Winch Roll Call!

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Joel S

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

2,471
Boulder, CO, USA
First Name
Joel
Last Name
Spr
Member #

11241

Ham/GMRS Callsign
KE8OJK
What winches are you running? Post your experience here!
 

caleath

Rank IV
Launch Member

Advocate II

I have the Smittybuilt x20 12,000 ....I included pictures...yes I pulled a stuck Case Bull dozer out of the mud. I have dual batteries had 3 pullies and the ramchager chained to a big tree. It took a little while...poured water over the motor when I thought it was getting hot....IMG_1078.JPG IMG_1079.JPG
 

caleath

Rank IV
Launch Member

Advocate II

I have the Smittybuilt x20 12,000 ....I included pictures...yes I pulled a stuck Case Bull dozer out of the mud. I have dual batteries had 3 pullies and the ramchager chained to a big tree. It took a little while...poured water over the motor when I thought it was getting hot....View attachment 84676 View attachment 84677

I would buy another one...I still cant believe it pulled that tractor out...looked it up 16,800 pounds.
 

KonzaLander

Rank VI
Member

Traveler II

3,402
Junction City, Kansas, USA
Member #

15814

Ham/GMRS Callsign
KE0EBF
Superwinch EPi 9,000 on my Rubicon. Bought in 2008. Winch arrived dead, I installed it and pulled the cable to spool with tension and it did not pull the line in. Superwinch customer support was AWFUL. I was finally able to make contact with somebody in charge at Superwinch via a forum friend after a few weeks of no customer service response. A new winch was then over-nighted to me. The replacement has been flawless for 10 years. No repairs.

Warn VR 8,000 on my Land Cruiser. Bought when the VR line was first introduced, but installed in 2017. It is slow and very noisy, but it too has worked great. Free spooling this winch cold is easier than free spooling the Supwerwinch when cold. No repairs.
 

PCO6

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,268
Newmarket, Ontario
First Name
Stew
Last Name
Beatty
Member #

12534

I think there's a similar thread on this , but ... I have a Warn VR10,000 on the front of my LJ and a Superwinch 10,000 on a winch plate, shown here (without the cable) on the back of my XJ. The portable one came in handy when we hooked it up to a friends trailer when I dragged home a MJ barn find last summer.

17-08-03 2.JPG
18-03-10 3.JPG
 

smritte

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,827
Ontario California
First Name
Scott
Last Name
SMR
Member #

8846

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KO6BI
I have a 12k Warn on my Jeep and a 12k Come-Up on my Cruiser. Ive burned up the motor on the warn a couple of times moving rocks and trees doing Adopt a Trail work. The Come-up hasn't been used much yet but is a little louder and just as slow. Doing heavy work on my Adopt a Trail, I've watched about every winch work side by side. People would be surprised how well the Smitty Built holds up. From what I'm told it's the same manufacture as the Harbor freight. Their a little slower than my Warn but, they do well.

Scott
 
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slomatt

Rank V

Influencer I

1,723
Bay Area, CA
A used Warn M8000. With synthetic line this is a really lightweight yet strong setup, there's an article on ExpeditionPortal with some details.

 

toxicity_27

US MidWest Region Member Rep
Launch Member

Member II

3,278
Minnesota
Member #

0656

ComeUp Seal Gen2 9.5rsi. I figured if it's good enough for Artic Trucks, it's good enough for me. The few times I've used it it's been great. Though the top cover corroded pretty quickly due to the salt that Minnesota uses. Contacted customer service and they sent out a new cover. Still have to put it on. Purely cosmetic and doesn't affect the way the winch works.
 

k_dipietro

Rank I
Launch Member

Traveler I

271
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
First Name
Kris
Last Name
D
Member #

9086

I'm running the Warn VR10-S winch (WRN96815), and I'm loving it so far. I've only had it installed for 1 summer, and I've done only a few pulls so far but it hasn't failed me yet!
Worth noting, they don't make a specific cover for the VR10-s, but I purchased the WRN81761 cover and it fits almost perfectly. No issues with fit, or falling off. Remember, it's important to protect your synthetic rope! The cover keeps the sun, rain, snow, and dirt off the rope, and prevents bouncing rocks on the highway from dinging your rope.

I also went through the extra step of installing a 500a relay to disconnect it from the battery when not in use. This was for safety and security reasons. I like that I can keep it off always, except when I need it.

Album of winch pics here.

IMG_7224.JPG
 
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Lindenwood

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,779
New Mexico
First Name
Jay
Last Name
M
Member #

2636

My 9500lb Smittybilt with aftermarket synthetic line worked fine here. However, I won't be putting a winch on the F250 that replaces it since the picture below is the only time I really "needed" this winch. Even then, I had several other [admittedly more labor-intensive] options available.

*edit*

Every other time I used my winch, it would have been both quicker and safer to use a strap. I won't be adding a winch to my current rig due to the expense and weight relative to the odds of actually needing it.
20180923_085135-800x600.jpg
 
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TacomaDave

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

I run the Smittybilt X2O 10K winch . I've always had good luck with their products and it's not something I hope I need to use very often. So I decided to save some bucks. So far in 2 years I've used it once. And that was just to pull my brothers van onto a car trailer.
 

old_man

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,827
Loveland, Colorado
First Name
Tom
Last Name
Houston
Member #

8300

Ham/GMRS Callsign
WØNUT Extra
I have carried a multimount 9000# winch for the last 20 years of rockcrawling. I have used it 4 times to help others get unstuck, never for myself, and I do a ton of serious rock crawling.

I have learned that the importance of winches is overrated and the importance of experience is underrated.

93445
93446
 
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Desert Runner

Rank VII
Launch Member

Expedition Master III

8,507
Southern Nevada
First Name
Jerold
Last Name
F.
Member #

14991

Ham/GMRS Callsign
/GMRS=WREA307
And after finishing 60 days of 2019 on the road I am doing my routine maintanence and found my warn 12S thats only a year old, the entire drum is rusted to hell and the set screw is junk. hencho en china isnt worth your money. a winch is something people have and depend on a rusted POS thats only a year old and has been maintaned shouldnt be rusted to heck. CALLING RED WINCHES.
X20 Smittybilt....17,500 big boy. Steel cable, as synthetic would be to thick a diameter. Instead of 95 ft. Something like 60 ft would fit on the drum.Resized_20170203_162744_(1).jpeg
 
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