TDBrown
Full Access Member
A thread for advice on mods, accessories, and packing lists for days playing in the sand.
Hello all,
I spent yesterday playing in the sand at Little Sahara here in Utah with my kids and grandkids. I found some things I had packed (thanks to the experts on this forum) that really worked well, and things I wish I had. This was the first time I had taken the Raptor out in sand dunes, so I'd appreciate any advice added to this thread from those of you who do it all time.
Here's one of the times we got stuck and what we learned:
Before you all make fun of me, yes, I realize carrying more speed would have been good. But it gets scary when you can't see what's on the other side.
Anyway, here's my list of this to have when playing in the sand:
1. Swarfworks (or anything that works for you) dune flag mount and dune flag. I got a 9' or 10' 2-piece flag from Appletree Automotive that worked great. Loved that I could break it down and throw it in the bed.
2. The tool roll with a crescent wrench and a 3/8" ratchet and metric sockets sure helped get the Swarfworks dune flag mount, and the dune flag, mounted.
3. Whoever on this forum said to use a pool noodle/pipe insulation on the dune flag is a freakin' genius. Saved a lot of paint rub.
4. Tire deflator - okay, I was stupid and thought I'd just try out the dunes on fully inflated tires and 4-High. Yeah, it didn't take long to get stuck. I had a Smittybuilt tire gauge in my console so started trying to deflate with that. Bad idea. Took forever. Broke out the ARB Tire Deflator and that was MUCH better. Took the tires down to 20 lbs in nothing flat and it made a huge difference.
5. MaxTrax boards - we would have been doomed without these things. Probably should have had four, but I carry two and they worked fine. Used them to scoop out the sand and jam them behind the back tires. This was my first time using them and I made the mistake of spinning the tires on top of them. Lost a lot of rubber and wore the trax down to nubs in a couple spots. But they work.
6. ****** strap and Gator Jaw soft shackles - never needed it, but was sure glad I had it. Those people out on the dunes are good people. When we got stuck the first time, we had a motorcycle stop and ask if we needed help within two minutes of getting stuck. We were only stuck for 10 minutes while airing down the tires and jamming in the MaxTrax, but three people stopped by. One big SxS, flying a big flag that said, "I love ******* and Guns", stopped by. I wanted to accept help just to support his principles, but we were out by then. Nonetheless, with the ****** strap and shackles, he could have given me enough of a pull to get me out.
7. More power - I'm in a Gen 1 (waiting for the Raptor R) so I don't have quite as much power as you Gen 2 guys. But I was shocked at how much power sand sucks up. I spent most of the time in 4-Low and still would have enjoyed more power. Clearly a 6,000 lb. Raptor with 400 hp is not going to be the same as a Razor. Until now, I had never felt the need for a supercharger on the Gen 1.
8. Shovel for soft material (sand, snow, mud) - I sure wish I had one of these. I had a small, two-piece shovel in the truck. Bad idea. The MaxTrax moved some sand (using it like a shovel) but it sure would have been nice to have something appropriate to the task. Anyone have shovel suggestions?
9. Air compressor - I keep a Viair 400P-A in the truck and it worked great. Took about 4-5 minutes per tire to go from 20 psi back up to 40 psi. Bigger/faster would have been nice, but not necessary.
So that's my recommended list. My son asked about a winch with deadman ground anchor. I don't know, maybe if we were someplace completely unpopulated. But I think it would have taken us as much effort to bury that ground anchor as it would have to dig out the truck had that become necessary. Beats me. I have no experience with them.
What would you experts add to the list?
Hello all,
I spent yesterday playing in the sand at Little Sahara here in Utah with my kids and grandkids. I found some things I had packed (thanks to the experts on this forum) that really worked well, and things I wish I had. This was the first time I had taken the Raptor out in sand dunes, so I'd appreciate any advice added to this thread from those of you who do it all time.
Here's one of the times we got stuck and what we learned:
Before you all make fun of me, yes, I realize carrying more speed would have been good. But it gets scary when you can't see what's on the other side.
Anyway, here's my list of this to have when playing in the sand:
1. Swarfworks (or anything that works for you) dune flag mount and dune flag. I got a 9' or 10' 2-piece flag from Appletree Automotive that worked great. Loved that I could break it down and throw it in the bed.
2. The tool roll with a crescent wrench and a 3/8" ratchet and metric sockets sure helped get the Swarfworks dune flag mount, and the dune flag, mounted.
3. Whoever on this forum said to use a pool noodle/pipe insulation on the dune flag is a freakin' genius. Saved a lot of paint rub.
4. Tire deflator - okay, I was stupid and thought I'd just try out the dunes on fully inflated tires and 4-High. Yeah, it didn't take long to get stuck. I had a Smittybuilt tire gauge in my console so started trying to deflate with that. Bad idea. Took forever. Broke out the ARB Tire Deflator and that was MUCH better. Took the tires down to 20 lbs in nothing flat and it made a huge difference.
5. MaxTrax boards - we would have been doomed without these things. Probably should have had four, but I carry two and they worked fine. Used them to scoop out the sand and jam them behind the back tires. This was my first time using them and I made the mistake of spinning the tires on top of them. Lost a lot of rubber and wore the trax down to nubs in a couple spots. But they work.
6. ****** strap and Gator Jaw soft shackles - never needed it, but was sure glad I had it. Those people out on the dunes are good people. When we got stuck the first time, we had a motorcycle stop and ask if we needed help within two minutes of getting stuck. We were only stuck for 10 minutes while airing down the tires and jamming in the MaxTrax, but three people stopped by. One big SxS, flying a big flag that said, "I love ******* and Guns", stopped by. I wanted to accept help just to support his principles, but we were out by then. Nonetheless, with the ****** strap and shackles, he could have given me enough of a pull to get me out.
7. More power - I'm in a Gen 1 (waiting for the Raptor R) so I don't have quite as much power as you Gen 2 guys. But I was shocked at how much power sand sucks up. I spent most of the time in 4-Low and still would have enjoyed more power. Clearly a 6,000 lb. Raptor with 400 hp is not going to be the same as a Razor. Until now, I had never felt the need for a supercharger on the Gen 1.
8. Shovel for soft material (sand, snow, mud) - I sure wish I had one of these. I had a small, two-piece shovel in the truck. Bad idea. The MaxTrax moved some sand (using it like a shovel) but it sure would have been nice to have something appropriate to the task. Anyone have shovel suggestions?
9. Air compressor - I keep a Viair 400P-A in the truck and it worked great. Took about 4-5 minutes per tire to go from 20 psi back up to 40 psi. Bigger/faster would have been nice, but not necessary.
So that's my recommended list. My son asked about a winch with deadman ground anchor. I don't know, maybe if we were someplace completely unpopulated. But I think it would have taken us as much effort to bury that ground anchor as it would have to dig out the truck had that become necessary. Beats me. I have no experience with them.
What would you experts add to the list?
