I thought I would give some insight on modifications for your 4x4! These are based on personal experience and listening to fellow 4x4ers who have been doing this a LONG time.
First modification should be the ability to get yourself UN-stuck! To start with, this means reliable tow points, front and rear on the vehicle. Sometimes factory tow points are ok, on some rigs you may need to add these.
Then you will want to buy a tow or "snatch" strap. Get the kind with loops on both ends and some "D" rings for hooking them up. I keep mine in a bag along with my winch gloves and a short piece of chain. (More on the chain later)
Continuing on with getting unstuck, the next "cheapest" unstuck device is a HI LIFT Jack! They are called farm jacks for a reason, they have been using them forever! You can literally use it as a winch and pull yourself out 48-60" at a time if nothing else!
Read up on how to use and MAINTAIN them properly. You will see lots of "cool rigs" who leave their Hi-Lift mounted outside their rig all year long without any cover over the mechanics. These are usually the same guys whose Hi-Lift levers get stuck, have to "hit them" with a rock to move, etc... Keep it lubed, and stored properly. They have some nice plastic molded cases you can get for them now, or covers, or mine stays in the garage unless I am taking a trip, and I lube/check it before loading up.
CHAINS ARE dangerous, please do not use them as a strap, because it literally could turn into a life/death situation, especially crappy non-rated chain. They have ratings just like bolts, straps, ropes, etc.
With that in mind, I STILL carry about a 6' chain with the "links" for hooking them together in my GO bag. The reason is..some of these rigs suspensions are so flexy, even my 60" hi-lift cannot get them off the ground. So instead, I loop the chain around the frame/axle, holding them together, THEN I am able to jack it up a MUCH shorter distance to get a wheel off the ground. (Lower = SAFER too!!) I have seen rachet straps used the same way with great success, chain is just what I have used.
Ok...final thought for today is this....bigger lifts and bigger tires and lockers all usually mean you can go MORE places and get stuck "deeper" in the woods than before!!
My #1 mod before ANY LIFT or bigger tires or lockers is a winch. We call it the "Warn Locker", the most imporant locker of them all. It will save you body damage, keep you safe, allow you to "walk" up something too hard to drive over safely, etc.
Buy a brand name winch...even if this means waiting another 2-3 months of saving up your cash, you will curse that cheap "chinese/generic" junk when it conks out on you 1/2 way up the gully and you have to get someone ELSE to winch you up/down. I have owned both Ramsey and Warn and like em both. (Look at the WINCH SAVER product, saves your winch cable/gives you a nice weight on the line, etc)
Another winch line tip...don't do the "hook it to the D ring on your bumper" and winch tight thing. If you do this any length of time you have just created the breaking point on your cable! That "bend" is a kink/weak spot, you are much better off to use that winch saver or just winch in VERY carefully with just the hook sticking straight out of the fairlead.
I hope that helps, I have been taking out new 4x4 owners for about 6 years now, hitting the trails for the first time and this is the same advice our club gives them. I cannot tell you how many of them have gotten addicted to the hobby and have gone on to build huge rigs!!
Sam Hinton
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