American Towing and Recovery Institute onThe Go
American Towing and Recovery Institute onThe Go
Synthetic Solutions: The Evolution of Modern Towing Equipment
Imagine a towing world where recovery equipment is 85% lighter yet stronger than traditional steel cables, and where safety hazards like deadly cable recoil become a thing of the past. That future is already here, as this eye-opening conversation with Johnny Sun and Adam Osterloo from Tow Tools reveals.
Johnny's journey into the towing equipment industry began with a story straight out of a thriller novel—being monitored by the US Embassy while unknowingly meeting with Japanese mafia members who operated towing companies. This unexpected introduction ultimately led to his founding of Tow Tools, now a leading manufacturer of synthetic recovery equipment that's revolutionizing the industry.
At the heart of Tow Tools' offerings are their Super Slings and soft shackles made from Honeywell Spectra—the same ultra-strong material used in bulletproof vests and high-performance marine applications. The technical advantages are substantial: these synthetic alternatives provide equal or greater breaking strength than steel while dramatically reducing weight and eliminating the dangerous recoil effect that has caused countless injuries when steel cables fail under tension.
The conversation takes a fascinating turn when exploring the practical applications of these synthetic solutions. Their soft shackles are thoughtfully designed with longer-than-standard lengths to make real-world hookups easier, while their synthetic winch lines offer profound safety improvements. As Adam notes, "The big push that should exist to go to synthetic rope is really based on the safety of the operator and safety of anybody else on scene."
For those hesitant to make a complete transition from traditional equipment, Tow Tools offers synthetic winch line extensions as an entry point—allowing operators to experience the benefits firsthand before committing to a full conversion. The consensus among experienced users is clear: once you've worked with these synthetic alternatives, you'll recognize their value extends far beyond the initial price tag.
Ready to explore how synthetic recovery equipment could transform your operations? Visit TowingEquipmentDirect.com to see their full range of Tow Tools products, or call 910-747-9000 to speak with April Wilburn and her team about finding the right solutions for your specific needs.
you're on the train to success with april and wes wilburn.
Speaker 2:I'm dj harrington, the co-host, better known as the toe doctor. We're all on our way to the town of proper towing and recovery, along with our producer, chuck camp, in the studio. Don't go to the town of woulda, coulda, shoulda, you coulda had done this. You should have done that. Listen every week to thought-provoking wisdom from great guests. So if you have Spotify, itunes, pandora, stitcher, iheartmedia or the number one podcast or maybe Amazon or wherever you get your podcasts, turn in on Wednesday and be turned on all week long. If you are a state association and want your announcements or upcoming state association news, announcements or upcoming state association news or maybe a toe show that's coming up, let us know. Our podcast studio phone number is 706-409-5603 I'm proud to be part of a great team at the american dorm recovery institute.
Speaker 2:Let's make 2025 our best year ever. I will turn it to April Loomis. Well, dj, as always, I thank you for your kind words and your partnership on this podcast. You've been an integral part of making this successful. We thank you, thank the whole team here at ATI For helping us bring this thing along. Of course, april does a big part and she's doing even more. April, how are you doing today? I'm doing pretty good and I'm very amazed at how we've all kind of grown together with this podcast too, and how big it's gotten. It's kind of humbling and impressive at all at the same time to think of where we started off at to us being up to about 20,000 people listening to this literally all the time.
Speaker 2:now, you know, it's just amazing to me that we were able to achieve this together. So, dj and Chuck, really appreciate you guys sticking with us and hanging in with us while we have been able to do this together. And, wes, I got to tell you it is- my honor that you and April have grown your podcast.
Speaker 2:I want to tell our listeners I do a podcast for the auto recycling industry and they're struggling to get 8,000 listeners. And here's Wes and April with 8,000 listeners. And here's Wes and April with a 20,000 listeners all across the world. We have people in Australia listening to us, people in the UK are listening and I think it's one of the best things that Wes and April. When I asked Wes what he considered doing a podcast I'd like to be his co-host he was like well, what do you think, doc? I mean I'm with you, so it's been a real pleasure. And think about all the charities that we've helped and the state associations that we've helped, tunnels and towers that we've helped. I mean there are so many good things, wes, that you have contributed to the industry, so you really I should tip my hat to you in April. Well, thanks, cj. Right back at you, buddy, you made a whole lot of this possible, a whole lot of it possible. Yeah, with the tunnels, with Harrison, we need to get that young man back on. We need to make arrangements for that. He got promoted to a different division and there's another gentleman. Believe it or not, we did so well.
