Winches and Winch Accessories

[Dean2]

Finally used some synthetic rope this year. I have the usual 3/8" 95 foot wire rope on my Warn 9000 LB winch. Got stuck in a place this fall that I needed to snatch block the pull as it would not budge with just the winch single lined. Good thing I have a 100' synthetic winch extension that I bought from CND Rope about ten years ago. (CND is located on the South side of Edmonton and will custom make any size and length) Bought is after getting stuck in a swamp a long ways from any trees about 11 years ago. Had not needed to winch in about ten years, but when you do stick that big Dodge you are really stuck.

After using the synthetic rope for the first time I liked it so much I decided to swap out the main winch line. The synthetic is way lighter, far more flexible, safer and much easier to work with. Its only draw back is it is not as abrasion resistant as wire but it also doesn't have those sharp broken or flattened areas after use. The extension I already have I got here in Edmonton and at the time it was far and away the best priced option. Less than half what Warn wanted for the same thing. When I went back to get a main line their prices have almost tripled. Decided that was a little too expensive so started doing some shopping. I checked out 4 Wheel Parts on the south side as they generally have excellent pricing, along with Alberta Offroad and they were nearly the same price as CND. Found the same product on Amazon for $149 Canadian versus the $625 local price.

The synthetic rope was supplied by Ranger. There were cheaper options but they didn't look as well finished or put together. It arrived with a built in shackle connection and a 3/4' shackle, no hook. Both were really good quality so ordered a spare snatch block for pulling at an angle, a couple more shackles, a Synthetic shackle, tree save and Half Link safety clevis hook. Have now received all of them and am very happy with the quality of the products. Great fit and finish, everything works perfect and less than half the cost of local gear, some were a quarter the local price.

Anyone else find a good source for Winches, and winch accessories. Anyone have an opinion on synthetic winch line as your main line for pulling?

[Kurt505]

I made the switch to synthetic about 8 years ago and wouldn’t go back to steel, it doesn’t kink, won’t cut your hands up, stacks nice, and holds up.

[marky_mark]

I have it on everything
Just make sure you have slings and roller fairleads or it won’t last long

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by marky_mark

I have it on everything
Just make sure you have slings and roller fairleads or it won’t last long

Roller Fairlead, aluminum hawse are a well polished smooth metal Hawse I understand. What are the slings you are referring to, tree savers or something else?

[Coiloil37]

Hmmmm winching. Something I probably do more of in a year then most will do in a lifetime.
I’ll try and condense this topic to a few points.

The thing about a winch is it needs to work when you need it. Seems easy enough but plenty of winch systems fail here. If you don’t use it that often it might not fail as frequently but a failure is still a big deal. Here’s how I set mine up and have “tested” it a few hundred times since without failure.

I run an 8274. Until you go hydraulic there’s nothing that will touch it. With the factory 2.5 hp motor they pulled 70’/min and warn said they pulled 10k lbs (yea I know the things rated at 8k). I put the 7.8 hp warn motor on mine. It pulls 140’ per min and won’t bog down under load. I have no idea what it pulls but I’ve snapped 3/8 amsteel rope and bent my winch mount without stalling the winch.

Dual batteries, high amp charger, 00 welding cable to feed it, the terminal ends are soldered and crimped with clear heat shrink over the posts once they’re installed so I can watch for corrosion, volt meter in the cab, momentary switches on the dash to run from the drivers seat, the atv wireless remote for redundancy because it’s much smaller then the big remote and doesn’t plug into the plug on your solenoids, an albright contactor replaces the solenoids (rated at 450 amps continuous) and it lives under the hood. I’ve got 150 of 3/8 amsteel rope on mine. My rear winch has another 100’ plus I’ve got an 85’ arb extension so I haven’t had an issue reaching something as an anchor.

Watch your electronics and especially your wiring and solenoids. At the first opportunity lose the solenoids and put in a contactor, they’re dead reliable and should never fail you. I use mine often so both are wired into the cab plus I’ve got the cordless remote for redundancy.
Albright or warn (made by Albright) are the contactors to buy.

