Tow chain/ Tug chain for assisting other drivers?

Don’t be the jerk that jerks.

 

Ice melt as some mention can work but your most likely waiting for it to work and melt the ice some before you can even think about moving. I carry coal ash from a coal fired furnace, it’s worked better than anything else suggested over the years, it’s light and it works right away unlike Ice melt.

I see the cautions and concerns about tugging and don’t think the inexperienced should be tugging with chains, they can, do and will do serious damage when they break! Notice I said when not if they will break!
One poster said he has been using his for years without issue but I know by his description he has already given enough shock load to it that now it’s just a matter of when it will give up and damage something.
The shock load of a good tow rope transfers the shock in a useable manner and is designed for it. So a good tow rope is best. For those with little to no experiance a good strap rated for the task at hand would be second and chains last on the list.

 

There is a lot of misconceptions about chains in your post.
It's the wham/bam people that create the problems, not the chains.
A rope or strap will store energy, the harder you pull on it and whip around when it breaks, a chain can't do that because the energy is not stored in 1 link.
The only way a chain will whip is if you are going at speed when you take up the slack and then it's your momentum that creates the whip.
Some energy can be stored in what you are pulling or pulling with and that can create a little problem but a chain will still whip less than a strap or rope in that scenario.

 

Absolutely no misconceptions! You ever see the difference between the damage created by a chain compared to a strap? I have seen it both on one of the vehicles and the lost limb of someone who wasn’t smart enough to stay out of the way when one broke!
Some of us were taught how, some of us learned the hard way but as stated for a beginner, new to pulling, never really experienced anything mechanical of the nature. It’s best they use the tow rope or a properly rated strap over the chain any day of the year.

 

Take 2 chains…. Throw/stuff em under the tires that are spinning. Problem solved.