Winches, the kind on my bumper, not a ship

[TipsE-Z]

Who's got some good recommendations on places to order a winch from? Kalah has given me the okay to order one. It was that, or an AK... I figured the winch (while not as fun) would be a better buy for the families safety. So... I'm shopping for a 12k (dang pig Jeep). My Ramsey 9500 has been good to me, but only works about a month after each time I clean out the motor, I guess it doesn't care for the Ohio humidity.

I'd love to hear anyone's personal thoughts on winches too. I'm looking heavily at the Smittybilt XRC 12k, and have considered the Harbour Freight one... But, I'm not so sure that I would want to cheap out on the winch.

[HookandLadder]

Kevin...Superwinch and you won't go wrong. That is what most all of use on the adopt a trail crew. I would consider sythentic line if you can afford the upgrade. My winch is 9000lbs

[aw12345]

Kevin...Superwinch and you won't go wrong. That is what most all of use on the adopt a trail crew. I would consider sythentic line if you can afford the upgrade. My winch is 9000lbs

Superwinch ain't what it used to be. Got their bargain one and should have bout another Warn instead. The brake doesn't hold worth a damn. Un do the clutch and the drum turns so easy the cable unwinds.

[Zoobi]

I just ordered a Comeup DV-12 winch for my FJ80. Everything I read on them was good and talked to a few guys who own and abuse them. Their very popular in Australia, the brake is outside the drum, and their sealed. Parts are available and they seem to be more popular than Warn outside US. Amazon had the best price with free shipping and it was $100 less than the Warn equivalent. Unfortunately I haven't abused it yet, so I cant comment on it personally.

Scott

[Ol Man]

I am a Warn guy.

[CVD]

Kevin – I’d stay away from Smittybuilt and Harbor Freight for something as important as a winch. It was between Warn & Superwinch when I bought mine a couple years ago.. Superwinch gets you more power for the $, but I went for a Warn for the lighter weight on the front bumper. With the solenoid under the hood, synthetic line, and hawse fairlead: I only added about 45 lbs to my front bumper. (You’ll need a heavier winch than my M8000, but the same principles hold).

X2 on Ryan’s comment on synthetic – after taking an ATT recovery class a couple years ago and seeing what happens with steel cable under stress, I wouldn’t install the winch until I’d swapped the line.

[4xfiend]

I have the same Superwinch that Ryan and a few others have. It is awesome. It is no longer offered by Superwinch but, luckily, it is just a rebranded winch that is now sold under the ComeUp name.

http://www.rokmen.com/all-products-1...-rsi-489.html#

X whatever on synthetic line. I'm also a big fan of the Safety Thimble.

[TipsE-Z]

Well, I think I've narrowed it down to either a Warn VR10k (5 layers gives me about 6400 pounds of pull) or a Superwinch 10k. The Superwinch is WAY cheaper, so i'll probably go that route so that I can have some cash left over to toss a 2M/70cm rig in the Jeep. Thank you all for the feedback, I figured you all would know the best and be honest with me. Only site on the interwebs that I trust what I read.

[aw12345]

Just make sure the Superwinch has a true brake setup mine has this one way roller type deal that doesn't work worth a damn. With your JK being as heavy as it is, a shitty break on a steep hill pull would not be a good thing. The thing pulls well but trying to hold a rig in place takes constantly hitting the pull button, which really sucks. Also brake isn't strong enough to hold the suspension sucked down. Releasing the clutch sets the drum in a instant unspooling of the winch rope, called Superwinch about it and got told that's how it's designed and there is nothing you can do about it. So word to the wise before you buy it contact Superwinch and find out what kind of brake is built into it. Looks like you are looking at the LP 10500 if you do, do not buy it. I have a lp 8500 and it's a piss poor winch for the above mentioned reason Their more expensive offerings seem to have a better design

[TipsE-Z]

Well, crap! I just ordered it without checking back on here after my last post. Thankfully, I don't have too many waterfall style climbs in Ohio. I'll have to monkey with it and see what I can figure out. I will probably cut some of the 85' of cable off, and make it more like 50' so that I get more pulling power on nearly every pull.

What are everyone's thoughts on that? is 50' enough, or do you think I should leave it at the 85'?

[alittleoff]

A snatch block would effectively reduce the length and double the pull which you probably already know.

Steve

[TipsE-Z]

This I do, and I've got a decent snatch block. But it has seen more use as a zip line than anything else. I'm usually too lazy to get it out, mostly because I've been too cheap to by a tree saver and don't want to wrap my tow strap 30 times. I guess I should orDer a tree saver...

[Materdaddy]

If you've used your snatch block w/ a steel line that's not in 100% perfect condition, don't use it with synthetic line. It'll cause it to start fraying prematurely.

[TipsE-Z]

That makes sense. I plan to always run steel cable with a dead weight on it. I know synthetic is safer, but I just can't convince myself it will stand up the the elements and rocks as well as cable.

[aw12345]

Steel cable is fine, been through a few breaks and nobody died, now synthetic with a D ring attached to it whips pretty nicely. Good thing the guy on the receiving end ducked or he would have had a hole in his head.