I wouldn’t cheap out on the rope as there is a significant difference in quality between the cheap stuff and the good stuff. That said I’ve never used the cheap stuff but I’ve read plenty of failure stories. I’ve snapped rope and it still recoils but not as badly as cable. It would still hurt so stay clear of it while winching.
Slings are much cheaper from industrial lines/shops. A 2m round sling is about $12 vs whatever a 4wd shop charges. Hooks and hammerlocks are the same. A grade 80 hook is around $25 from an industrial rigging store.

The common theory is synthetic requires an undamaged aluminum hawse. Not a roller fairlead. That said you can certainly use a new, undamaged roller fairlead with synthetic but I don’t know why you would bother.

The snatch block also has to be damage free. If it’s been used with steel get another one for your synthetic rope.

Keep the rope as clean as possible and when it gets dirty clean it. I soak mine in a bit of dish soap and hot water when I get home if it’s covered in mud then I hose it off.

You guys with the low profile winches need to worry about heat being transferred from the drum to the rope. Your winches house the brakes under the drum and they will heat it up if your powering out. Synthetics can be damaged from that heat and especially the cheap synthetics.

Learn how to splice rope and carry the required gear to do it on the trail. It’s simple but check it on YouTube and practice before the day your tired, cold and hungry, in a rush and late with a broken rope 10km back in the bush. A guy can easily get by with a bic pen and some electrical tape but you need to know how to do it.

Run something to prevent pulling the hook into the fairlead. I use a damaged cushion from a 3” oteco prv (some of you know what I’m talking about) and it’s saved my hawse a few times.

I know how touchy guys get about playing in the mud but I’ll put my flame suit on and add some pics for flavor.










And the girly family version of a mans toy. Complete with girly tires it’s not as capable as my old beast but I can put the kids in it and take them out. Coincidently I can get the kids and a dead moose or a ton of bear bait in it too so it works.








I also got some new summer moccasins for it. Maxxis trepadors should keep me moving forward next summer without as much winching.

[marky_mark]

https://www.superslings.ca/Products/...dRecovery.aspx

[GMX]

Love the synthetic rope for my quad winch I hate getting burrs in my hand. Another thing I have on my quad is a 4’ 6’ and 12’ 1” slings for around trees or pulling another quad home. Cheep at midfield and come in very handy in a variety of situations.

[GMX]

Oh yea SWEET off-road wheels Coiloil37

[harv3589]

I run synthetic line on our Jeep as well as I just changed out the line on my atv for synthetic. Like is so much more than cable. Did keep my atv cable as an extension rolled up in my box since it was like new condition. Also carry tree savers in both plus tow straps, clevises snatch blocks...can be too prepared

I would like to get a synthetic winch line extension for the Jeep still...on the list of to do’s

[obsessed1]

I run a 10,000lb winch on my 3/4 hd gmc rigged for front or back in receiver hitches. Dual batteries. Still running the steel line. Snatch block, clevise's, tree savers, extension cable , and home made pull pal. Have never been so stuck I couldn't pull myself out. I once had my rear end in the muck right to the axle in the center of a field. Ran 80' of line to my pull pal and set the blade. Easy peasy I was pleased how fast it yanked me free. My recovery gear never leaves the truck. Also keep a set of tire chains and track grabbers on board. It's amazing how well those track grabbers work on mucky roads ( they are terrible in soft stuff like pastures though) I'm not an off road'r per say but I manage to get myself in tough spots while hunting and just general farm chores, and the occasional fun drive out in the sticks:-)

[fickell]

Originally Posted by Coiloil37

Hmmmm winching. Something I probably do more of in a year then most will do in a lifetime.
I’ll try and condense this topic to a few points.

The thing about a winch is it needs to work when you need it. Seems easy enough but plenty of winch systems fail here. If you don’t use it that often it might not fail as frequently but a failure is still a big deal. Here’s how I set mine up and have “tested” it a few hundred times since without failure.

