Winch Maintenance?

[broox]

I'm on the fence about getting a winch.

I plan to get off-road rarely - probably a half dozen times a year at most. I've just started building up some basic recovery gear, but a winch seems like it'd be great for some extra insurance.

Budget isn't a big issue, but before pulling the trigger I wanted to check on what kind of maintenance commitment I might be getting into.

1. Should it be protected from the elements when not in use?
   • Any issues with car washes? or being generally wet while spooled?
   • Any issues with salty roads in the winter? (I live in the upper midwest)
2. How often do y'all wash your line or re-spool it when not in use?
   • A friend told me that his winch recommends re-spooling monthly, which seems excessive.
3. Any benefit to getting a bumper that conceals the winch rather than one that the winch mounts on top of?

Before buying one, setting it up and just forgetting about it until I'm in trouble, I just wanted to see what I might be getting into.

I'm leaning toward a Smittybilt X20 (or Warn VR Evo) 10k with synthetic line.

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[wibornz]

I pull my rope out and respool the winch before each trip. That way I know everything is ok and can address a problem at home instead of on the trail.

 

[broox]

That sounds like the best plan wrt respooling @wibornz.

I assume you have no concerns about other elements and your line while it's spooled?

 

[Krondor]

I'm not as good as Ted. I pull mine out and respool in the Spring and after the first snowfall. And I'm a bit late since we had snow.

I did have a flip plate to put the license plate in front of the winch line but then I went to Factor 55 with it's shield. Mostly I'd say to protect the loop / rope from bugs and road debris.

 

[Sheepjeep]

the winch should be fine with car washes and rain

for road salt, its like anything else made of metal it will rust with time how will depend if it is steel or aluminum, steel ropes will rust over time and synthetic ropes will degrade in the sunlight over time which will result in you replacing the rope, also salt and road dirt can work its way into the synthetic rope and wear it way. But you can get a neoprene cover for most winches that can help protect them from the above

respool the line after each use or trip where you used it just to make sure that that everything is spooled correctly, when done respooling you can leave some tension on the line just to make sure everything stays in place while driving around

as for a sunken mount vs sitting up top, the sunken bumpers give better protection from tree branch strikes, better air flow to the radiator, but tend to cost more, and can make it harder to get at the winch. I would suggest though get a strong bumper with thick metal more than anything i have seen plenty of those cheap white label bumpers like baracade and dv8 just peal off the which while under load the cause they just use cheap thing metal

 

[broox]

Super helpful. Thanks @Sheepjeep!

 

[neil]

regarding mounting, I wanted a bumper where the winch set on top, because most of us have buried our front end.

A winch is better than no winch. Neoprene covers are cheap if your worried about it's exposure to elements.

For most, ya don't need it. But it can save you the cost of the winch if you use it once. I think of it like a jumper back....or dual battery isolator. Whats your risk and how far out in bfe alone do you go?

 

[Vinman]

I usually respool the rope every couple of months and keep the winch covered when not in use.
Here is the winch that was on my Jeep I just sold for over 12 years, looks almost like new.

 

[Darter02]

Yesterday I took a few moments to just respool/pretension my line. I intend on doing this more often but sometimes forget. I've yet to need it, but Wisconsin winter gives me good odds that I will eventually.

 

[cosine]

I usually respool the rope every couple of months and keep the winch covered when not in use.
Here is the winch that was on my Jeep I just sold for over 12 years, looks almost like new.

is that a 9500ti series winch. also how many feet of line is on there.

 

[Vinman]

is that a 9500ti series winch. also how many feet of line is on there.

Yes, a 9.5TI.
It originally had 125’ of 5/16” steel line and I replaced it with 90’ of Warn 3/8” synthetic rope.

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