Speaker 2:I want to tell our listeners we did so well that the man who heads up the eradicating homeless veterans is now our answer guy Paul Myers.
Speaker 2:And Paul Myers is the head of the villages for the eradicating homelessness for veterans. So what they do is they buy a hotel and I want to tell all the listeners, they buy an abandoned hotel or a hotel that went out of business two or three years ago, like in Atlanta here. They bought the Western Hotel next to Six Flags, literally next to Six Flags. They redid it, so the first floor is for all administration, and then the second, third and fourth floor of the hotel are all living residences, and then the second, third and fourth floor of the hotel are all living residences. And they took veterans off the street and moved them into this beautiful location, and the grand opening is going to be in August sometime, so I keep everybody posted of when the grand opening is. And then the van we donated, they wrapped it and they're going to present it that day in Atlanta. Ina was a big part of getting Atlanta in care, of course, wasn't it? Well, yes, yes.
Speaker 2:I want you to know, ina was involved in putting the ramp we bought and it was so good. They explained it to me. This is a scissor lift, where it lifts the wheelchair and rolls right into the vehicle, so it's really really nice. It went with it. It was brand new from mobility, so it was nice and so this will be good.
Speaker 2:this will take them west. This will take them to you know doctor appointments or their weekly trip to Walmart or Target or wherever to get their shaving equipment and you know mouthwash and that kind of stuff. But it's going to be a job. Employment place is on the first floor. Counseling is on the first floor, so it's pretty good. Counseling is on the first floor, so it's it's pretty good.
Speaker 2:I know a movement made a very impressive how well thought that out. That is as far as like the conveniences that it gives them. The thing that we take for granted every day being able to go get the toiletries and the groceries and the doctors visit and getting a job those things that we take for granted that we can just do so easily is that it can be an obstacle to overcome and they just mainstream that for them. Yeah, and April, I want all our listeners to know that every one of the villages is built very close to the veteran hospital, so there's a veteran hospital right there and all the locations, like the one they have up in Nashville that they're working on now, is right next door but about four or five blocks away from the veterans hospital. So that's what they do they tie into a veteran hospital area and then they take the veterans that are living on the street and then move them into their own, their own space, so they have their dishwasher and they have a refrigerator and a bedroom and a living room and a television and an ironing board, all that stuff and they have
Speaker 2:bj just interrupts for, once again, just a a safe place to be too, just some place where you can go close the door and just have your own yes, your own privacy, and it builds up your own self-worth. So you get off the streets and out and handling and you know, it's set up for wheelchairs, it's set up for rollators, it's set up for everything to get the person around. And then the ones that can work they're actually getting them back to work again. And, being so close to Six Flags, I cheesed and I said they literally, because when the guy told me to go to Six Flags, I'd go to Six Flags and the parking lot. I joined the parking lot of the Western Hotel that they took over and it's a beautiful sign. The villages for Donald's house. It's gorgeous. They could walk to work if they got jobs. It's a great project. We can't thank you enough for getting us involved with that, dj, and we want to thank INA for their sponsorship of us and also this project. Great, great folks. We really appreciate them.
Speaker 2:Ina Day, rochester we're just going to say her name because she's spectacular and all the things that she's done and all the people that she's helped too. She really has done a lot of behind the scenes things that she doesn't want to take credit for. She doesn't want the acknowledgement or the attention for it, but I'm going to take credit for her a little bit right now. She's an amazing person. She absolutely is. Yeah, I agree with you.
Speaker 2:You know she does Reefs of America and she does all that stuff and then up at the Baltimore Toe Show she does fundraising for up there. She's done all the fundraising for TRAA, for Hills Days, and she's just a very gifted lady and she was the one Wes when I was feeding the homeless. It was Gay. When I was feeding the homeless, it was Gay Rochester who gave me the idea. So I was looking for empty cans and she said, well, dj, just buy the cans at the store and go and donate the soup. So I donated the soup and they gave me back the empty cans with the labels off so I could make eye cans. It's got colleges and schools and that kind of thing, so it worked out good. Kay, rochester is a very gifted lady and she's done a lot.
Speaker 2:She, too, has done a lot for our industry. Yes, she has, absolutely so. Speaking of great ladies, april Wilburn's another great lady, as people know, she's pretty much runs things here, and her and a group of females are taking over Tony Quidman Direct, the minority-owned business, and so we're going to put a little bit of a spotlight on that today, and that also will lead us to our guest, april, talk to us about Tony Quidman Direct. Tony Quidman Direct is the website that we've had and that's, I guess, the umbrella of which we're going to go under. I am taking on the equipment sales, which I've been indirectly involved with to some extent anyway, so I've already got kind of that leg into it, but I'm taking more of a leadership and ownership role in that we are a what's always said I say this wrong. We are a majority minority owned. It's going to be female owned. I'm probably the principal of it, but we have a couple other ladies that's going to come on board with us. Kim Holcomb has already been intricate in everything that we've done anyway up until this point, so she obviously is one of them. And then many of you guys have met Margaret, but a lot more of you are going to meet her because I'm going to take her on the road with me and we're going to do road trips and we're going to go visit people and we're going to go door to door and if you haven't met us, you're going to meet us.
