Ember Offroad

Why your recovery hitch shackle should be vertical, not horizontal

99% of the time when you see a recovery hitch installed it is done horizontally, with the bow shackle hanging down. When putting your recovery hitch to work, though, this creates unnecessary stress and wear on your both your shackle and recovery strap eyelets. Here's why:

UHF antenna sizes: Why big isn't always best, and is often worse

UHF antennas for 4x4s come in sizes ranging anywhere from a foot in height to 8 feet tall, but more antenna doesn't always mean more range. In fact when used in the wrong environment, the taller the antenna, the worse things get.

All-terrain vs Mud-terrain tires; which is best for you?

They say "There are no solutions, only trade-offs", and this is certainly true of tires. No tire can be the best on-road and off, in the dry and wet, softest for the most grip and the most durable, and so on... So are MT or AT tires the best option for your four-wheel-drive?

How to use a 4x4 recovery bridle, and mistakes to avoid

Many recovery points aren't rated for single-point recoveries, and are designed to be used with a bridle across two points to distribute the load. Improper use of bridles can still result in damaging your recovery points or vehicle though.

How to wake up and charge a sleeping ("dead") LiFePO4 lithium battery

All too often, first-time LiFePO4 battery users connect loads to their battery and run it flat, only to find their brand new battery "won't charge" and is seemingly dead. They return their battery, only to have it given back to them working fine. So what was the problem?

Is it worth using high octane premium petrol in your 4x4

The "regular vs high octane" petrol debate has been going strong for many years. Unfortunately, too often these debates are based on incorrect understandings and assumptions, and anecdotal "evidence" based on the same. So let's clear things up.

Do you need a tire deflator for off-roading, and how to use one

As you start off-roading further afield, and into more complex terrain, tire pressure becomes a critical component of your off-road capability and safety. Loose services, rock-crawling, mud, or sand driving all require dramatically different pressures compared to tire pressure for the road.

How to add a solar panels to your 4x4 - Off-grid solar power introduction

Adding solar power to your 4x4 is a game changer for camping and extended trips; rechargeable lights, speakers, fridges, etc., can all be run indefinitely with a sufficient-sized battery and solar panels, as long as the sun is shining.

How fast will a UHF radio drain your battery on standby

If you're meeting up to explore somewhere new with friends this can often mean no phone reception, and needing your UHF radio to find each once you're in the vicinity. If you're there hours early though, how long can you leave your radio on without draining your battery?

Parallel vs series solar panels - Which is best for your 4x4

When connecting multiple panels, you have to decide between wiring them in series for double the voltage, or parallel for double the current, so which is better? From personal experience, I would make the case that parallel is the better solution for camping. Here's why:

Seurasaari Island, Helsinki

Originally home to farmers and fishermen living off the area's natural resources, Seurasaari holds a collection of farmsteads, barns, homes, woodsheds, windmills, a church, boathouses, and fishing craft from as early as the late 1700s, to the mid-1900s.

What is a rope dampener, and why you need one for 4x4 recoveries

In high load recoveries, e.g. deep mud creating suction, inclines, etc. the forces on winch cables, extension straps, kinetic ropes and recovery can be in excess of 2 tonnes (4,500lbs). If one of these breaks, the recoiling line can become a deadly projectile.