Smittybilt Gen3 X20 Winch - Any info?

[North53Overland]

Looking to get our first winch. As i'm located in Canada, the deals are few and far between. Best accessible winches are Warn & Smittybilt. I was looking at getting the Warn Evo VR 12S. Price has jumped about 20% in last few months. Don't need the winch until April when we take our maiden voyage with our new off-road trailer.

Was at 4WP near me and they told me about a new Smittybilt Gen3 X20 winch which was released at Sema this year. While 4WP has their own training info, I can't find anything else pubically released other than this video on YT:
Curious if anyone else has info on this new winch? I"m told it was released to be a direct competitor to the Evo VR. Cheers.

 

[North53Overland]

UPDATE: I just looked again and in the past few hours, it appears 4WP in Canada updated their website and the new Gen 3 X20 winch is now online: Smittybilt X2O GEN3 12K Winch with Synthetic Rope - 98812

 

[NCFireGuy]

I have been impressed with the Apex badland, I replaced my Smittybilt 9K with it and it has been working without a problem.

 

[MMc]

Get a Warn or Superwinch. It you are up to your butt in mud the money you save now will be unimportant. I am sure there will Smitty lovers here and will chime in. I don't skimp on recovery gear. The harbor or Smitty may work great for a pull or two, let's see it 5 years and lot's of pulls. Look at what tow companies use.

 

[North53Overland]

Get a Warn or Superwinch. It you are up to your butt in mud the money you save now will be unimportant. I am sure there will Smitty lovers here and will chime in. I don't skimp on recovery gear. The harbor or Smitty may work great for a pull or two, let's see it 5 years and lot's of pulls. Look at what tow companies use.

The pricing is similar so trying to compare new apples to existing apples;) In Canada a Warn EVO VR 12S is about $1350cdn, the new Smittybilt is $1150. Not much of a price different. I do not have the budget to go above $1350.00 CDN. I have heard as many issues with the Warn EVO as I have Smittybilt. I don't know if there are any dealers of Superwinch near me, will have to look again. Forgot about them.

 

[JDGreens]

I have been running with my Smitty Built for 5 years and have had no issues.

 

[North53Overland]

I have been running with my Smitty Built for 5 years and have had no issues.

Good to know. I know I will find people in each camp who love their X brand or have had issues with Y brand. To complicate things, or maybe make them simpler, I now found a Dealer who has a Warn EVO VR 12S and the same price as the new Smittybilt Gen 3 X20. Even then still not sure which is best for our needs...lol.

 

[JDGreens]

Good to know. I know I will find people in each camp who love their X brand or have had issues with Y brand. To complicate things, or maybe make them simpler, I now found a Dealer who has a Warn EVO VR 12S and the same price as the new Smittybilt Gen 3 X20. Even then still not sure which is best for our needs...lol.

I also bought larger Smitty built compressor to air up my tires. Purchased them from 4 Wheel parts, they are pretty good with warranties (never have had a problem with 4Whl parts) which I think is very important when making any investment no matter the cost into parts for your rig. I almost think who you buy from is as important as what you buy.

 

[North53Overland]

I also bought larger Smitty built compressor to air up my tires. Purchased them from 4 Wheel parts, they are pretty good with warranties (never have had a problem with 4Whl parts) which I think is very important when making any investment no matter the cost into parts for your rig. I almost think who you buy from is as important as what you buy.

Agreed!

Looks like 4WP & Smittybilt officially launced the new winch today. This is now on YT and I got an email about it too:

 

[trail_runn4r]

Looking to get our first winch. As i'm located in Canada, the deals are few and far between. Best accessible winches are Warn & Smittybilt. I was looking at getting the Warn Evo VR 12S. Price has jumped about 20% in last few months. Don't need the winch until April when we take our maiden voyage with our new off-road trailer.

Was at 4WP near me and they told me about a new Smittybilt Gen3 X20 winch which was released at Sema this year. While 4WP has their own training info, I can't find anything else pubically released other than this video on YT:
Curious if anyone else has info on this new winch? I"m told it was released to be a direct competitor to the Evo VR. Cheers.

I bought a X20 Gen 2 at the beginning of the year through 4WP. The rope had a small cut near the hook that probably wasn't a big deal but out of caution I wanted to replace. Even if in theory the rope is not covered by the warranty, 4WP was accommodating and agreed to swap it for me. I used the which once so far and it performed well.

 

[bgenlvtex]

I have a Gen 2 X2O 12k with synthetic rope on the Gladiator, I have been completely happy with it, it was slightly over $400 and I consider it the best deal in winches.

I would not hesitate to buy another one, and given the choice of it over the Gen 3 at twice the money would buy the Gen 2

 

[North53Overland]

I have a Gen 2 X2O 12k with synthetic rope on the Gladiator, I have been completely happy with it, it was slightly over $400 and I consider it the best deal in winches.

I would not hesitate to buy another one, and given the choice of it over the Gen 3 at twice the money would buy the Gen 2

In Canada the cost difference between X20 Gen 2 & 3 is only $170cdn.

 

[North53Overland]

UPDATE: So in the end, I have now ordered a Warn EVO VR 12-S. Found it online at a dealer on sale, then went to my local 4WP for a price match which they did (and they price matched the Warn winch plate for my JLUR). Decided to not try a new winch that doesn't necessarily have as much testing behind it. Thanks again to everyone! Great feedback.