Speaker 2:Um and reintroduce yourself as far as it leading into this what we're going to do with this podcast. Here we are, um featuring um toadstools, which, which has the um super slings and the synthetic slings. We are distributing their product. We're distributor. We're a huge believer in it. It is a phenomenal. It is a phenomenal product at a very good price point and it is a West approved product as well. It's a high standard. We are honored to have Johnny and Adam from Tow Tools on this podcast with us. We'll have them right after the break.
Speaker 2:I just do want to point out something. Towing equipment direct is not a new thing. As many of you know, we've been in the towing equipment sales for 20 years now and I did it a couple other times before that. It's a website that we bought from Todd Chase that he had set up back. We had it for seven years because we got it before the pandemic and we went with it because it was a working website and whatnot. So that name, tonyequipmentdirectcom.
Speaker 2:It's been around for a minute and it's not a new thing. The website's been around for years, like I say, and we're very thankful that April is going to carry on with it and take it to a whole new level, which, again, she basically ran the thing anyway. So, with Margaret and Kim taking everything to another level, we're really excited about that and we'll always have Wes here in our back pocket. He's got the technical knowledge of this stuff and I'll always have him at a. If he's not right here beside me, I've got him at, you know, at the tip of my fingers with a phone call and if he doesn't know, he knows somebody who does know.
Speaker 2:And that's gonna be our philosophy if we don't know, we know somebody who does know we don't know everything so but we do know people who do in general uh can get us answers for things too. So we're excited. We absolutely are. We got a couple training dates coming up. Let me tell you about those. September 6th and 7th we're going to be in Indianapolis for a two-day heavy duty. October 3rd to the 5th we're going to be in Buffalo, new York. Myself and JT will be there with a surprise instructor for an extreme heavy duty class. We're going to do some heavy winching. Then we'll be at the Tennessee Toe Show the 9th and the 10th for a two-day heavy duty tone recovery class. Going to do some heavy winching. Then we'll be at the Tennessee Toe Show the 9th and the 10th for a two day heavy duty towing recovery class Weekend. After that we'll off go towing Lake Station, indiana, october 17th and 18th and then we'll be first weekend of November.
Speaker 4:We're going to be down in Enterprise, alabama.
Speaker 2:One day light duty on November 7th. Two day heavy duty on November 8th and 9th. Then we'll be in Lake Charles, louisiana, working with the Tony Recovery Professional of Louisiana. We'll be there November 15th for a one day light duty, november 15th for a one day heavy duty, and then we'll be rounding out the year. It looks like in Florida April Florida, and that'll be the first weekend of December. Yeah, december's probably on a bad time of the year to go to Florida. Yeah, schedule's working out pretty good this year.
Speaker 2:We're following the weather, so of course we're appreciative of all the different folks that are hosting some of these classes and putting in the hard work to make them come together. We have some more stuff. We'll confirm and we'll get on the schedule as well. I hope you see us in our new training classes. Let's take a quick break. After the break we'll be back with Johnny and Adam.
Speaker 4:T-R-A-A, the Injured Drivers Fund, and legislation that makes all of us safer are what makes this industry special. Ina Towing supports all of this and more. When there is a need, gay Rochester is always one of the first to come forward and ask how can I help? The American Towing and Recovery Institute is honored to have the support of the INA Towing Network. Together, we all make a difference. Ina Towing Network Simplified Solutions, superior Service Welcome back listeners.
Speaker 1:You know you're listening to Towing Network. Simplified Solutions Superior Service. Welcome back listeners. You know you're listening to Towing News Channel. It's great, it's growing and I can't thank you enough. Remember that we are available every week Wes Wilburn, April Wilburn, DJ Harrington, the Tow Doctor. We're available on Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, Stitcher, iHeartMedia, Amazon or wherever you get your podcasts, and we can't thank you enough for helping us get up to 20,000 listeners, and I can't thank you enough. So, without further ado, let me pass it right over to the main man, Wes Wilburn.
