Pillow talk...oops Pillowtrack

[1leglance]

Like any tool it is up to the use to learn how to use it correctly and when it isn't the right tool for the job.

We found that in snow they are too slippery....lucky for me I don't end up in snow often

I wish there was 1 thing that magically did it all...bridge, traction, lift...but hey then how could I spread my money around to all these great companies?

It will be interesting after the W.A.V.E. Sportsmobile is finished to see what solutions I can find for something that is almost 10k lbs.

Pillowtracks, Maxtrax, cool aluminum bridges...not sure any of it can stand up to that kind of wgt.

 

[Pillowtrack]

Hi,

First, if we may add one more PT application to the list: BBB (Beer Break Bench - the person in the photo is NOT the driver…).

Second we must apologize in this forum on behalf of our R&D team:
The next PT version to be released is the MiniSUV version for ultra light 4x4's (up to 5000lb vehicles – the red version serves vehicles of up to 7000lb) – spy photos attached.

Third – The PT Expedition version is already on the drawing table and will support higher GVW, expedition level tires, and better handling of snow and ice.

As for the name – we are open for suggestions (we seriously are…)

Pillowtrack

 

[1leglance]

Hey Guys,
great to see you here as this place is a wealth of info...
And glad you are open to name options.
In the USA and maybe elsewhere the word pillow is pretty oposite of the market you are targeting

BagTracks
AirTracks
would be the first 2 names I would go with that tell the story of the product and have a masculine should.

The red units I have been testing and taking to shows have held up great to the 6800lbs of the Disabled Explorers FJC.

Great for rock ledges, crevices, sand, mud, high centering and tire changing.
Snow has been the only issue and it is good to hear you are looking into that.

My kids have made good use of the lounge factor of the air bladders (with a blanket covering them).

One other modification I did was to hand trim down some fresh valve stems and perm push one into each fill tube.

Great product and I am especially interesting in the larger capacity version and the 4x4 Wheelchair Van for Expeditions is just under 10,000lbs!

 

[winkosmosis]

What is the advantage of these over other traction devices?

 

[7wt]

What is the advantage of these over other traction devices?

From what I can tell, light weight, packability and flexibility.

 

[1leglance]

What is the advantage of these over other traction devices?

very tough question to answer as every need has a required tool.

If you are in nothing but sand all the time I like the Maxtrax.
If really need to bridge and that is about it, then the classic alumin true bridging ladder can't be beat.

However in life we go a variety of places and have different needs along the way.
These are very light and can roll up and pack away easily, no outside mounting required.
They can be used flat/deflated in sand & mud as a traction mat...I like that I can tie some paracord on them and have them flop along behind until I am to a safe place (very short distance usually).
The can be inflated to assit with rock ledges, fill a crevice, give traction if high centered or lift a tire onto the hub when changing (that is specific to the disabled).

Plus in camp they are an extra lounge cushion

Granted there are times & places where these aren't the perfect solution but no 1 tool fits everything or we would all own that and not even have this discussion.

 

[bmonday]

What is the advantage of these over other traction devices?

Clearly you missed the pic of the guy using it as a seat cushion during Beertime

 

[bmonday]

Hi,

First, if we may add one more PT application to the list: BBB (Beer Break Bench - the person in the photo is NOT the driver…).

Second we must apologize in this forum on behalf of our R&D team:
The next PT version to be released is the MiniSUV version for ultra light 4x4's (up to 5000lb vehicles – the red version serves vehicles of up to 7000lb) – spy photos attached.

Third – The PT Expedition version is already on the drawing table and will support higher GVW, expedition level tires, and better handling of snow and ice.

As for the name – we are open for suggestions (we seriously are…)

Pillowtrack

Can I suggest putting grommets or loops in the corners, so that one could stake them in place? This may help in slippery conditions, such as ice/snow and mud.

Possible names: AirTrax, Inflate-a-Track

 

[Pillowtrack]

PT's already have grommets (metal loops on one side and a short strap on the other). These are designed to enable cascading one PT to another, gaining longer driving length.

Pillowtrack

 

[bmonday]

Probably sufficient to have grommets just on the one end. Thanks!

 

[Pillowtrack]

Just to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a great 2010.

A small Christmas bonus for us in Pillowtrack to the members of this forum: a $100 Christmas voucher for one of your forum members, with the purchase of a double-PT set.

May this be a year of growth.

Pillowtrack

[ To execute the voucher, please use this promotion code: pt1209jeyhvuuk on our online shop here: http://shop.pillowtrack.com/ (voucher valid until Jan/15th'/2010) ]

 

[Snagger]

There are some unique uses for the Pillowtracks I have found that make me really like them...if only they would change the name

First off let me say that there is no perfect solution, you find what fits the need.

