Which winch?

[Dave MacArthur]

I'm going to order a Warn winch. They recommend taking your Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and multiplying it by 1. 5 to get the minimum size for your vehicle. That would be 13,200 for me (8800 GVWR). Is that really necessary? I would love to get the M15000 but the bumper I'm getting will only fit up to a 9500. What size winch does everyone have and have you had any problems? Any and all info would be appreciated.



Thanks,



Dave.

 

[BarryG]

Patiently waiting for my DOR bumper and I am going to use the Warn 12000lb. You can always use a snatch block which will double the weight of the winch and cut the speed in half.

 

[Rotty]

Check this out: http://www.milemarker.com.

I have the 2 speed 10,500lbs and it pulls like a diesel locomotive train all day long without over heating! They now also have a 12,000lbs if you are interested. The nice part about the 2 speed is you don't really need a pulley. Just shift the speed low/high. If you have any questions, just email me. -- email address removed --

 

[Ted Constantine]

I have found the 12k in my DOR bumper to be the perfect match. Dave, what kind of bumper are you getting??



Ted

 

[EarthRoamer]

Warn Winches

I have a Warn 12,000 on the front and a Warn 9,000 on the rear of my EarthRoamer truck. I've used them both to get unstuck, but it is really pushing the limits. They will pull OK for a very short distance, but they heat up very quickly.



On my next truck, I'll probably go hydraulic.

 

[BK]

I have a 6Klb Warn winch that's about 20 years old.

It lived for a very long time on front of my '80 yota till it was totalled. (dry weight of that truck was 4Klbs. )

After that I put it on a multi mount and moved it between my bronco and full size van. Now I use the mutli mount on the front or rear of my ram.



I've broken the stock cable twice. . put on the next size up. . it's been soo long now I don't remember the OD's. . just put less on.

Haven't broken a cable since.



There's nothing it hasnt unstuck. Honestly, the biggest thing was a 6wheel dump truck that got stuck coming out of the sand pit.

The funniest was a old ~70 pw with ~40" tall tires (didn't know how tall the tires were when we 1st started to help him out, he burried them completely under the sand. . at the near top of a large sand/dirt hill). . stuck at the near top. . dropped the driveshaft to the divorced transfer case. Hooked up to him, dragged my yota up the hill trying to get him out. So chained my buddies f350 to the rear of my yota. . we both had our brakes locked... and the winch dragged us both up the hill. Thats when I asked what tires he had... when he told us, I told him to start digging. .



Bottom line, the bigger the better. But also the bigger, the more battery drain... thats the only negative of going bigger.

If I was gonna buy another winch, I wouldn't look at anything else but a warn (for an electric winch). The things I've done with that winch.



Earthroamer is correct that they do heat up. And mines no exception, but it's still ticking. Back when I bought it , it was the only winch not rated at a stall weight (and others were rated at a "rolling" weight". . but at it's full load dead pull weight at a rated line speed. From what I've seen of the big three or so, it seems they've all gone to they way warn has done it for years.



Hydraulic is nice, but the truck has to be running. I've only once is 22 years have had an instance where I couldn't run the truck and needed the winch. . winch ran great under water. I sank the truck in a fresh water lake, during a flood season, trying to get around a group of trees that used to be on land. . but where now out in the lake from the flood.

 

[osmith]

I got the warn 9k, the 9500 is a relatively new product and I'm always leary of purchasing the first one of anything



I chose the 9k because I always snatch block anyways, it's easier on the winch and the more cable you pull out the better. I carry an extra 50' of chain and another 35' sling plus a high-lift jack.



The hydrolic will pull all day long if you require it too, for example pulling your truck up long hills or through long stretches of bog. I've always just had to pull through a couple of mud holes, or out of the ditch etc, which are not long pulls and are more suited to the electric.



You have to know what your uses are going to be and go from there. The 9k is enough for my truck and will pull it along nicely.



Where you run into trouble is if your using truck power along with the winch which can result in 'shocking' the winch with too much force which will essentially ruin it.



Good luck with your choice.

