Protect-A-Tow

[ByeTheWay]

I took the "add flap" off 50,000 miles ago and have not had a single issue yet. I'm a boondocker and travel a lot of gravel roads.

[RRR]

Originally Posted by LarryJB

Well I tore a hole in the netting when scrapped the hitch while exiting a gas station. What's the best way to patch it?

I wouldn't worry about it. I run a 10" drop hitch and I talked to them about cutting a hole for it and how to keep it from unraveling. They said it is a rip stop material and wouldn't keep tearing. It hasn't.

[LarryJB]

well, I tore yet another hole in the PAT, but this time it cut the bungee as well, and that whole area under the hitch is a mangled mess. I managed to tie the bungee cord back together and I have decided to try using my 4" drop instead of the 8" to see how that works. I know the tow bar will not be level, but blue ox says it can be as much as 3" off level, so I am going to try it.
anyway, I think I want to patch this one, at lease where it is torn at the edge. What would be the best material to look for to do this with?

[LarryJB]

Originally Posted by LarryJB

well, I tore yet another hole in the PAT, but this time it cut the bungee as well, and that whole area under the hitch is a mangled mess. I managed to tie the bungee cord back together and I have decided to try using my 4" drop instead of the 8" to see how that works. I know the tow bar will not be level, but blue ox says it can be as much as 3" off level, so I am going to try it.
anyway, I think I want to patch this one, at lease where it is torn at the edge. What would be the best material to look for to do this with?

2cats trekn graciously sent me some PAT fabric and the DW sewed it on over the holes and it now looks much better.

Thanks 2cats

[georgelesley]

The pat folks have been very good with support. We like the product, but have had the same issues keep coming back with the bungee cord and the cheap plastic hooks on the end of it. I have put a carabiner on one end and will not have to put one on the other end as the hook broke this last trip.

The concept is great and support super. I have contacted the company about my issues with the hooks and bungee in the center coming loose. I did my own fix with that problem and it is working well. With some minor engineering fixes it would be a great product instead of just a good one.

[Easyrider]

Originally Posted by Dutch Star Don

I like to keep things simple. I've tried several things over the years and have found a simple solution.....it's called Road Wrap. Road Wrap is like saran wrap. It comes in an 18" x 100' role for $14.00 from Amazon. It's thicker than saran wrap and is sticky on one side. I've used it on three different cars now when towing.

I simply start at the front of the wheel well on one side, stick it down, stick my fingers in both ends of the roll and roll out enough to reach the other wheel well. On my GMC Canyon, it uses about 5' to cover the front. On my Canyon, it covers where the tow cable connects, so I just slice that spot with a razor.

I leave the plastic on until we reach our destination. As an example, we may leave for the Grand Canyon that takes two days. If we stop the first night and decide to go out to dinner, I leave it on. I will usually cut a large slit if the grille needs to be exposed for air flow. Once we reach the Grand Canyon, I just peel the wrap off and throw it away.

My description probably will take longer to read than do. After installing it a couple of times on the three different cars I've used it on, I quickly learned where to start the film and end it. I can put the film on in about 3-4 minutes.

I like this idea, we have the Protect A Tow and think it's a good product that works well, but it collects a lot of road grime when being used and is a pain to fold up and putaway after we get to our destination. And our hands are always very dirty after putting it away. If it rains while we are out I always spread the Protect A Tow out over a table so the rain cleans it. If I had known about the wrap I would have been interested in trying it.

[timjet]

Originally Posted by Dutch Star Don

I'm pretty particular about my cars. I've been using the Road Wrap for almost two years and no damage. Most debris is going to skip off of the toad, not embed itself in the vehicle. The wrap protects what hits and skips off.

Don, it's hard for me to believe this plastic wrap will protect the towed from rocks or other debris that would otherwise scratch or dent the towed. But I'm willing to give it a try. I can't use a prot a tow because the MH exhaust interferes.