I run an 8274. Until you go hydraulic there’s nothing that will touch it. With the factory 2.5 hp motor they pulled 70’/min and warn said they pulled 10k lbs (yea I know the things rated at 8k). I put the 7.8 hp warn motor on mine. It pulls 140’ per min and won’t bog down under load. I have no idea what it pulls but I’ve snapped 3/8 amsteel rope and bent my winch mount without stalling the winch.

Dual batteries, high amp charger, 00 welding cable to feed it, the terminal ends are soldered and crimped with clear heat shrink over the posts once they’re installed so I can watch for corrosion, volt meter in the cab, momentary switches on the dash to run from the drivers seat, the atv wireless remote for redundancy because it’s much smaller then the big remote and doesn’t plug into the plug on your solenoids, an albright contactor replaces the solenoids (rated at 450 amps continuous) and it lives under the hood. I’ve got 150 of 3/8 amsteel rope on mine. My rear winch has another 100’ plus I’ve got an 85’ arb extension so I haven’t had an issue reaching something as an anchor.

Watch your electronics and especially your wiring and solenoids. At the first opportunity lose the solenoids and put in a contactor, they’re dead reliable and should never fail you. I use mine often so both are wired into the cab plus I’ve got the cordless remote for redundancy.
Albright or warn (made by Albright) are the contactors to buy.

I wouldn’t cheap out on the rope as there is a significant difference in quality between the cheap stuff and the good stuff. That said I’ve never used the cheap stuff but I’ve read plenty of failure stories. I’ve snapped rope and it still recoils but not as badly as cable. It would still hurt so stay clear of it while winching.
Slings are much cheaper from industrial lines/shops. A 2m round sling is about $12 vs whatever a 4wd shop charges. Hooks and hammerlocks are the same. A grade 80 hook is around $25 from an industrial rigging store.

The common theory is synthetic requires an undamaged aluminum hawse. Not a roller fairlead. That said you can certainly use a new, undamaged roller fairlead with synthetic but I don’t know why you would bother.

The snatch block also has to be damage free. If it’s been used with steel get another one for your synthetic rope.

Keep the rope as clean as possible and when it gets dirty clean it. I soak mine in a bit of dish soap and hot water when I get home if it’s covered in mud then I hose it off.

You guys with the low profile winches need to worry about heat being transferred from the drum to the rope. Your winches house the brakes under the drum and they will heat it up if your powering out. Synthetics can be damaged from that heat and especially the cheap synthetics.

Learn how to splice rope and carry the required gear to do it on the trail. It’s simple but check it on YouTube and practice before the day your tired, cold and hungry, in a rush and late with a broken rope 10km back in the bush. A guy can easily get by with a bic pen and some electrical tape but you need to know how to do it.

Run something to prevent pulling the hook into the fairlead. I use a damaged cushion from a 3” oteco prv (some of you know what I’m talking about) and it’s saved my hawse a few times.

I know how touchy guys get about playing in the mud but I’ll put my flame suit on and add some pics for flavor.










And the girly family version of a mans toy. Complete with girly tires it’s not as capable as my old beast but I can put the kids in it and take them out. Coincidently I can get the kids and a dead moose or a ton of bear bait in it too so it works.








I also got some new summer moccasins for it. Maxxis trepadors should keep me moving forward next summer without as much winching.

nice pics!!!! that's why the big horn park is getting shoved down our throats !!!!!

[scesfiremedic]

Is there any truth to the “if you don’t use your winch, unspoolabout 30’ and winch it back in once a month to exercise your winch”?

The reason I ask is I was told that when I bought my Smittybilt winch and now she’s dead. I have been lazy and not done so every month. I’ve only used it once but it worked fine then. It’s a beast of a job to get at the solenoid to check it because I have to take the front bumper off the truck to get at it. I think I should just step up and buy a Warn winch.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by scesfiremedic

Is there any truth to the “if you don’t use your winch, unspoolabout 30’ and winch it back in once a month to exercise your winch”?