Speaker 2:Well, DJ, thank you and I appreciate all of your efforts and the entire team's efforts to hit that milestone of listeners. We definitely appreciate you folks telling your friends to hit that subscribe button. So all that subscribing and, like DJ said, we're available in all different places to get podcasts. So we try to make this podcast informational and I've talked about it loosely here but we'll put it a little bit more in high gear. April is totally taking over operations at Towing Equipment Direct, which is our parts business. It's towingequipmentdirectcom and she's going to talk more about that. And today we have a real special guest for you. We have two of the fellows from CoTools, johnny and.
Speaker 2:Adam. They're one of our main suppliers for synthetics and we're doing a fair amount with them. We're going to be doing some more, but today we're going to focus on some of the super slings and soft shackles and whatnot that we're working with them now. So, april, you want to introduce them practically, I guess. Oh, yeah, and also, yeah, I am taking over Towing Equipment Direct, and a big feature of Towing Equipment Direct is tow tools. We have an excellent product. It is much more attainable to get as far as pipe points go compared to maybe their competition.
Speaker 2:And they're wonderful that draft ship and place place.
Speaker 4:They're amazing amazing.
Speaker 2:And I think I'm going to have Adam and Donnie talk to us about the Spectra and some of the quality that goes into their product that we are so proud to feature. Donnie, welcome to the show and tell us a little bit about yourself.
Speaker 3:Hi, thanks for inviting. This is Johnny with Toe Tools and of course, we have Adam with us. I have been in this industry for I mean starting from going to toe show and the stuff. I have been here for over 20 years and I know DJ from my first show and Wes, of course, follow and many others, so I've been knowing you guys for years. And Toad Tools it used to be a division of Savatech and we break the Savatech towing division and became Toe Tools back in 2015. So that's where Toe Tools start, but you know the history is over 10 years now. So our main product right now is Super Sling, synthetic recovery rope, soft shackle and winch rope, soft shock hole and winch rope pretty much everything that synthetic, we, we, we make them, you know.
Speaker 2:So that's one of the reasons we like geology. You guys are manufactured. That is a process on look out at I'm telling you get you, tells us DJ pressure, but let's get out of the division so number. Let me ask a question, johnny what is your involvement with Total? I know that you are there now, but what is your involvement with them?
Speaker 3:I'm the owner of Total. Total is one of the divisions of Tissot Enterprise and we are the manufacturer for many major auto parts company and Total Division is specially designed for rescue, search and rigging and so my involvement I mean basically I run day-to-day along with the team in California now and pretty much taking care of all the production schedule and the material selecting with the team.
Speaker 2:Wow, that's a lot going on. Yeah, adam, introduce yourself. Well, hey, everybody, thanks for having me. Yeah, I am Adam Osterloo. I've been with Tow Tools a couple years now as the regional sales manager, and I got my start in the towing industry back in the mid-'90s and just stayed connected to it all those years, even though I did other things along the way, and about 2013, towards the end of 2013, I started selling tow trucks and Landall trailers out of Las Vegas for a company that used to be called Twin State Equipment, and somewhere along that line, johnny and I met at a tow show I don't remember exactly which one it was, but I was always more on the truck sales side and and I really got started selling Johnny's stuff with my own business here in Alabama about four or five years ago now and and then became a sales manager with him just a couple years ago. So, oh, wow, you've got quite a range of experience there. Yeah, I'll just say that.
Speaker 3:Definitely he's got the experience.
Speaker 2:I see that. That's awesome. That sounds like a good team working together. I also see that music is one of your passions. What instrument do you play? I'm a multi-instrumentalist, but piano is my main instrument. I started playing when I was three years old. I'm the worship director at my church here in Madison, Alabama. That's my full-time gig. I keep all the volunteers going there and run all the music and all the technical stuff for the church. That's awesome. He did really well with his church as well. Yep, very good. I enjoy it, cal.
Speaker 1:Yeah, wes, I have to tell you this. When I met Johnny, I had brown hair and I had hair. That's how long Johnny and I, we crashed a party together. Oh, my God, that's where we were. We were in the hallway and there was a great party going on and I had my doctor jacket on and, adam, I wear this doctor jacket all the time, so I've seen you at shows, but, yeah, I have to tell you. I went in and they said, oh, come on, in, doc, let me get you a slice of pizza, let me get you some cake, let me get you a drink, let me, let me get you some cake, let me get you a drink. And I said, well, I got my friend Johnny with me. So, oh, yeah, bring Johnny in. And Johnny took over the whole party.
Speaker 1:Oh I bet he did. Yeah, he has a great personality.
Speaker 3:I tried to do that.
