has a way of making the loop on this kind of material, I would be very appreciative of the info.

Thanks for the feedback guys. If anyone else has any suggestions, I am open to try anything as long as it won't cost me a lot of money.

if its the stuff im thinking of theres crimp like things for it
looks like these

[Numbcrawling]

Those are exactly what I pictured in my mind! Thanks for the reply. Cheers

[Rig Rocker]

I've found that braided line is horrible to work with when the heat is on. It doesnt spool very well in our scale size. I would go with team3six's synthetic line. I've been using it for months and it holds up incredibly!

Originally Posted by Numbcrawling

That's an awesome idea! Thanks for the suggestion, I will have to give that a try.

I am also working on making a servo winch with some braided cable I got at walmart for $1.67. It is for hanging pictures and has a 50lb test weight. It is definitely strong enough to hold the weight of my rig, and it is thin enough to wind around a small spool without issue. Now all I have to do is make find the proper way to attach the spool to the servo, and the servo to the chassis. I kinda hack jobed the loop on that, so if anyone has a way of making the loop on this kind of material, I would be very appreciative of the info.

Thanks for the feedback guys. If anyone else has any suggestions, I am open to try anything as long as it won't cost me a lot of money.

[Rig Rocker]

Originally Posted by Numbcrawling

Thanks man! Yeah, I thought about it for a while and ruled out tying a knot in it due to the bulk, and I figured that just the shrink wrap wouldn't hold the weight of a rig. My solution has held up nicely so far, it definitely holds the weight of my pig of an AX10, being pulled by my honcho.

Where can you buy these? I need them for something else I'm working on

[eemmaaxxxx]

Nice tow strap / rope.

Here's a couple I've made. The strap on the right I made a long time ago, glued and shrunk. Has a bit of elasticity to it, but the loops are too big, and the shrink is too stiff. In 1:1 it would be 4 metres. The white rope I just made, sewn and shrunk. In 1:1 it would be 12 metre (longest I could find for sale in the 1:1 4x4 magazine was 12m) looks a lot neater. Hopefully the shiney white finish will dull down a bit.