What winch do you have?

[JPAloha]

I have a Warn Evo 10S on my 2018 and a Warn Zeon 12S on my 2019.
I’ve owned the Zeon from new and it’s been flawless.
The Evo, I bought used from a buddy after he had it repaired by Warn….since then it’s needed a new controller (bought the same one used on the Zeon which has worked great) and now just clicks when trying to use. I’ve tried a new control module/relay to no avail so now have a new motor for it (will have to make time to replace it soon).

The Evo’s used to be cheap but now, are close to what I paid for the Zeon so it’s worth fixing it.

I’ll update this.
The parts I ordered did not fit the older style Evo I had so were returned. Thankfully, I spotted a great price on a brand new Evo 10 with the steel cable. I bought that and have swapped over the synthetic line from the old winch (after washing it and allowing it to dry). I still have to spool it under full tension before I consider it a job done.

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[Radioman]

On my 1978 Toyota FJ40, I mounted a Warn 8274 winch. On my 2012 Jeep Rubi, I mounted a Warn 9.5cti winch on a Warn Road Crawler bumper with a Warn Blocker Beam skid plate. On my current 2025 Jeep Rubi, I have the factory installed Warn winch. I never had a problem with any of the Warn products.

 

[wibornz]

Good luck, I was considering those but my buddy in Idaho has killed three in less than a year.

There are a lot of Youtube influencers that I would gladly punch in their face.

 

[WXman]

F*** Warn. I remember back in the old days when guys used to read magazines and they would test all the popular winches of the day. Warn sometimes wouldn't even make it through the testing without breaking. And then, in the modern era Todd did this test, and once again found that Warn is over-rated:

 

[Whaler27]

Ah, the contactor controller cover. I had no intension to use its stock location. Even if I wanted to use the plastic housing as a complete assembly, it would not fit under the hood. So plastic or alloy it would not be any benefit to me. I did note that the plastic cover as being cheap. That cover doesn't belong on my jeep.

My point wasn’t that the cover was weak or poorly placed. My point was that Warn contracted with Chinese Company-X to build a cheap “price-point” line of winches and then add plastics/badging/wrapping/packaging that says “Warn!!”. The ARE Warn products, in the sense that Warn contracts for them and sells them, but they have nothing meaningful in common with the quality winches that earned Warn’s formerly exceptional reputation.

I suppose Stellantis could do something similar with Jeeps — I’m sure it’s been considered — like contracting with some company in China, Yugoslavia, India, or the Philippines to build a Wrangler lookalike that Stellantis could retail for $19,000. I’m sure it could be done, and the result might look very similar to our jeeps, but they wouldn’t have much beyond their external appearance in common with the JL.

 

[Whaler27]

Starting with jackstands

I assumed jack stands were a decent bet at Harbor Freight. After all, how can a manufacturer screw up something THAT simple?

I was wrong. Harbor Freight issued a recall on the jack stands, so I got my money back and didn’t take the gamble a second time.

I assume Matt’s Recovery gets all the HF winches he needs by the pickup load. I know they’ve claimed no sponsorship, but that’s hard to believe… I have never seen a HF winch in ANY other commercial or military application.

On Shittybuilt: Their stuff was very well made when it was actually Smittybuilt — a small US company that made specialty 4x4 accessories like roll bars, ”nerf bars”, winch-mounts, etc. (I bought their stuff in the 70s and 80s). It turned to crap when they diversified to selling everything but bumper stickers, shifted production to the cheapest bidders, and then completely sold out. It’s been more than 25 years since it was actually “Smittybuilt”.

It’s gotten to be the most popular business model: Build great stuff long enough to earn a great reputation, then export mass production of cheap crap to slash costs and multiply sales volume until the reputation is ruined by the poor quality. The mega-RV manufacturers do this too: they buy up quality brands, drive their build-cost way down by cutting corners, and keep the retail costs high as long as customers are willing to pay the premium pricing. (Look at Thor acquisitions and resulting quality declines… but they’re making BIG money. For now.)

 

[Terrymo]

F*** Warn. I remember back in the old days when guys used to read magazines and they would test all the popular winches of the day. Warn sometimes wouldn't even make it through the testing without breaking. And then, in the modern era Todd did this test, and once again found that Warn is over-rated:

I can’t watch his videos. His voice reminds me of this cheerleader I dated in high school. She talked so fast in such a shrill voice I finally couldn’t take it anymore. Maybe PTSD. I have used settings to slow his voice down to a normal speed if I was really interested, Not sure why these threads devolve into fuck Warn and fuck Harbor Freight but it seems like they always do,

 

[roaniecowpony]

I assumed jack stands were a decent bet at Harbor Freight. After all, how can a manufacturer screw up something THAT simple?

I was wrong. Harbor Freight issued a recall on the jack stands, so I got my money back and didn’t take the gamble a second time.

I agree. I think Harbor Fright issued 2 separate recalls over the years. It's not the fundamental design of the ratchet type stand, it's the shitty execution in manufacturing that created the problem. They want to make them by casting the upper ratchet tooth part with no or little second operations. That part needs the precision of machining to fit the lower stand for stability and the teeth need more precision for safety. It's pretty scary to see how much play/wobble is in the fit between the upper and lower parts of their stands, to say nothing about the super scary ratchet system.