Speaker 1:Yes, yeah, I can see that you have a great personality and you've done a lot for the industry, and that's part of this. You know, when you bring on people like Adam, who has the right culture, and then, all of a sudden, people buy you, first, your company, second, your product and service, third, and that's why Adam's done so well in life. So, adam, I was very glad that April talked you and Johnny into the podcast, so I'll shut up Wes and let you carry on this conversation.
Speaker 2:Well and you bring up a good point, dj Every auction, every show that Johnny or Cold Foods has done, they've contributed something like that. What else can they do to help? Yes, it's an outstanding company and we've got to take a quick break, but after the break we'll come back to talk about how we work with them so well and telling them something direct. That's Donnie Adams. You can hang around until after the break, Absolutely.
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Speaker 1:Welcome back listeners. Of course you know you're listening to the number one podcast in the towing and recovery industry Towing News Channel and I can't tell you how much these guys they're good people and I want you to know. If you ever get a chance, you go by their booth, stop, visit them and learn a little bit about their product. I want to remind all our listeners please remember to like, review and share everywhere. If you'd like to hear another industry expert like Adam Sonny, by all means yes, sonny's son. If you want to see another industry expert on the podcast with us, just dial the hotline number right here in the podcast center 706 409 5603.
Speaker 2:We are so honored to have Johnny and Adam with Toe Toes on with us and they are a main feature in our TowingEquipmentDirectcom website. We fill them up on our Facebook pages. Their products are excellent. Wes is very leery to promote a product at all whatsoever. He needs to make sure it works, that it's a quality product. He will not take on anything that he does not feel is worthy of. Number one is it's a life-and-death situation. If the, if the equipment is not good and um, he needs to make sure that part is good and it's Johnny Sun. Total synthetic equipment has held up to that very high standard, unless has a very high standard as far as having another guest join, like Johnny's son. I don't think so. I think we got a unicorn right here. I have heard stories about Johnny and DJ at a post show and something about a Japanese mafia.
Speaker 4:Maybe I'm not sure I don't know at a tow show and something about a.
Speaker 2:Japanese mafia? Maybe I'm not sure. I don't know, but I'm sure it's a great story. And how many drinks in were you?
Speaker 3:All right, this is a long, long, long story, but I will make everything short. Well, when I got into the industry, it was a few of the Japanese tow company contact our Japan Osaka branch and they say they had a problem with certain product in America. And of course they bring this to me because I'm the one running everything in the state. And so I went to the Toshio and I'm actually translating for some of the which I think is a tow company but tow box. But later on I found out they are actually Japanese mafia roster whole company over there. So everything interesting is after the meeting and the meeting, dj Dave and many others here, of course also Jordan.
Speaker 3:Then I went back to Japan to have a meeting, went back to Japan to have a meeting. As soon as I landed in Japan I checked in my hotel, put down everything. My phone rang in the hotel room and I'm like huh, I was just getting ready for the meeting and so I pick up this phone call. So this guy on the other end speak English, which you know I was over in Japan, right? So I'm like hi. He said hi, mr Sun, this is so-and-so from the US Embassy, and I'm like huh, yes, he said well, we know you are meeting with so-and-so this afternoon. What's your intention with him?
Speaker 3:I'm like, well, I'm selling the product, and they asked me to get in contact with some of the US manufacturers. And so he said well, you know that he is a very dangerous man in Japan. I said, well, I didn't know that, but now I know what should I do. He said, well, you just go to your meeting, we are watching you, just stay calm and be safe. I'm like okay, if anything dangerous, are you going? Are you coming to save me? Well, of course they are not right. So, but they just, you know, they just want to know why I'm meeting those people, you know. But they do know who I am and know where I check in. That's where I was surprised. So, but anyway, after the years, you know, I had a good talk with the big boss and then I started bringing more of the Japanese team together. Then that's how I got involved with Savatek, then became Dojo's, so that's how the whole story was.
Speaker 2:So the mafia helped you get into the Savatek, or no? I don't think that's true. No.
Speaker 3:No, they won Savatek. They won exclusive with Savatek, with Airbag at that time, and I know that's not the way to go. And okay, they actually start with. They want $200,000 as an investment into their group, which I say no. And I do remember the employee I have in Japan. He was so nervous when I say no and I say that I just don't want to pay the money and have them just do that for me. But they were saying that, hey, if you pay us, we will promote your product. But I said no, I want people to like the product and know the quality. Is there not like you guys dominate them to buy our stuff? And I had to pay you, which I know that later on I probably have to pay every year, right?
Speaker 2:so once they had you paying, that amount of money was always going to be an out for it yeah and I know, at that meeting table I think it's over 18 of them.