 

[Ted Constantine]

I agree with Bill's comments on hydralic but I personally will stay away from the Milemarker winches that run of the power steering pump as our brakes run off it to. With the addtion of a agr pump or an additional hydralic pump it is a sweet set up and the only way to go if you are using the winch for more than self recovery. I have not had any heat issues but I also have only gotten stuck or pulled other vehicles in subzero weather. The only major negative to a hydralic winch for self recovery is that it will not work without the engine running but how often does that happen in a 8-12k lb truck. These are not jeeps and we don't take them swimming.



Osmith, I have had a bit of experience with the 9500 hs warn winches and they are an excellent product. I would not hesitate if I was in the market for a winch of that capacity.

 

[Dave MacArthur]

The bumper I'm getting is the Bullbar. Here's the link to them: http://www.uteltd.com/dodge/ram.html. Currently they only make a mount for up to the warn 9500's (for the Dodges). If they had enough requests, they told me they would make a mount for the m12000/15000. My thinking at this point is to go with the front receiver and get the warn multi-mount (http://www.warn.com/InternetHome/) so that I could use the winch either front or back. I'm not too concerned about the continuous use problem. This is for very occasional/emergency use. I really don't want to leave the winch off the truck though. Isn't there a locking pin available for the receiver mount? Is there a way to secure the bolts that mount the winch to the multi-mount plate? Also, is there any reason not to leave the winch on all the time if it is receiver mounted (besides theft)? Another question. The reason I'm thinking of doing the milti-mount is not necessarily to save money but because it seems convenient. Is there a way to mount a winch in the rear leaving the stock bumper and hitch? I don't see a mounting system on the Warn site for the rear except the multi-mount. I would be looking for something that is bolt on and doesn't need fabrication. Thanks a lot for everyone's help so far, it's very much appreciated.



Dave.

 

[BK]

Dave,

my main reason to use the multi mount was 1, to get the weight off the front end when I don't need it and 2, to save some money and use it either front or back of any of my trucks. I can only drive one at a time... so...



For 10 years my winch was on the front of my yota in plain view. I never had a problem with theft. Although your right that the multimount adds security.



The multi mount is a 2" receiver system. So if you have a class III or better rear 2" receiver, your fine.

Just need the wiring assy from Warn. For about 120 bucks, it's hard to bet. About 22' long, comes with a safety disconnect realy, connector and a few other dodades. I priced putting the kit together myself since I have sources for the same very heavy wiring and realys. But I still came out slightly higher than the price of the kit.



All you need is a multimount for the winch and a front hitch. Warn makes one, I have that one. Drawtite makes one, which my friend has and uses a 8Klb warn winch on.

Again, if you have a class III or better rear 2" receiver, your all set. Just need the wiring kit for the rear.

If you have a front air dam, you will need to either remove it , or cut a square hole in it for the 2" front receiver to stick through.

Thats the only thing thats not bolt together in the whole process.



If you want to see some pix, let me know. I also have some pix of the rear wiring assy in the box... have it, just havent installed it yet.



-Bob

 

[fritzbo29]

I have a warn 9000 that I bought in 94. The weight issue should really apply only if you are trying to pull yourself sideways with the tires not spinning on dry ground. That will rarely if at all happen, and if you have some chains, a snatch block (pully), and some blankets you'll be OK with a 9000 lb. I got into some really crappy situations in the mtns of NM with my 94, and got out of them all with no damage thanks to the winch, that was then mounted only to the front on the Dodge mounting bumper.



I am now working on getting the wiring together to make the winch portable to the front and back depending on the need, since I have a 2wd now.



Cheers

Fritz

 

[BK]

Fritz reminded me,

I too use the pully from Warn.

Works well. Only negative is that the center bearing is nothing more than a peice of teflon or graphite impregnated strip. Dont drop it in the sand.



But the best thing about it besides fixing off center pulls is that it gives you a 2x mechanical advantage. For a 9Klb winch, you now have 18Klbs of capacity when you anchor the pully to a something and attach the end of the cable to your truck. It's half the line speed, but twice the pulling capacity. The mechanical advantage works for either pulling your self out or someone else out. pulling yourself out, the pully gets anchored to a fixed spot. . to pull someone else out, the pully gets attached to the stuckie's truck.



There's a kit from Warn that comes with a chain with cinch ends, tree saver, the pully , some gloves and a nice bag. You can probably buy everything else cheaper, seperate. . but it's a good starter set to have the basic other things you should have with the winch.

