Let's talk winches folks

[Ridgway Jeeper]

What I have not read once in 4 pages of comments is where a cheaper brand has actually failed somebody. The assumption seems to be that by spending more on say a Warn, you are buying an extra layer of reliability. Sadly there doesn't seem to be ANY evidence to support the notion that spending more, double or triple even buys you any more than a name plate. That said, the only winches I have ever owned were a couple of Warn's.

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[john adams]

What I have not read once in 4 pages of comments is where a cheaper brand has actually failed somebody. The assumption seems to be that by spending more on say a Warn, you are buying an extra layer of reliability. Sadly there doesn't seem to be ANY evidence to support the notion that spending more, double or triple even buys you any more than a name plate. That said, the only winches I have ever owned were a couple of Warn's.

Agreed but you’re already in a forum of people who mostly drive an off road machine to soccer practice,and therefore Warn gets the love.

I speak here mocking myself. Rubicon. Winch. Brush guard. Rocker bars. Lift and tires on the horizon. Time to drive to Whole Foods—If I see zombies, I’m prepared.

 

[Sean L]

Any significant mpg effect? I am getting a 4xe Rubicon with steel bumper. Winch off the front doesn’t seem like it would have much effect but just curious if anyone has measured. People speculate in threads I’ve searched but no one had a before and after.

Sahara with an added steel bumper with the winch here. I haven't noticed any real difference in my fuel economy since adding them. Still 19-21 around town and I hit 26 MPG in my recent trip to Florida.

 

[Coops4284]

It all depends on how much you plan on using it. I have some friends that have Badlands (Harbor Freight) and they get 1 to 2 years out of them because they wheel and recover often. I have other friends that have that brand, and never use it because they only wheel once or twice a year, and are not skilled in recovery. Brands that I would recommend if you plan on using it often or want it to work when you need it:

- Warn
- Smittybuilt
- Superwinch

Others that I have seen but don't know enough about longevity:

- Quadratec
- Rugged Ridge

And then cheap, looks the part, might only last a year or two:

- Badlands

I myself have a Warn VR EVO 10k with steel cable. I went with steel as I use it for farm work as well, and synthetic rope would not have held up well. I also am one of the recovery guys for a few clubs that I belong to, and want to know that my tools will work. I have actually used the winch to roll over a YJ that flipped on Holiday Hill in Kentucky. It has been in the nose of the rig for almost 3 years. I re-spool and oil it every 6 months, and it has never failed me when needed.

 

[AcesandEights]

Are you being serious? This is the dumbest thing I've heard. There is a reason synthetic exist and dominate the market with lighter and safer being the leading reasons. Ever see a steel cable snap?

If that's the dumbest thing you've ever heard, you don't get out much.

https://www.warn.com/synthetic-rope-vs-steel-rope-which-one-is-best

There are advantages (and disadvantages) to both. If you're unwilling to see that, then you're being short-sighted, myopic. People should weigh those advantages/disadvantages and not just jump on a band-wagon because they saw a kick ass Jeep in the mall parking lot with a really cool colored "rope" on their winch. There's more to it, a lot more.

Steel cable seldom snaps, but when it does, it stores more energy. That's part of the business and you mitigate that and handle all recovery situations with care. People act like recovery isn't dangerous if you're using synthetic, which also stores energy by the way. That's very much false, and giving people a false sense of safety or security is far more dangerous than learning the advantages/disadvantages and proper use of recovery gear, which may include steel cable.

 

[GATORB8]

People should weigh those advantages/disadvantages and not just jump on a band-wagon because they saw a kick ass Jeep in the mall parking lot with a really cool colored "rope" on their winch. There's more to it, a lot more.

Steel cable seldom snaps, but when it does, it stores more energy. That's part of the business and you mitigate that and handle all recovery situations with care. People act like recovery isn't dangerous if you're using synthetic, which also stores energy by the way. That's very much false, and giving people a false sense of safety or security is far more dangerous than learning the advantages/disadvantages and proper use of recovery gear which may include steel cable.

I just went synthetic to be able to use a sweet Hawse fairlead (although there are a couple of steel Hawse's out there that work with cable).

It's not like steel cable snaps out of nowhere, failure to inspect and maintain the cable is what allows a compromised line to be used (you know those big cranes, they use steel every day). Not only is synthetic more susceptible to damage from abrasion, it can be damaged by sunlight!

I see it as a tradeoff, if you're not going to put the work in to make sure the steel cable is safe, synthetic reduces the risk of significant damage when it fails.

 

[Coops4284]

If that's the dumbest thing you've ever heard, you don't get out much.

https://www.warn.com/synthetic-rope-vs-steel-rope-which-one-is-best

There are advantages (and disadvantages) to both. If you're unwilling to see that, then you're being short-sighted, myopic. People should weigh those advantages/disadvantages and not just jump on a band-wagon because they saw a kick ass Jeep in the mall parking lot with a really cool colored "rope" on their winch. There's more to it, a lot more.