[LarryJB]

This looks to be similar to the stuff they use when transporting new cars. Except they pretty much wrap the whole car in it.

[dennis45]

Been reading thru this thread and all the trouble folks have with their various toad protection methods.
I just recently got rid of my last rock guard finally. I had the Blueox Kar Gard and the Roadmaster Rock Gard. Close to $1000 invested in these two devices and all I can say is they were more trouble than they were worth.

After simply removing the rear flap in Whitehorse, YK on our way to AK, I no longer use it or any protection device. And after more than 20,000 miles, no rock chips. Still the OEM windshield.

Rather than spending your time and money and messing with grime covered gizmos, try removing the rear flap and see how it goes without. You will be surprised at just how simple, clean and rock free towing can be.

Make sure you have a good set of flaps behind the rear duals set so they just clear when the suspension is dumped.

[NATURELOVER1]

It's been a year since the last comment on the Protect A Tow. Any additional comments? I'm not a do-it-yourselfer, so would I have to have my local RV place drill holes in my vehicles to use this?

[CreekBruin]

Originally Posted by NATURELOVER1

It's been a year since the last comment on the Protect A Tow. Any additional comments? I'm not a do-it-yourselfer, so would I have to have my local RV place drill holes in my vehicles to use this?

This is a great product but it does have some issues, some of which have been covered above. We originally installed ours in anticipation of a trip to Alaska. For that trip and for all the rest of our travels it has worked well.

Additional comments:
1. The fabric tends to fall apart quickly with heavy use and less quickly with normal use. We destroyed one Protect-A-Tow in one day crossing over the Top of the World Highway on our way from the Yukon into Alaska. This is a long, no BS, scary, narrow dirt and gravel road with a sheer drop-off. We emailed the Manufacturer and he sent us a replacement immediately. That said, this device served its intended purpose. Our toad was unscathed though incredibly dusty. We are on our third Protect-A-Tow and need a replacement. Why do I keep coming back? Because it works. I would rather replace a $243 Protect-A-Tow than the paint or headlight or windshield on my Jeep Rubicon. When we were in Alaska we saw all of these problems on other toads not using Protect-A-Tow.

2. The plastic clips at the end of the pole tend to break very easily and repeatedly. This is very annoying as a metal or more heavy duty part would avoid this issue. I am now duct taping one end of the pole to keep the system together. I had previously replaced the clip with an extra set sent me by the manufacturer when we received our replacement Protect-A-Tow ruined on the Top of the World Highway. I do not understand why the Mfr. does not use a metal piece here. Aggravating.

3. Early on I rejected the idea of wrapping my toad with that plastic wrap as discussed above. When I pull into a campground the last thing I would want to do is unwrap a bunch of plastic wrap before I do anything else with the toad like getting in it to search for a campsite. Or having that stuff in the way when we have to unhook in a hurry (like when you get yourself into a situation where the only thing you can do is to unhook the tow to get yourself out of a tight spot) . When I arrive at campsite, I would much rather unhook the tow and immediately go to dinner. I am forcing myself to be diplomatic here so all I will say is that it is not for me.

4. The set up and take down does take a couple of minutes to do. You do have to roll the Protect-A-Tow up in a bag. Your hands will get dirty. I am used to it.

Hope that helps. The Protect-A-Tow concept absolutely works.

[RRR]

I solved the plastic clip problem by attaching a small carabiner clip to the end.

[CreekBruin]

Originally Posted by RRR

I solved the plastic clip problem by attaching a small carabiner clip to the end.

Good idea.

[MRUSA14]

Originally Posted by CreekBruin

The set up and take down does take a couple of minutes to do. You do have to roll the Protect-A-Tow up in a bag. Your hands will get dirty. I am used to it.

I don't put it in a bag, I roll it up while attached to the rear of the MH and fasten the roll to the rear of MH with bungee cords. Takes me one minute if I am slow about it. Yes, hands get dirty.