The reason I ask is I was told that when I bought my Smittybilt winch and now she’s dead. I have been lazy and not done so every month. I’ve only used it once but it worked fine then. It’s a beast of a job to get at the solenoid to check it because I have to take the front bumper off the truck to get at it. I think I should just step up and buy a Warn winch.

Winch doesn't really need exercise, the monthly routine just tells you if it is working or not. I use mine a couple of times a year to pull game up to skin out. I also check it at the beginning of the season before I take the rig hunting. Corrosion etc can make the connections not work as that area is not sealed on Smittybuilt or Warn. A little WD-40 every couple of months and a brush will help a lot. My brothers winch didn't want to go this fall, all we did was WD and clean up the connection and it was fine. If your Solenoids are in a bad place where you can't lube and clean them, either relocate them or switch to a contactor per Coioil37s post.

[scesfiremedic]

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6ztz6rzf0q...F1375.JPG?dl=0

Here’s my truck and Buckstop bumper. Should I relocate the solenoid under the hood for ease of servicing? The little door on top of the bumper only allows access to the winch remote plug in. I’m thinking of wiring in a Warn Wireless Remote control I have kicking around.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by scesfiremedic

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6ztz6rzf0q...F1375.JPG?dl=0

Here’s my truck and Buckstop bumper. Should I relocate the solenoid under the hood for ease of servicing? The little door on top of the bumper only allows access to the winch remote plug in. I’m thinking of wiring in a Warn Wireless Remote control I have kicking around.

If you can just unbolt the winch and drop it out I would do that then relocate the switch/solenoids. Honestly, that is a really poor winch mounting method just about guaranteed to be hard to get at and really prone to getting stuff on the winch, hard to level wind the cable back on etc. Nice looking but real poor functionality. If it was me I would have the winch relocated to the top or front of the bumper where I could get at it.

[scesfiremedic]

I can access the winch just fine with the door off to respool the cable, just can’t access the solenoid box as there just isn’t enough room. Bumper has to come off to get at it, so I figured once it’s off I relocate the solenoid to u derbthe hood for easy access to clean and maintain it. I thought I was a good mount to keep the winch clean as it’s well protected inside the bumper, but difficult to access for maintenance. It’s been in the bumper 10 years.
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0qIG...stmain_Estates

Originally Posted by Dean2

If you can just unbolt the winch and drop it out I would do that then relocate the switch/solenoids. Honestly, that is a really poor winch mounting method just about guaranteed to be hard to get at and really prone to getting stuff on the winch, hard to level wind the cable back on etc. Nice looking but real poor functionality. If it was me I would have the winch relocated to the top or front of the bumper where I could get at it.

[Dean2]

Pictures helped a lot. Did not realize there was a large door in the top. From the looks of the pictures you should be able to remove the plastic cover with the connector in it and get to the solenoids without removing the bumper or winch. They are the most likely problem causing the winch not to work. If they turn out to be okay and the motor is the issue then you will probably have to completely dismount the winch.

[scesfiremedic]

Dean2, thank you for giving me the ”push” I needed. I took your advice and managed to undo the 2 hose clamps holding the solenoid on the winch and wiggled it out below the bumper. I had enough room to switch out the new solenoid and now it works! Yeah! I’ve been putting this off for 2 years dreading the task of removing the bumper with engine hoist as the bumper and winch are 350 lbs. Thank you for your help!

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by scesfiremedic

Dean2, thank you for giving me the ”push” I needed. I took your advice and managed to undo the 2 hose clamps holding the solenoid on the winch and wiggled it out below the bumper. I had enough room to switch out the new solenoid and now it works! Yeah! I’ve been putting this off for 2 years dreading the task of removing the bumper with engine hoist as the bumper and winch are 350 lbs. Thank you for your help!

Glad that worked out. Did you relocate them to under the hood so they are easier to get at in the future?

[Norwest Alta]

I once had a mile marker 10500lb hydraulic winch. I bought it at danco equipment if I remember correctly. After owning warns and Ramsey winches this was by far the best winch I've ever owned. They are pricey though but well worth it imo especially if you are prone to getting stuck lol. I have since learned to avoid the mud holes and walk.

