A review of three wheel chocks
07-12-2012, 02:49 AM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
A review of three wheel chocks
New F150 scab 6.5' bed 4x4 offroad 18" tires. Needed chocks for stabilizing truck when jacking or winching offroad. Tried three likely candidates that I found on Amazon.com. Chose one. Am sharing my findings.
TESTS PERFORMED
I performed three crude tests on each candidate. The test surface was a dirt parking area with 7/16" gravel that's been pushed down into the dirt. Here are the tests:
(1) Place a chock under each rear tire, put car in drive, release brake.
(2) Place a chock under each rear tire, back up 2 feet, put car in drive, release brake.
(3) Place a chock under each rear tire, put car in drive, accelerate gently until the truck ran over the chocks, inspect chocks for damage.
CANDIDATE-1
Model = Valterra A10-0908
Measured size = 4"H x 5"W x 7"L
Measured weight = 11oz.
Material = heavy, stiff red plastic
Cost = $6.08 each with free shipping with Amazon Prime
URL =
This candidate in test 1 held the truck firmly in place, in test 2 stopped the forward motion of the truck, and in test 3 required a fair amount of power to run over -- leaving both chocks bent and with some plastic burn. Despite the deformations I judge these chocks to be still useable.
CANDIDATE-2
Model = ERNST Mfg #980
Measured size = 4"H x 3.5"W x 7"L
Measured weight = 13oz.
Material = seemed like a stiff, rubbery red plastic
Cost = $19.99 per pair with free shipping (Prime membership not needed)
URL =
This candidate in test 1 barely held the truck in place, in test 2 did not stop the forward motion of the truck, and in test 3 required almost no effort to run over -- leaving the rear wall and one of the stiffening ribs slightly bent on each chock. If one didn't know that these started out straight one would never know the difference.
CANDIDATE-3
Model = Race Ramps RR-WC
Measured size = 4"H x 5"W x 8"L
Measured weight = 6.7 lbs.
Material = very thick, stiff black rubber
Cost = $59.00 for a set of four with free shipping with Amazon Prime
URL =
This candidate in test 1 held the truck firmly in place, in test 2 stopped the forward motion of the truck, and in test 3 required a goodly amount of power to run over -- leaving the chocks dirty but unharmed.
CONCLUSIONS
Candidate-3, the hard rubber Race Ramps, were clearly the only candidate that appeared suitable for the rigors of offroad use and are the ones I'll carry in the truck.
Candidate-1, the Valterra chocks, are not up to offroad recovery work but I'd have no problem trusting them for chocking trailers, etc.
Candidate-2, The Ernst chocks, did not hold the truck well but my guess is that maybe they didn't fit my tires well. In any case they held up fine to being run over, and their bottoms are a bit grippy, so I think they'd make great shop chocks on concrete floors -- for tires they fit.
Hope this info is helpful.
TESTS PERFORMED
I performed three crude tests on each candidate. The test surface was a dirt parking area with 7/16" gravel that's been pushed down into the dirt. Here are the tests:
(1) Place a chock under each rear tire, put car in drive, release brake.
(2) Place a chock under each rear tire, back up 2 feet, put car in drive, release brake.
(3) Place a chock under each rear tire, put car in drive, accelerate gently until the truck ran over the chocks, inspect chocks for damage.
CANDIDATE-1
Model = Valterra A10-0908
Measured size = 4"H x 5"W x 7"L
Measured weight = 11oz.
Material = heavy, stiff red plastic
Cost = $6.08 each with free shipping with Amazon Prime
URL =
This candidate in test 1 held the truck firmly in place, in test 2 stopped the forward motion of the truck, and in test 3 required a fair amount of power to run over -- leaving both chocks bent and with some plastic burn. Despite the deformations I judge these chocks to be still useable.
CANDIDATE-2
Model = ERNST Mfg #980
Measured size = 4"H x 3.5"W x 7"L
Measured weight = 13oz.
Material = seemed like a stiff, rubbery red plastic
Cost = $19.99 per pair with free shipping (Prime membership not needed)
URL =
This candidate in test 1 barely held the truck in place, in test 2 did not stop the forward motion of the truck, and in test 3 required almost no effort to run over -- leaving the rear wall and one of the stiffening ribs slightly bent on each chock. If one didn't know that these started out straight one would never know the difference.
CANDIDATE-3
Model = Race Ramps RR-WC
Measured size = 4"H x 5"W x 8"L
Measured weight = 6.7 lbs.
Material = very thick, stiff black rubber
Cost = $59.00 for a set of four with free shipping with Amazon Prime
URL =
This candidate in test 1 held the truck firmly in place, in test 2 stopped the forward motion of the truck, and in test 3 required a goodly amount of power to run over -- leaving the chocks dirty but unharmed.
CONCLUSIONS
Candidate-3, the hard rubber Race Ramps, were clearly the only candidate that appeared suitable for the rigors of offroad use and are the ones I'll carry in the truck.
Candidate-1, the Valterra chocks, are not up to offroad recovery work but I'd have no problem trusting them for chocking trailers, etc.
Candidate-2, The Ernst chocks, did not hold the truck well but my guess is that maybe they didn't fit my tires well. In any case they held up fine to being run over, and their bottoms are a bit grippy, so I think they'd make great shop chocks on concrete floors -- for tires they fit.
Hope this info is helpful.