I have used the PT's for getting up rock ledges without a problem.
They fill in a crevice or gap nicely (assuming they are sized for that hole).
I have placed one deflated under a tire that wasn't quite making contact when I high centered and inflated to give me traction.
I have learned to tie a bit of paracord on to them so after I get through/over the problem area they flop along behind me until I get to a place where I can safely get out and retrieve/pack them (very important for a person with mobility issues not to return to a muddy,sandy,rocky area).

And the last and most creative use (which I still need to get good pics of)...
I have found that when changing a tire the act of lifting the wheel onto the hub is a real pain for me, much less someone in a wheelchair.
So I roll the tire onto the deflated mat & add air to raise the tire up until I can tilt it onto the hub. It has worked well in a few test cases.

Again I am not saying these are the perfect solution for everyone or everything...but the solve some problems for me in a nice, light,easy to pack way and so they are in the kit with my other air powered toys.

Contrary to what you and Antichrist said, these are not issues that can only be solved with Pillow tracks. A rock or a waffle board would have done just as well in the first example and in the second, removing the punctured shod wheel and then leaning the good wheel against the hub with the axle jacked a little low, one stud through the wheel on that lean, then jacking the axle up a couple of inches and the wheel is not only lifted by the hub but also just falls onto the hub location. there is no need for any extra tools at all, just the jack and the whell brace.

I can see some good uses for the PTs, but let's not just make them up - it won't do them any credibility favours at all.

I am not an experienced off roader or expedition driver, so my opinion is not highly informed and carries little weight, but All I can see these being useful for is filling large crags or potholes quickly instead of filling them with rocks or shoveling earth/sand into them. Being able to slip a PT under a hanging wheel when cross axled is a nice idea, but there are plenty of other methods that work just as well.

If you are crossing the right sort of terrain and have limited space/weight capacity on the vehicle, then fine; these may be for you. However, I see PSPs or waffles as a better alternative where carriage permits, which is why I use the latter.

 

[1leglance]

I never said pillowtracks were the only solution to any problem....any person of reasonable mind knows there are many solutions each having its merits.

What I challenge you to do before you come back on me so strongly with a use I suggest is stop and reference "why" I am making this suggestion.

Please take the method you suggest and try it with 1 arm tied behind your back.
Please take the method you suggest and try it while sitting in a chair.
After this you will have a unique perspective on the solutions we look for at Disabled Explorers. As an amputee (thus the user name 1 Leg Lance) and someone who works with persons who have physical mobility issues we try to find creative solutions to overlanding problems.

The Pillowtracks are not perfect, the set that I have been using and that Overland Journal tested are pre-production units that are over a year old. The have made many changes since then. I don't sell them and I don't get anything if you buy them. We were given the set to eval and we did so.
We also tested the Maxtrax and found they did some things better.
The ability to lift a tire onto a hub was a creative solution not listed in the manual but something we found useful.

Thanks for the idea you posted but I think when you stop and look at it from the perspective I mentioned (myself as an amputee and the wheelchair user I referenced in my previous post) you will see that a hi-lift is tough to use (bottle jacks are better but tough to place).

 

[Snagger]

Lance, I didn't mean to cause any offence. Frankly, I can't imagine how you manage to change a wheel with one arm regardless of equipment - they're so heavy to lift on and off the carriers that most fully able bodied people struggle, so I do have enormous respect for what you achieve, both for yourself and for other disabled folk that you help. (Edit: that actually sounds quite patronising, but isn't meant to be).

My point was only trying to point out that there are other ways of doing everything. I don't lift the wheels onto my hubs because that invariably removes the paint from the wheel centre and hub, allowing rapid rust in the UK dampness. Series LRs and Defender so often have scabby hubs and wheels just because of this. My simple technique would allow just the same ease of fitting the wheel to the hub as using a pillowtrack to lift the wheel up. In either case, you need to operate the vehicle jack, but my method doesn't need any other device.

So, far from being a criticism of what you manage to achieve, and I really can't imagine how much of a challenge some routine things must become, I just don't want to see false justifications of a product. If it works for you, then that is good enough reason for you to buy it, but my quarrel was with the comment that PTs are the only way of changing a wheel without lifting it onto the hub, which is not the case.

 

[Antichrist]

Contrary to what you and Antichrist said, these are not issues that can only be solved with Pillow tracks.

You misread what I said. I didn't say they could only be solved with a pillow track.
I said they were two things that a waffle board or bridging ladder wouldn't do. In fact you could do them with a bridging ladder or waffle board, just not without other "tools" and more effort. So what I was saying was if you take the two items alone, the pillow track would be easier than using one of the other two items.