Winch amps

[Dg1615]

Hey All, I’m trying to figure out if the deadman switch I bought for my winch is big enough. What is the definition of intermittent when it comes to winch? Also it appears as if my winch is grounded through the case? Is that normal? It runs with the ground cable off. Thanks

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[lashlee]

Intermittent would be similar to inrush current or a sudden burst of current (like when it's doing the first few seconds of a dead pull on a heavy load). According to the chart from the winch, 435 amps is first layer amp draw and the switch is rated at 455 amps so you should be good, assuming you can adequately terminate the wiring. I'm not a fan of those switches and would recommend wiring straight to the battery, but to each his own. If the switch is included with the winch, maybe but that seems to be one more item to fail at the worst possible time. If you are worried about parasitic draw, throw a ratchet and socket in a tool bag and leave the terminals disconnected until you need the winch.

 

[fourfa]

All winching is intermittent, basically. Even a full rope length pull isn’t enough to count as continuous. And IRL there just aren’t any pulls that long at sustained high winch torque.

I would not do anything close to a full power pull without the ground cable. You can probably sink enough current to free run and tighten up on the fairlead - but I wouldn’t count on more than that

 

[Dg1615]

Intermittent would be similar to inrush current or a sudden burst of current (like when it's doing the first few seconds of a dead pull on a heavy load). According to the chart from the winch, 435 amps is first layer amp draw and the switch is rated at 455 amps so you should be good, assuming you can adequately terminate the wiring. I'm not a fan of those switches and would recommend wiring straight to the battery, but to each his own. If the switch is included with the winch, maybe but that seems to be one more item to fail at the worst possible time. If you are worried about parasitic draw, throw a ratchet and socket in a tool bag and leave the terminals disconnected until you need the winch.

Thanks. I am concerned about parasitic draw because the jeep sits so much but also any chafing. I thought it would be easier to leave it switched off until needed and turn it on when you leave for the woods/ trails. Then you could switch it off quick if you heard or smelled anything funny. These electrical systems on these things make me nervous. I bought that switch separately from the winch.

 

[Dg1615]

All winching is intermittent, basically. Even a full rope length pull isn’t enough to count as continuous. And IRL there just aren’t any pulls that long at sustained high winch torque.

I would not do anything close to a full power pull without the ground cable. You can probably sink enough current to free run and tighten up on the fairlead - but I wouldn’t count on more than that

Thanks for the response. I wasn’t planning on running it without the ground I was just surprised it ran without it. Also to me it seems like the switch is barely big enough. But again, I don’t know their definition of intermittent. I guess the worse that could happen is smoke the switch when your using it

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