Flatbed Towing for Work Truck in NE Minneapolis

We recently received a call from a customer in NE Minneapolis, MN, looking for flatbed towing for his work truck. Within minutes, Minneapolis Towing showed up on site and assessed the issues with the work vehicle. The vehicle would not start, so we prepared our flatbed tow truck and got it in position in order to winch it up on the deck. Once we got the work truck up on our flatbed tow truck, we towed it to the auto shop of choice for our customer.

Here are some tips on how to properly winch a vehicle:

Flatbed Tow Truck Preparation

Make sure that your first order of business is safety. In order to stay safe, preparation is the key. If you are properly prepared for winching, then you, your customer and both vehicles should be safe from harm.

The first thing to check is if the winch is properly spooled. If it is not, you run the risk of having to fix the issue in the middle of the winching procedure. Make sure to regularly check the towing line / towing cable is in good condition, because if it isn’t, you could lose a finger.

Speaking of fingers, make sure you are wearing heavy duty leather gloves to reduce the risk of getting blisters or painful cuts.

Proper Winch Rigging

Make sure to park the track and apply the immobilizers and brakes. Once that is complete, then you can attach the towing line to the stranded vehicle.

3 Ways to Attach the Towing Line to the Vehicle

1. Single Line: Find a good anchor point on the vehicle, pull the line to it and attach it the anchor point with a shackle, strap or both. Then lock the clutch and attach the remote. Finally, put some tension on the line and then winch in small, smooth pulls.
2. Double Line: Add a snatch block to increase the power of your pull over small distances. At the anchor point, attach the snatch block and with the line drawn around it, attach it to the vehicle. Once the line is tight, put a coat, blanket or another item over it.
3. Triple Line: Using the same technique as the double line, except in the triple line you need two anchor points and you add two snatch blocks. Make sure to maintain a right angle (90 degrees) between the first anchor and the winch. Triple check that all of the connections before starting the winching. Use short, smooth pulls while operating the vehicle during the winching operation.