Which winch should I buy

[OnlyOne]

I'm not anti Warn, they have made winches for a long time and they are battle tested. They also have one of the better warranties on the market. That said, there are a few companies out there that have the same reputation for dependability and durability, Ramsey and Superwinch for example. Do some research and you'll see that Warn winches overall cost more to purchase. It really kind of depends on intended use and budget. Get at least an 8K (absolute minimum) winch for a 2 door and a 9500 for a 4 door, shop for the main players in the industry (already mentioned) and decide on warranty.

All that said I have a Superwinch Tiger Shark 9500SL synthetic line. Haven't needed it for recovery yet, but I yanked a bunch of bushes out of the ground with it.

When I had my little JK sport I had a great little Superwinch. I used that thing so many times to count. Pulling myself and many others out. It was an 8000. Plenty of power too. I really like Superwinch. I bought a Warn 8000S because of the rebate and it’s reputation. I was on my way to a SW again. As far as winch sizes, you want about 1.5 times the GVWR on your vehicle or close to. For a 4 door completely loaded to the max, that’s 8400lbs. (5600x1.5=8400) An 8000 is about perfect for a Warn. With a 2door, nothing over an 8000 is really needed. If I was to use a Chinese winch maybe go to a 10k on a 4door. My Superwinch was a Chinese made one. I’m not bagging on them whatsoever. I never had a problem. This really is a personal preference. Most people won’t ever use the thing.

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[VolCntry73]

I am surprised no mention of Smittybuilt whatsoever. I am leaning that way, but again no expert here.

I'm your huckleberry.

I have a Smittybilt X2O 10,000 lbs Synthetic Rope Winch. I like it alot.

 

[Broccoli2]

I have an old school Warn that was over a grand in the late 80's. That thing is bad ass. I got passed jeep to jeep 3 CJ-7's and a YJ. No winch on my TJ (because it would have broke the jeep, haha). When I got my JKU I wanted something smaller and lighter so I bought a Smitty built 8000lb., it went onto my next JKU. That thing was a work horse. I pulled all kinds of people out including a fully tricked out Ford Raptor that went off an embankment. I had to use a snatch block for that one. ..... OH, I even pulled a fire truck out of a river bed in my first JKU (Still have this JKU, but my son drives it)

 

[AmesosaurusRex]

I have an old school Warn that was over a grand in the late 80's. That thing is bad ass. I got passed jeep to jeep 3 CJ-7's and a YJ. No winch on my TJ (because it would have broke the jeep, haha). When I got my JKU I wanted something smaller and lighter so I bought a Smitty built 8000lb., it went onto my next JKU. That thing was a work horse. I pulled all kinds of people out including a fully tricked out Ford Raptor that went off an embankment. I had to use a snatch block for that one. ..... OH, I even pulled a fire truck out of a river bed in my first JKU (Still have this JKU, but my son drives it)

That’s pretty cool. Got any more picture or details on the fire truck rescue? Sounds like it would be a great story.

 

[Stickerhead]

Happy with my new Warn VR10S so far.

That’s what is on mine. I have a M8000 on my TJ for 10 years

 

[Broccoli2]

That’s pretty cool. Got any more picture or details on the fire truck rescue? Sounds like it would be a great story.

Well the long story is, I have a Ham Radio License, I was monitoring the fire channel one day, I heard the call that a women was throw off her horse up on the side of a hill. I headed that way. (oh I am also a photographer and I like to photograph first responders). I got there before fire. I knew roughly where the lady was as I have off loaded in those hills. I knew there was no possible was the fire truck could get to her. From previous events I kinda knew a few of the guys. When they rolled up I told them where I thought she was. They called in a helicopter but it was 15 to 20 out. I offered them a ride. Kinda funny I took 3 and one of the guys in the back seat had a pretty hard time putting on the seat belt with all his gear on and holding a bunch of equipment.. I made him buckle it. haha. Anyway. was a pretty tough trail and no trail situation. Got them up there and the heli took her away. when we got back down to the engine it was stuck... OH, on the way down, I still had the Ham on, The Caption from down below said on the radio (broadcasts all over LA county) said " Thanks Jeep". Then I yanked them out... The Caption had already called a camp crew to dig a path... It was pretty cool watching the tires on that truck spin and not go anywhere. It was a good day for me and I'm sure that the engineer still gets a ribbing for it.

 

[AmesosaurusRex]

Well the long story is, I have a Ham Radio License, I was monitoring the fire channel one day, I heard the call that a women was throw off her horse up on the side of a hill. I headed that way. (oh I am also a photographer and I like to photograph first responders). I got there before fire. I knew roughly where the lady was as I have off loaded in those hills. I knew there was no possible was the fire truck could get to her. From previous events I kinda knew a few of the guys. When they rolled up I told them where I thought she was. They called in a helicopter but it was 15 to 20 out. I offered them a ride. Kinda funny I took 3 and one of the guys in the back seat had a pretty hard time putting on the seat belt with all his gear on and holding a bunch of equipment.. I made him buckle it. haha. Anyway. was a pretty tough trail and no trail situation. Got them up there and the heli took her away. when we got back down to the engine it was stuck... OH, on the way down, I still had the Ham on, The Caption from down below said on the radio (broadcasts all over LA county) said " Thanks Jeep". Then I yanked them out... The Caption had already called a camp crew to dig a path... It was pretty cool watching the tires on that truck spin and not go anywhere. It was a good day for me and I'm sure that the engineer still gets a ribbing for it.