[marky_mark]

Originally Posted by Norwest Alta

I once had a mile marker 10500lb hydraulic winch. I bought it at danco equipment if I remember correctly. After owning warns and Ramsey winches this was by far the best winch I've ever owned. They are pricey though but well worth it imo especially if you are prone to getting stuck lol. I have since learned to avoid the mud holes and walk.

Hydraulic winches are significantly better

[Big Grey Wolf]

What ever happened to PTO driven mechanical winches, they never failed when you needed them. My old scout winch even operated in all three transmission gear speeds and they never slow down under heavy load.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by Big Grey Wolf

What ever happened to PTO driven mechanical winches, they never failed when you needed them. My old scout winch even operated in all three transmission gear speeds and they never slow down under heavy load.

Probably the single biggest thing is 99% of all 4x4s don't come with a PTO on the transfer case any more. Scout, Landrover, Landcruiser, it was very common. New ones of any make it isn't even an option you can factory order unless it is a one ton or larger and for most it only comes in the Chassis Cab designations. Most of the PTO are now after market as far as I know.

[Coiloil37]

Originally Posted by marky_mark

Hydraulic winches are significantly better

How so? Yea old sage. Why don’t you quantify your statement.


Now as for pto winches. What’s the motivation in this day and age? When they were popular electric winches were non exsistant or in their infancy. Roads were not as good and I suspect most guys buying an off-road capable vehicle were actually using them as such. Now most guys don’t even have a winch, those that do probably don’t use it often (if at all) and really how many guys are going to properly use a $30-100k vehicle off-road? I’ll tell you from first hand experience playing off-road has the very real possibility of damaging your vehicle. Now a days we’ve got some very good electric winches if they’re set up properly they’re dead reliable and can be bloody fast. Those of you with the low profile winches don’t have any speed but most aren’t in a rush the one or two times a year they use it.

Hydraulic is an option but I won’t get into that until mark wahlberg weighs in.

[marky_mark]

A hydraulic winch is run of a hydraulic motor. Not electrical. So corrosion of all the wiring is a non issue. I have found that electric winches are under rated as well. Hydraulic winch’s won’t over heat and die either. You can pull and pull all day.

We have a 20000lb hydraulic winch mounted on essentially a 2wd Unimog
It has a drum with 1500m of winch cable. It’s a specialty truck. Never had an issue with it. I always cringe if I need to use an electric one because to many times I’ve had a dead one. With my atvs I upgrade to the sxs rated versions

MQUOTE=Coiloil37;3920524]How so? Yea old sage. Why don’t you quantify your statement.


Now as for pto winches. What’s the motivation in this day and age? When they were popular electric winches were non exsistant or in their infancy. Roads were not as good and I suspect most guys buying an off-road capable vehicle were actually using them as such. Now most guys don’t even have a winch, those that do probably don’t use it often (if at all) and really how many guys are going to properly use a $30-100k vehicle off-road? I’ll tell you from first hand experience playing off-road has the very real possibility of damaging your vehicle. Now a days we’ve got some very good electric winches if they’re set up properly they’re dead reliable and can be bloody fast. Those of you with the low profile winches don’t have any speed but most aren’t in a rush the one or two times a year they use it.

Hydraulic is an option but I won’t get into that until mark wahlberg weighs in.[/QUOTE]

[marky_mark]

I have a gas powered capstan winch also.
Works great. Unlimited length is great to have

[Norwest Alta]

As Marky has said with the hydraulic winch you can winch all day everyday. My one complaint with my winch is it was slow.

[Coiloil37]

Originally Posted by marky_mark

A hydraulic winch is run of a hydraulic motor. Not electrical. So corrosion of all the wiring is a non issue. I have found that electric winches are under rated as well. Hydraulic winch’s won’t over heat and die either. You can pull and pull all day.

