I've seen this work in the past.

Not sure of the area where the vehicle was stuck, but you could use large rocks, logs or spare tires to make a stop for the tires to keep the winching vehicle from moving.

 

Whatever you do...keep the Jeep in neutral. Snatch blocks and all the other stuff will help the recovery. Just don't try to pull against the winch. That is a big no-no.

 

No to much chance for shock load on the winch line. I've seen a wire cable go and it's nasty at best. If I was going to do anything in reverse I would use a recovery strap. Tell the guy that you were talking to got to Tractor Supply and buy a strap and some shackles!

 

So it sounds like it's not really an issue for the transmission? It seems like it should especially since you're not supposed to even let the transmission hold you in place (e.g. you're on a slight hill and at a light).

By the way, in case anyone is wondering this is not a "I have a friend" story. I just realized that some might be thinking that. This really was a discussion of an incident that someone told me about, and I said "no don't do that". I didn't know why other than I had always heard to put your transmission in neutral, and my thought that it would be really hard on the transmission. Anyway, he disagreed with me, and we had to end a discussion that was getting heated.

 

Well its abvious its a no no, but...

a fellow jeeper of mine apparently disgreed and tried to pull his brothers FJ that got stuck in the sand... it was stuck pretty bad so he decided to run in reverse.

The transmission did not fail, the cable DID and although funny now it, broke his winsheild and almost took his head.

so guys if you do decide to do it, please be extreamly carful where you stand.

 

smashed the windshield...damn. Definitely better that than his head.

 

Wraithyjeep nailed it when he said:
neutral 4lo emergency brake on
locked front and rear if you wish.

A couple other thoughts to consider:
Winch with your hood raised (it can save your life and your windshield).
Use a strap if possible. It's faster and when done right (low speed/steady momentum) runs less risk of injury to you and your rig.
Remember, just because a "trick" works, dosen't mean it will always work, or that it's good for the equipment.
Think long and hard about who your pulling. I help just about every person I can, but it sucks to break equipment and be left with the repair bill to replace YOUR broken stuff!

 

Was it specified that everyone is refering to a snatch strap and NOT a tow strap?

And a blanket on the winch line would dampen the energy if it snapped. Isn't this by the book?

I don't have much experience but I believe in READING a lot and then putting it to use real world...

 

A snatch strap is designed to stretch and recoil like a bungee. This "snatches" a stuck vehicle. A tow strap is not designed to stretch. It's meant to be used to "tow" a vehicle or rolling load down the trail or road. People mix the two uses all the time, but a snatch strap is better for recovery. If you've got a tow strap WITHOUT HOOKS, and it's rated at 20,000 lbs web tensile strength (note, this is different than the normally advertised vehicle weight limit) you can use it for recovery. It just won't have that added bennifit of snatching/stretching and recoiling.

 

+1. On the first day that I took my new Jeep out wheeling, I was flagged down and asked for help by a guy that had gotten his Dodge power wagon buried in a mud hole. He was obviously inebriated, and only one of the three Jeeps in our group had a winch. I took a quick look at where he was, and said "I'm sorry, we can't help you. Would you like a ride somewhere?" He declined.

The next day, I was driving past the same place. The guy had decided to stay out there overnight. Being a Saturday morning, there were lot of folks out there. There were two winch-equipped ZJ's hooked onto him, and they were still getting sucked towards the bog every time they started pulling. At this point in time, the Power Wagon was dead in the water (I think he blew his engine), and a KJ was also dead in water (clutch issues from attempting to pull the Power Wagon out)

Needless to say, with that amount of help, the recovery finally got done. Final score:

-1 dead power wagon. Once it was out of the mud hole, we could see that it had street tires on it.
-1 dead Liberty, pulled to the side of the road waiting on a tow truck.
-1 power wagon driver with a wicked hangover.

The moral of the story:

-Don't try a recovery "just because". Only tackle things that are within the limits of your equipment and experience.
-Don't pull a vehicle out for someone that's drunk. They're just going to drive it while drunk, and might get someone hurt in the process of getting stuck again.
-Don't leave anyone stranded. Their vehicle might be dead in the water, but you can offer them a ride to a phone booth at the very least.