Winch

Yes.

On this rig, not long (<6 months).

Use it for yard work mostly.

Without it, you can usually make do, but when you need a winch, you need a winch.


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I've had them for years on my Jeeps. As posted above, you don't need it until you NEED it. Honestly, I've used mine to get others out of a situation 10 times more often than I have to pull myself out of a jam.

IMO, it's a piece of safety gear...if you choose to get one, don't skimp on it.

All of my winches currently have wire rope on them. I prefer wire when I'm playing in the rocks...having said that I'm going to go to synthetic rope when I need to change the rope on my '05 Wrangler, it's generally safer and SO much easier to handle. My rock Jeep has a Warn 10k winch on it with 3/8" wire rope, I'll keep the wire on that one forever because of the abuse it takes.

If you get a winch, keep the controller where you can reach it from the drivers seat, while you're sitting in the seat. More than once I've been in a situation where a winch equipped vehicle had the controller in an inaccessible location. For whatever reason, (most) winch remotes, even within the same brand, are NOT interchangeable.

Winches are like HiLift jacks IMO. They are both very versatile tools that can kill you in a split second. If you get one, READ the safety precautions, HEED the safety precautions. Go out and practice using it so you are familiar with it's operation before you need it.
 
I've got one in my truck.. With wire and I've used it maybe 3 times. Mostly to pull others out. I have never had to recover myself.. But I have it in case I need it

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Winches are like fire extinguishers and air bags. You really hope to never need one, but when you do need one they're worth their weight in gold.

That said, I'm now subscribing to the school of thought that winches can be used preventatively. Case in point: About to go up a nasty hill climb - take a few minutes and run cable. Let the winch help. Easier on the rig; easier on the terrain. Maybe it's just because I pull a trailer now, but it has me thinking less about "what do I do when shit happens" to thinking more about "what can I do to prevent shit from happening."

Sadly now I'm running a loaner winch, but if/when I can save up enough pennies I'm going with at least a 10k Warn.
 
Yes. Five years. Five times. "Must" is such a strong word. :)

Three times were recovering other vehicles, and for all three other methods would have worked just fine. At least one of those times I was just being lazy: sometimes it's easier to latch on and just push a button...especially when it's muddy. The fourth time was to prevent another vehicle from tipping over, and no other tool would have worked. Last time I used it was also for yard work: I needed to move a 2-ton boulder out of the way to build the front porch.

The Discovery has a 12k on it. At 6,000 pounds loaded it feels just about right...I'm a fan of having extra capacity. The Subaru has nothing and never will, fast and light is the key to Foz success.

Just like fire extinguishers and air bags, winches do require maintenance, and skipping maintenance is a recipe for disaster.

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I have nearly always had a winch. I have had a Warn HS 9500, a Superwinch s9000, a Milemarker 9.5 and an Engo 9000. I still have the Warn, although am in the midst of a thorough rebuild... maybe.... long story, but it may not be recoverable.
I have been impressed with them all...
-Warn HS 9500 - fast as you can get, durable, quiet, winched jeeps (mine and others) more times than I can count, was the king winch of my group when rockcrawling was my thing, ran and saved the day after almost 5 hours underwater when on my son's TJ
-Superwinch S9000 - Not as fast, would get hot when pulling, not a friend of synthetic :). This winch, bought used needed a motor rewind and a brake rebuild and so it sits on my workbench, disassembled... most likely forever.
-Milemarker - Had this for a while and it worked well. Slow, no complaining though, did everything I asked of it... not as fast or as quiet as the Warn. Sold with the vehicle it was on.
-Engo - Had this on the LJ and then on the Suburban I flirted with. Never used for vehicle recovery but used many times on the farm for trees, logs etc... - slow, loud, but performed and was super inexpensive.

I am rebuilding the Warn, but it has some serious rust after 12 years of wheeling and farm work and the aforementioned submersion... if I can save it I will, if not I am up for suggestions.... :)
 
Dean said:
Winches are like fire extinguishers and air bags. You really hope to never need one, but when you do need one they're worth their weight in gold.