Speaker 3:They all wear masks. I mean you have to imagine that I walk in. About 18 people sit in the room wearing masks and this is way before COVID.
Speaker 2:Okay, what year was this, I was going to ask.
Speaker 3:This is back in 2010.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, they're a little bit premature in the mouth 2010. Oh yeah, they're a little bit premature, they're in the mouth. This is why everybody inside of Toe Tools refers to Johnny as the Don we got the godfather of the Toe Tools podcast and DJ Harrington, and we have the Don of the Japanese mafia, I guess.
Speaker 3:But they are all good men. I mean. In some way I say, hey, they run, the good Japanese do run a good pulling company. I mean, but just, they are all related to the mafia group somehow.
Speaker 4:I will say this last time that I got to meet them, they did bring some of the best whiskey we've ever had, it was fantastic, that's a strong point.
Speaker 2:Yes, For sure. Well, we got you from. How long have you been, Johnny? How long have you been in America?
Speaker 3:I've been here since 92, so what? It's over 30, 40 years now.
Speaker 2:Two generations, that's awesome. Yeah, yeah, so you're super slangs.
Speaker 3:Yes.
Speaker 2:One of the things I like about them is they have that black to dark cover, which is negotiable how effective it is. They have that rubber hose in the middle. Isn't that what makes them so durable?
Speaker 3:Yes, super Swing is using the Honeywell Spectra US made material for the roll. We specially select that material because it is the strongest material. That is also used on the bulletproof vest, and so when we and the engineer reviewing the rope, we know we need something really, really strong, and that's what we pick at that time. So and it's Honeywell Spectra Super Swing.
Speaker 2:So that's Kevlar, you use Kevlar? No, it's a type of Kevlar, is a brand name. Yeah, Kleenex is a brand name for tissue. Yeah, kleenex is a brand name for a tissue.
Speaker 2:What I know about Spectra was when Kevlar was first tried in the early 90s in round slings and was effective for strength but would fail because of heat buildup, spectra was one of the products they turned to and, like you say, it's made by Honeywell, which is a very trusted American-made firm, and Spectre is another type of brand name of high-performance fiber that's been around for generations and it's a seed for Kevlar in some areas. Would you say that's accurate, johnny or Adam? Well, you've got different applications. So Kevlar is more of a what would you say? Maybe more of like a woven fiber that you're going to put in a sheet, whereas the Spectra is what you're going to make a rope out of. It's used in Bulletproof Vest. It's also used in biomedical applications. It's used, you know, when you go, when you talk to like professional climbers and riggers that are doing for, like, high mountain rescue and stuff like that Spectre is often the preferred rope compound to use. It's used in all other synthetic rope applications, say marine and uh lifting military military.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah. So it's a well-known, improving product. There's no doubt about it. Right, and one of the things I say to people when they get those, they're not bulletproof you can't just put them in any chain, but they do have that extra layer of protection, and that helps a lot, doesn't it?
Speaker 3:Oh yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, anytime you add something between what you're hooking to, whether it's that Cordura sleeve, or sometimes you have to use more than a cordura sleeve if you've got more of a sharp edge or a hard corner. Sometimes you need an old floor mat or mud flap or something, but anytime you put something in between it, you're just saving, you're extending the life of that rope. Sure, one of the things I like to use to protect straps whether they're the high-performance fibers like what we're talking about, just regular polyester recovery straps A great tool is a mat that's made for a horse's stall. Buy it down at a tractor supply company, et cetera. It's like a waffle, almost, and it's a great protection for straps. It really is. Yep, those are. I've seen you, I've been with you when you've got those and I've seen when we cut. What you do is cut strips with it, right, wes.
Speaker 4:Yeah, that's right.
Speaker 2:You cut strips and you use it like that Excellent protection.
Speaker 4:And it's cost efficient too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's right you cut strips and you use it like that. Excellent protection and it's cost efficient too. I mean, they don't cost that much and you could use that mat in four or five different pieces. Sure, absolutely. Yeah, we love the SuperSplint. We've been using them for years now. We really believe in the product. Come to a training class, you'll see us use them often. Talk to us about the soft shackles. Can you explain?
Speaker 2:a little bit about that, Well let's go to a break and then, when we come back, I would love to talk about these soft shackles, because that's a very often asked question of me now. So everybody, come back with a break with us and we will discuss these soft shackles.
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Speaker 1:Welcome back listeners. You know you're listening to the Towing News Now channel. This has been a great interview with with Tow Tools and I think it's great to have Johnny and Adam on here. So, April, let me pass it on back over to you and Wes.