Steel cable seldom snaps, but when it does, it stores more energy. That's part of the business and you mitigate that and handle all recovery situations with care. People act like recovery isn't dangerous if you're using synthetic, which also stores energy by the way. That's very much false, and giving people a false sense of safety or security is far more dangerous than learning the advantages/disadvantages and proper use of recovery gear, which may include steel cable.

A similar article is exactly why I stuck with a steel cable. Since I often use it on abrasive surfaces, a synthetic cable would have been destroyed and replaced a few times by now. I have seen both types of rope snap. Yes a steel rope stores more kinetic energy, with a proper dampening bag, it goes right to the ground. Synthetic rope can still injure if people are being dangerous with it. Both need to be maintained and inspected. Steel needs to be oiled, synthetic needs to be washed often.

 

[vegasblue]

Well, you can get a Warn VR today. If you want a Warn 10-S or 12-S better get ready to wait. I had one ordered for two months and it kept getting pushed out another month. I went with a Gen3 Smittybuilt 12K with synthetic line. Saved about half the money. Looks pretty good, does seem a bit cheaper. That said, everyone I go with has a Smittybuilt winch and not one of them have failed. Many are members of SNORR and recoveries are on the regular. I would have liked to have a Warn, but the extra $600 in my pocket and the fact that I wanted to get out there with recovery equipment moved me over. I have not used it yet, but it spools quite a bit faster than my last 10S.

 

[mgroeger]

If that's the dumbest thing you've ever heard, you don't get out much.

https://www.warn.com/synthetic-rope-vs-steel-rope-which-one-is-best

There are advantages (and disadvantages) to both. If you're unwilling to see that, then you're being short-sighted, myopic. People should weigh those advantages/disadvantages and not just jump on a band-wagon because they saw a kick ass Jeep in the mall parking lot with a really cool colored "rope" on their winch. There's more to it, a lot more.

Steel cable seldom snaps, but when it does, it stores more energy. That's part of the business and you mitigate that and handle all recovery situations with care. People act like recovery isn't dangerous if you're using synthetic, which also stores energy by the way. That's very much false, and giving people a false sense of safety or security is far more dangerous than learning the advantages/disadvantages and proper use of recovery gear, which may include steel cable.

Granted these are extreme examples in the video below but it shows the dangers of a cable letting loose. I'll take me chances with a synthetic rope over a cable any day. Nice to see them bust the myth that a rope just magically falls to the ground when it snaps... it doesn't, but it is much more controlled when it lets loose.

 

[Jazzman65]

2nd the motion for harbour freight 12000 lb winch. I have not had to use it for my jeep yet but did pull shrubs out of my yard just to play with it. Don't spend lots unless you think you are really going to be off-roading a bunch in situations where you will need assistance.

What winch plate did you use? I got a Wrangler back in January and replaced the stock bumper with a stubby Rubicon bumper, but don't have a plate.

Thanks!

 

[mgroeger]

What winch plate did you use? I got a Wrangler back in January and replaced the stock bumper with a stubby Rubicon bumper, but don't have a plate.

Thanks!

I'll be selling a Warn winch plate shortly if you're interested.

 

[Bingman]

I’ll also recommend the badlands apex from harbor freight. Full disclosure, I’ve only used it twice in the roughly 6 months I’ve had it. Once to pull my jeep out, and another time I pulled a random guys zero turn out of a ditch. It worked great both times, and believe it was definitely worth the relatively low cost. I got it on sale, and also opened a harbor freight credit card to get the percentage off first purchase and then he rewards money. I think my cost was around $350-400 for it out the door.

 

[Jazzman65]

I'll be selling a Warn winch plate shortly if you're interested.

Possibly! I'd need to see if it's compatible with the Harbor Freight Badlands winch that's been mentioned.

 

[buzzdoc]

Love the sarge green Jeep! Congrats!

I went with the Warn Zeon 10s for 2 main reasons. I grew up with Warn winches. We hunted in a swamp in a river flood plane, and we'd get into all sorts of crap. Thankfully, with our '78 CJ-7 Levi edition, we almost never needed to use the winch, but dad always bought Warn and it always worked. The other reason is that the bumper I bought hides the winch and was designed with the Zeon 10s in mind. While it was a bitch to install, I love the look of my Jeep.

 

[Tellurian]

FWIW, I considered Warn but ended up with a Smittybilt XRC Gen3 synthetic ($500-$600 range) and have had no complaints over the past 1.5 years. While I haven’t had to use it in a dire situation, before getting into off-roading I went out on training rides and put myself into situations where a winch could be used.

This enabled me to become familiar with the system in a safe environment and understand how to use it in different situations. It’s been fully submerged during water crossings and tested in the winter at -21ºF. It keeps working every test run and tensioning of the line which I do about every 3-4 months. So far, I have no reason to believe it won’t save me from my own stupidity on the trail.

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