That said, I'm now subscribing to the school of thought that winches can be used preventatively. Case in point: About to go up a nasty hill climb - take a few minutes and run cable. Let the winch help. Easier on the rig; easier on the terrain. Maybe it's just because I pull a trailer now, but it has me thinking less about "what do I do when shit happens" to thinking more about "what can I do to prevent shit from happening."

Sadly now I'm running a loaner winch, but if/when I can save up enough pennies I'm going with at least a 10k Warn.
Click to expand...

Whaaat? Deliberately planning to use a tool to prevent damage to your primary mobility platform?

Well, that's just crazy talk... who ever heard of such a thing!? :rolleyes:

Pardon my sarcasm but it's a useful way to reinforce a point. @Dean makes a really good observation and teaching point here that often escapes so many others... your overlanding vehicle, when used in vehicle dependent travel, is much like a ship at sea. When navigating the oceans your ship is your only means of survival in the environment. If the vessel is not maintained or malfunctions and you succumb to an underway casualty you are "dead in the water." Ponder that quote.

Much is the same if you're navigating far from home and unable to maintain your truck or succumb to a damaging trail obstacle. Your vehicle is dead, perhaps far from aid and now you've graduated from an "outing" to an "adventure," maybe even one that can deteriorate into a survival situation. At a minimum it can be an expensive proposition to tow or repair your vehicle far from home. The law of averages applies... it will happen - ask me how I know.

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Overland Expo '12, CASREP - Transmission. American Toyota, Albuquerque, NM

The military formally calls this "Operational Risk Management." There's even an acronym applied by deliberate planners known as the "Seven P's." Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. Don't become a victim of high levels of testosterone or excessive pride in your sturdy vehicle. Minimize your risk. Murphy can strike at any time.
 
I think that risk and skinny pedal share a strong positive correlation, and are definitely on the same spectrum. If you need to use a lot of skinny pedal to get through that spot / up that hill, you might want to let the winch do what it's good at.


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I sell all major brands. Warn and Engo are my big sellers. I've used warn, Engo and come up winches. When the time comes for a winch on my new jeep it will most likely be a come up winch.

Like all have mentioned. When you need it you will know and you will wish you had one. I'm a big advocate on having the right recovery equipment. Too many people focus on lifts and tires and then that gets them into a situation were they need recovery equipment but they bought the cheap strap that broke and so on.
 
Have had 4 different rovers always with some sort of winch up front and until recently never needed one but we were wheeling alone and got stuck - tried maxtracs no luck - used the winch pulled through the obstacle and saved our bacon - is it necessary probably not but is it something that you will be happy to have if you wheel alone - yes

I have bought every warn used for around 2-400 dollars so you don't need to spend big money on a new one just get one that works and rated for your vehicle weight
 
The Power Wagon came with a winch. I self-recovered with a hi-lift once and that was tedious. I never want to do that again. Haven't had the Power Wagon long enough to need it for ourselves. But we are now firmly in the "helping others" club.

Family pulled over to the side of the road to grab a picture and couldn't get back out - kept sliding further into the ditch. Good test of our gear and teamwork. Should of used a damper, but whatever.
Our Good Deed .jpg
 
My current vehicle is the first one that I have had a winch . I chose a comeup 9.5rs. So far only had to use it once, but I was damn glad that I had it. I got stuck in a snowy ditch in OR and needed to self recover. When you have to go out alone, it's invaluable.
 
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I had mine on for 3-4 years now and have used it quite a few times to pull youngsters out of the sand, logs out of forest roads and stuck tractors up hills. It has paid for itself in the dozen + times Ive needed to use it. Very pleased with it overall. Warn VL 10,000 with 3/8 SE Overland synthetic line and Viking thimble . I upgraded from the stock steel cable.
 
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Greetings,

I don't have much experience using a winch, but I have one on my 1995 Hummer.

I 'upgraded' to a synthetic line vs a steel cable, because I was advised that a steel cable will spring and fly if it breaks under
a load and a synthetic would not spring and fly.

I was also told that you should always put your vehicle in drive vs. using a winch under load with the vehicle in park. I heard
that vehicle in drive with the brakes on is stronger than the pin in the transmission holding the vehicle in park. Myth?

Tow straps are in all vehicles.

Take care.
 
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