It's solid cross pins and well fitting tube stands for me.
I use these. 6.6-Ton Jack Stands - MJS-6T - Martins Industries

 

[AskBin]

I assume Matt’s Recovery gets all the HF winches he needs by the pickup load. I know they’ve claimed no sponsorship, but that’s hard to believe… I have never seen a HF winch in ANY other commercial or military application.

theres somethign to be said about same day replacements too.

main reason i got mine was if im 3k km from home and burn out my winch, i can get towed off the trail and go get another one for 5-600 bucks, brand new outta the box. alot of my go back tools are icon, not because i like them or theyre even good, but i dont have a snapon guy come to my house and princess auto is right down the road.

im sure for matts and trailmater, being able to stop down at a harbor freight the same day and just grab a new winch thatll throw down, is more worthwhile to them than some possibly extended reliability

 

[Whaler27]

theres somethign to be said about same day replacements too.

main reason i got mine was if im 3k km from home and burn out my winch, i can get towed off the trail and go get another one for 5-600 bucks, brand new outta the box. alot of my go back tools are icon, not because i like them or theyre even good, but i dont have a snapon guy come to my house and princess auto is right down the road.

im sure for matts and trailmater, being able to stop down at a harbor freight the same day and just grab a new winch thatll throw down, is more worthwhile to them than some possibly extended reliability

I get it, and I have bought a lot of disposable H-F tools for one-off jobs. They’re perfect for that.

The only time I can recall using my winch within a few miles of home was tensioning fence or, once, righting an old apple tree that tipped over under heavy snow. I’m most concerned about my winch working when I’m much farther from help.

Matt goes everywhere with a crew and rigs that are equipped with multiple winches (4+?), complex, articulating pulley systems, and maybe even some spares/parts in nearby chase vehicles. If I traveled like that, had his skill set, and had a high-dollar sponsor, I’d probably do the same.

 

[AskBin]

I’m most concerned about my winch working when I’m much farther from help.

o yeah i dont disagree. different strokes for different folks for sure, i just abide by 2 is 1 and 1 is none, so i bring a come-along and if i ever need to utalize it heavily, ill think about a winch thatll cost 2-3x what i spent on my badlands. i just have a hard time trusting warn or shitty or runva over the HF specials as a single point of failute

 

[Snacktime]

15 year old Harbor Freight 12,000lb badlands with a faded grey case. Can't kill it... Been trying, I want a faster winch.

 

[Terrymo]

I get it, and I have bought a lot of disposable H-F tools for one-off jobs. They’re perfect for that.

The only time I can recall using my winch within a few miles of home was tensioning fence or, once, righting an old apple tree that tipped over under heavy snow. I’m most concerned about my winch working when I’m much farther from help.

Matt goes everywhere with a crew and rigs that are equipped with multiple winches (4+?), complex, articulating pulley systems, and maybe even some spares/parts in nearby chase vehicles. If I traveled like that, had his skill set, and had a high-dollar sponsor, I’d probably do the same.

I don’t begrudge anyone getting sponsors and free or heavily discounted product lines. When these YouTube influencers and their recovery vehicles frequently appear at Harbor Freight booths during major shows, like Sema, it appears to indicate a reciprocal arrangement. Are they getting everything free? I don’t know. But I don’t think it’s coincidental that whoever does their video editing makes sure their sponsors products get adequate footage. To say Billy Bobs Recovery on YouTube can get any winch they want and they get brand x, which proves it’s the best, is a little naive. I don’t care what winch anyone uses. I suspect most Jeep winches are just for street cred. I buy the best I can afford, not what Billy Bob Recovery uses. The nice thing is we all have choices.

For the record I watch MORR and Trailmater on YouTube all the time and they appear to be great people who have worked hard to get where they’re at.

 

[Whaler27]

Of course.

I don’t begrudge anyone getting sponsors and free or heavily discounted product lines. When these YouTube influencers and their recovery vehicles frequently appear at Harbor Freight booths during major shows, like Sema, it appears to indicate a reciprocal arrangement. Are they getting everything free? I don’t know. But I don’t think it’s coincidental that whoever does their video editing makes sure their sponsors products get adequate footage. To say Billy Bobs Recovery on YouTube can get any winch they want and they get brand x, which proves it’s the best, is a little naive. I don’t care what winch anyone uses. I suspect most Jeep winches are just for street cred. I buy the best I can afford, not what Billy Bob Recovery uses. The nice thing is we all have choices.

For the record I watch MORR and Trailmater on YouTube all the time and they appear to be great people who have worked hard to get where they’re at.

I agree.

And yet, when "which winch" discussions arise, folks invariably bring up the choices made by the YouTube influencers as evidence of product capability and durability. That's why the influencers get paid so much. Of course, influencers are usually making a different choice, often based on who will pay most for the product placement. It's just good old entrepreneurial spirit and savvy: the American Way. I'd happily run around with a Shittybuilt winch on my jeep if somebody was willing to pay me $20,000 per month to do it. I'd just carry a backup, just in case.

 

[roaniecowpony]

I'd think Matt would be an expert at making a HF winch more reliable and waterproof.

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