We have a 20000lb hydraulic winch mounted on essentially a 2wd Unimog
It has a drum with 1500m of winch cable. It’s a specialty truck. Never had an issue with it. I always cringe if I need to use an electric one because to many times I’ve had a dead one. With my atvs I upgrade to the sxs rated versions

MQUOTE=Coiloil37;3920524]How so? Yea old sage. Why don’t you quantify your statement.


Now as for pto winches. What’s the motivation in this day and age? When they were popular electric winches were non exsistant or in their infancy. Roads were not as good and I suspect most guys buying an off-road capable vehicle were actually using them as such. Now most guys don’t even have a winch, those that do probably don’t use it often (if at all) and really how many guys are going to properly use a $30-100k vehicle off-road? I’ll tell you from first hand experience playing off-road has the very real possibility of damaging your vehicle. Now a days we’ve got some very good electric winches if they’re set up properly they’re dead reliable and can be bloody fast. Those of you with the low profile winches don’t have any speed but most aren’t in a rush the one or two times a year they use it.

Hydraulic is an option but I won’t get into that until mark wahlberg weighs in.

[/QUOTE]

I’m well versed in hydraulic winches and systems. I’m currently sitting within 50’ of six hydraulic winches ranging from 4100 lbs to 100,000 lbs and in charge of the associated $13 million worth of hydraulics they’re attached to. I just wanted you to try and quantify your statement so I could gauge if you knew what your talking about.
They’ve got certain advantages and disadvantages that need to be considered. They’re certainly not “significantly better” without context. Now that we’ve ascertained I know what they are. Feather your statement out and give me some context. A unimog has little in common with the average guy who goes down a logging road or hits the odd mud hole.

[marky_mark]

I’m well versed in hydraulic winches and systems. I’m currently sitting within 50’ of six hydraulic winches ranging from 4100 lbs to 100,000 lbs and in charge of the associated $13 million worth of hydraulics they’re attached to. I just wanted you to try and quantify your statement so I could gauge if you knew what your talking about.
They’ve got certain advantages and disadvantages that need to be considered. They’re certainly not “significantly better” without context. Now that we’ve ascertained I know what they are. Feather your statement out and give me some context. A unimog has little in common with the average guy who goes down a logging road or hits the odd mud hole.[/QUOTE]

Oh for sure
And it’s not an application for everyone and it’s not worth it for everyone as well
I’m sure if I did the maintenance I needed to do on my winches I would have less problems. But for me it’s one of those things I forget about til i need it and then it’s oh crap. 👍

[Coiloil37]

Originally Posted by marky_mark

Oh for sure
And it’s not an application for everyone and it’s not worth it for everyone as well
I’m sure if I did the maintenance I needed to do on my winches I would have less problems. But for me it’s one of those things I forget about til i need it and then it’s oh crap. 👍

Fair enough.

They’re great because they will pull all day without complaint IF the system was set up correctly. The power steering pump produces enough flow and pressure, you’ve got enough reservoir capacity and can cool it. They are typically slow. They’re usually heavier. Most guys don’t know hydraulics well and can’t built their own hoses so there’s more expense when they need repair. They’re more expensive to buy.
The biggest problem imo is they don’t work when your engines not running. I’ve broken down in mud holes. Alone with nobody around to pull me out. Every time it happened my electric was able to pull me out, I fixed the problem and had more then enough voltage to fire back up. I can think of a few times it would of been very uncomfortable fixing the heep in a mud hole and once when it would of been impossible as I was up to my skid plate in mud and lost the crank position sensor. That is my biggest complaint with hydraulic. I’m also impatient and prefer to get on with the recovery then wait for a slow winch.

The electrics have their own potential pitfalls but they aren’t that hard to circumnavigate and build dead reliable. I’m not saying they’re better but if you avoid the knockoff brands and build the system correctly then use it within it’s designed capabilities you’ll probably never have an issue.

The 8274 is a stud but these are equally impressive, albeit more expensive. It’s worth 4 minutes of your life to see what a quick winch is like. Mine pulls as fast as the slower version on this video.

https://youtu.be/eArLHLeCYAs