Thanks for the long version. That is pretty cool that you were able to help like that.

 

[americonium]

I had an Engo E9000 on my JKU for five years. The sticker faded in about a month, the exposed wiring faded and got tacky, the paint chipped off of it, and there was a lot of rust at the end. I never took proper care of it. All that being said, it never failed to pull anything I could attach to it. Mostly little old ladies in snow drifts, and once, me high centered on some logs in Vermont. I'll probably get another one, but I'll replace the hardware that rusted on the old one, sand and paint the entire exterior, and use different wire to power it, as well as clean and protect it better.

 

[aug0211]

I originally ordered a VR12-S. Talking with 4WD.com right now to swap that out for a ZEON 10-S instead.

The extra ~$300 is probably worth the peace of mind (and I'll give up the 2k lbs - tell my buddy to lighten up his truck, I guess!).

My approach was:
1. Start cheap - what can I get for $300? eBay and Amazon off-brand offerings...
2. Once I saw the options there, I quickly jumped up to the $500-600 range for a bit more confidence in the product (Smittybilt X20 and VR8)
3. Why not add a few thousand lbs of capacity, if it's only an extra hundred or so? (VR12-S)
4. I landed here and ordered the VR12-S
5. Then, come back the next morning (today) - hey, just a couple more hundred dollars gets me a rock solid Zeon! I will be kicking myself later if I don't do this! (Zeon 10-S).

Thus, my $300 purchase turned into a ~$1k purchase. Sigh. At least I know it'll last, it has great resale value if I want to get out of it ever, and the company will stand behind it.

 

[wanderer]

I have owned probably 6 warn winches and one Smitty built Whoever said that there are no waterproof winches is wrong look at the super winch 10 K exp that winch is the best went on the market. My Smitty built never failed neither did my warns. I learned that the VR winches are just cheap foreign-made to compete with lower price wenches like barricade etc. I also learned that some three or five years ago Warn was sold I have not been able to confirm this so take it with a grain of salt I did notice my customer service Sanford dramatically with regard to a warn bumper that I owned. So for me the super winch 10 K exp or the come up 9500 are far superior to Warns

 

[Karl_in_Chicago]

I have owned probably 6 warn winches and one Smitty built Whoever said that there are no waterproof winches is wrong look at the super winch 10 K exp that winch is the best went on the market. My Smitty built never failed neither did my warns. I learned that the VR winches are just cheap foreign-made to compete with lower price wenches like barricade etc. I also learned that some three or five years ago Warn was sold I have not been able to confirm this so take it with a grain of salt I did notice my customer service Sanford dramatically with regard to a warn bumper that I owned. So for me the super winch 10 K exp or the come up 9500 are far superior to Warns

Mike Warn sold the business in 2000. Since then it's been same ownership so I'd be interested what your source for "some three or five years ago Warn was sold". During the time under that ownership a number of products have been developed including the Zeon series, which I think most objective observers would agree is a very good product (albeit pricey).

 

[A. J.]

I went Zeon 10-S. I am allergic to wireless remotes on winches for some reason. Here is my $.02. Take it or leave it. I had a 9.5Ti on my TJ that got used a LOT and it never let me down. I don't plan to do the same things with my JL but if I am on the end of a winch line I want to make damn sure I can trust the winch. $600 more for a GOOD winch is well worth it to me when it might be holding my $55K jeep from rolling or worse.

-Eli

Does it fit okay on the factory steel bumper? And does it come with a mounting bracket?

 

[TJEli]

Does it fit okay on the factory steel bumper? And does it come with a mounting bracket?

It fits. Barely. It does not come with a mounting bracket. You need a custom bracket made to be used with the steel bumper group. I used the Artek plate with mine.

-Eli

 

[Warhawk]

I had an Engo 10k on my JK for 5 years. Multiple pulls in various conditions. Never had an issue. It did seem a little noisier than others that I heard. But for the price difference...it could have sounded like the JLs fan and I wouldn’t have given a crap. I went ahead and ordered another for my JL...but 12k, as the price was basically the same as the 10k.

 

[WXman]

If you think you might actually need a winch then get a Warn Zeon. If you want one to just say you have one then get one of the winch’s made in China and save your money. I have a warn Zeon 10s platinum.

So you're saying the Chinese Warn winches are better than the Chinese Brand X winches?

All I know is that if you read the torture testing article, you'll see that Warn winches are multiple times more expensive and internally they are built no better than anything else on the market. They do have some nice features, but mechanically they are no stronger than anything else out there. Wise shoppers will do actual comparison before buying, rather than just buying a Warn because it has a Warn sticker on it.

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