Speaker 2:As we were going through this break, we started talking about the soft shackles, and that has been a question a lot of people have asked me about Anybody who's used it. People are reluctant to use new things, and especially when it comes like a shackle but, anybody who's used it has raged, raged about it, and I would love to hear your guys's input on these and and how they work in speech. Make it away.
Speaker 3:Johnny, okay, um, soft shackle. I mean this, this product actually come right out after we have success in the super sling and of course that we also using Honeywell Spectra as a material for the soft shackle and we actually specially define our shackle with certain links. If you have seen our soft shackle, you will notice that we are longer than the normal shackles. The reason of that is we have especially choice the links to choice the links to for your everyday work, because some of the shuffles are just way too short and difficult to hook on and our extreme soft shuffles are all specially designed in different size and the links for you to easily to hook on and, of course, is just as strong as a super flowing that's a great time.
Speaker 2:So taking the end user actually using the product into a town, a lot of really man practice in the set point, that's excellent yes, I see that you have. The range in your sizes are three, eight, up to one inch. And then, for example, I'm looking at a 7, 16 and it says extreme on it. That's the extremely that I think, and that is a 20 millimeter soft shackle, or 20, 20 inches. Yes. What is the difference in the extreme versions and the rig, the other type of soft shackle that you have?
Speaker 3:Well, the extreme. So what happened is there on the 3a and the 716? We have them in the off-road market so that is why for a while we we've been calling them extreme, uh, soft charcoal and um. So 3a and 716 pretty much are good for, you know, day-to-day work and the 1-inch they are using by the Navy. I know that they have been on the underwater mission to pick up some of the submarine UAV, to pick up some of the submarine UAV, that type of equipment. So we know they are working on the extreme condition. So it's perfect to the name and also the product.
Speaker 2:And so this works well underwater as well for any underwater rescues or recovery that need to be done, and it's very versatile, it's easier, it's a lot lighter to carry.
Speaker 3:And much easier to dive with that. Also, in the water it's slow, so the diver can much easier to carry them.
Speaker 2:Definitely a good tool in the modern age that makes a lot of sense. So one of the things we've done at Towing Equipment Direct is we've actually created packages. We've got a package on there of us running a heavy duty with the super slings. I'd want on with the shackles. So that's something new that we're carrying on our TowingEquipmentDirectcom website. And the last thing I want to talk about today is the synthetic rope, which we're just going to get ready to start adding to the website. Tell us about the synthetic winch lines. That especially folks will add.
Speaker 2:Well, synthetic winch lines are still I would say, they're still being still being introduced, or not necessarily introduced. They're still being adopted be a better word um by the towing recovery uh industry and and to some, to some degree, you've got um. The reason that is it's because you still got manufacturers that are still learning the benefits of synthetic rope and you need to set up your truck just a little bit different to run synthetic rope on it rather than your typical steel winch lines, and also there are some states that really mandate that it be an OEM-equipped thing. So if the truck didn't originally come with synthetics, then switching it over might exclude you from a towing contract in certain jurisdictions, in certain states. So it's still being adopted.
Speaker 2:However, it's a much safer way to go because we all know that these things break and typically what ends up causing human harm is the recoil effect caused by the memory of steel.
Speaker 2:So as you bend steel over a drum it creates a memory and once that is loaded with, you know, pulled under load, pulled tension under load, you've got already kinetic energy built up from that load, but then you've got that multiplied by the recoil effect and that can really be a killer. So the big draw and the big push that really should exist to go to synthetic rope is really based on the safety of the operator and safety of anybody else on scene. Beyond that, you run a higher minimum break strength on synthetics across the board and so you wind up with a product that's lighter, a product that's safer and a product that's just as strong, if not stronger, than your steel rope. I knew the minimum brake stress. What was the working load compared to the comparable chain? Well, the working load limit is a little different calculation that's based on an engineering spec. It's an engineering safety spec.
Speaker 2:A lot of our Super Slings are a 1-3 or a 1-5 engineering spec and you'll see that on our website, different product pages. And, johnny, I think it's a 1-3 on the winch lines. Is that correct?
Speaker 3:Yes, we have a oh no, no, we have a full size, we have a 3A now and the work though the, the engineering spec for the working load.
Speaker 2:So it's a one-third of the of the minimum brake strength as you're working load on them on the winch lines, is that correct?
Speaker 3:Correct, that's correct. Yeah and yeah they are 85% lighter than the steel cable.
Speaker 2:Right now he's the pound to pound equivalent, so I got confused by the question here same size rope versus steel cable, three-quarter inch, on a big heavy-duty fiber, the synthetic. You guys are talking slightly stronger.
Speaker 4:There's a higher.
Speaker 2:It has a higher break strength, but the working load is going to be Usually the same, if not just a little bit more.
Speaker 3:Well, the I know our winch line actually come out from some of our Super Sling and Soft Shocker customers and they've been asking about it. Ron Meyer at Ohio. He helped us develop this pro winch line and they have been using a lot of customers in Ohio Pennsylvania area. They have been using our winch line for years and I understand why they need that in that area because the cold winter the synthetic winch line are way better to handle within the cold and the raining weather.
Speaker 2:I see that.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I got a couple comments tonight. First of all, somebody that I'm talking to is thinking about switching to synthetic winch line. I suggest you'll never, ever do it unless it's a brand new truck. It's never had steel cable on any of the pulleys, any of the winch drums, etc. That way you can get, you can go let me up, you can go over those wind strums and those pulleys with a file, all you want.
Speaker 2:You're going to miss some little spot and have a burr in that pulley. That's going to cause the beginning of the failure of the rope. And when the rope fails, though, it can be tied in a knot to be repaired, etc. You can't do that with a steel table. There's actual splicing methods as well, isn't it Not with synthetic ropes? Let me take that back. You can weave it back together, and you can splice it back together, and you can use the different splicing tools and the needles and that to weave it back together. You take upon yourself the risk of you know when that breaks, right, when that breaks it's, it's on you, it's not so. I'm not a big boy, but that would be a temporary emergency in the field repair only.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I was going with that is. I recommend to folks that when they're going to try to do it on a brand new truck, never seen steel cable. The other thing, when I looked over the years at the price versus a steel cable, versus synthetic cost of something is one thing. The value of something is a whole other subject of something is a whole other subject. The value that steel table does not have to go out of a big wind shop, come back to the shop, unwind it, rewind it. The value of that time has to have a value. The value of your shoulders dealing with that steel table, pulling out 200 foot of it to pull something that has to have a value. You calculate, calculate. All that in the synthetic winch line is a much better deal in the long run in my opinion yes, so anyway, that's my two cents worth.
Speaker 3:Well, I know that a lot of times people will use our winch line extension first. So we have a line of the extension that you can use as an add-on. If you still want to run your steel cable as a base but you want the reach out to be synthetic, our winch line extension. It is actually one of our popular items for people who still want to run both. You can run on both steel and synthetic all together. The benefit of the extension winch line in synthetic is way easy to handle. Lighter, 85% lighter than the steel cable. So that's that's one of the choice for the 716, 3a, 3 quarter and the 5a. Well, a while ago, as in the older, but you know, that's that's the size of the extension line we have the one thing to a lot of people start with that extension line.
Speaker 2:We, over the years, introduce the people to the synthetic winch lines. They start with the extension to use them a couple times and try one on a new truck. That's great information. Now I was just going to say that extension line you know. Another great thing about it is, if you've done work with wire rope extensions, you know how much of a pain they are to put back in the toolbox once you deploy them the first time. With a synthetic winch line it's much easier to pack up and deploy every time than a steel extension will ever be. You'll save so much time dealing with a synthetic winch line extension than you will working with a steel one. Absolutely agree.
Speaker 2:So yeah, winch extension lines, we're adding them to towingequipmentdirectcom right now along with the winch lines. Like I said, we've got some pretty exciting packages with the different slings what I would use on a heavy, what I would use on a medium. So we encourage everybody to go to our website and check that out. Guys, I don't want to rush you off, but we're right out of studio time. So yeah, both of you can give us some parting words please.
Speaker 3:Well, thanks for the time and it was good to talk to you guys in the air, and we should do this sometimes again.
Speaker 2:We definitely will. Absolutely, we will, Adam. Hey, yeah, thank you very much for having us on. It's been a pleasure and we look forward to doing this again in the future. Awesome April, close us down. If you guys would love to learn more about Toll Tools and Total Equipment Direct, visit us at TotalEquipmentDirectcom or call me at 910-747-9000. Dj, I think this one's going to be a good one. What do you think?
Speaker 1:I think it would be a fantastic one, and a lot of people will listen to it. All of these, johnny and Adam, we archive them. So, months later, if someone wants to learn more about toe tools, all they have to do is dial up the podcast, hook it onto their phone, and's it. That's why we've been blessed with so many good listeners, and I can't thank the the people out there telling their friends about the, the new towing channel.
Speaker 2:So it's excellent we thank you for everything you do. Dj, thank chuck, thank the entire atri team until Until next time. We love you, America. Peace, faith and love.