And if it's not standard, with the winch you buy... do opt for the roller fairlead. Makes life much easier on the off center pulls.

 

[dan_gilson]

I think you can answer this yourself by asking yourself a couple of questions:



1) What do I plan on using the winch for? Recovery (i. e. getting yourself out when stuck) or general work.



If recovery an electric is less expensive and suited well for this.



If general work is what you are planning to use it for then hydraulic is the way to go. Electrics have a very low duty cycle and need to cool of for as much as an hour between pulls. There have been a lot of good things said about Milemarker. I to am a bit concerned about using the power steering pump. They do make an option to use a hydraulic from the PTO. The next step up would be to use what the tow truck driver use.



2) What size? There is a point where you can pull more than your frame is designed for. 15K LBS is getting close. Bending a frame out in the middle of nowhere would be no fun. I am not saying a 15K winch will not work well nor am I saying that you will bend you frame by using it.



I purchased the biggest winch I could get at the time. I have a 12K. When setting the cable I got my signals cross with my buddy and he left his foot on the brake as I started the winch. The truck was on about a 30 degree hill and it just slide it up just fine before I got my finger off the button. I was on hard pavment. The winch slowed down to it lowest speed but just kept moving.



3) Another question that you might not have thought about: Which bumper should it be placed on?



It depends on (again) what you want to use it for.



Example: I have my winch on the back. I do not want to pull myself through. I want to get the H#LL out. It is there for insurance purposes only. If I never have to get myself unstuck with it that is just fine by me. The time I did get stuck was when I did not have it. It is no fun having both axles buried in the mud. I had lot of rope but no cable or chain. The problem with the rope is that it would stretch. I tried using the bumper jack as a winch but the strech of the rope was greater than the travel of the jack. Mountain tow'ers are expensive!

 

[lIseminger]

I have the original single speed milemarker

on a homemade multimount. I use it front and

rear. Best winch I've ever had. Use to overheat

my warn often. I was younger then and didn't

let it cool enough. The new warns aren't as

touchy as the older ones. I think you should get

what you can afford. Bigger better but then you

have to upgrade the electric or you can't reach

the winch rating. Hence more money. People

that don't like winching don't play hard enough!

 

[JSoloman]

Does anyone here have the HO with the PTO? Or are Power take off winches a thing of the past?

 

[dan_gilson]

There are still maker of PTO winches. The advantage that I can think of using a hydraulic over a PTO is cost, ease of use AND more importantly you can get hydraulic pumps with built in overloads. If you exceed the pressure it just stops pumping. This is good if you don't want to break things. If you can lucky with a PTO you will stall the engine. If you are not your will probably break the cable first or something worse. The thought of a cable breaking and coming back at me with a lot of energy is not my idea of a good time.

 

[jimk]

wench

I bought a pierce 9000 electric winch for my trailer and it was a warranty unit that was returned and fixed. I bought it for about half the price of a new one. I got the electric motor that had bearings instead of bushings for a little extra. The same warranty. I had time to think about it and bought a extra one for a spare.

The guy I talked to was Henry at Pierce sales. If it is for farm use not tax.

My father had on of the early dodge diesel trucks with a auto and a 4x4. He had a pto on the transfer case that ran the winch. The wench had one reverse and 3 forward speeds. You had to put the transfer case into neutral and pull the pto into gear. Then the transmission was put into gear. I was never cared for the setup but it never gave any trouble. He used the heck out of it. I doubt that a electric would have ever stood up to the abuse. He had a tulsa wench on the flat bed ,rolling tail board and poles. The truck was heavy and I have seen the truck struck up to the bottom of the doors and dad used the wench to pulled the truck out, for a long way. It had half inch cable on the spool of the trulsa. I thought that he was going to pull the truck in half. The pto wench has a lot of pulling power and it is 100% duty cycle.

He finally got rid of the truck because of the transmissions and the brakes. I used plural to the words as he said 10 or 12 transmissions and the several ( enough to fill up a wheel borrow) brakes . The engine gave no problem ever.

lol JIm

 

[Pat@BD]

I know my winch isnt on a Dodge Diesel, but I have it on my rock crawling Jeep. I work it hard. I am using the HS9500I and wouldnt go away from it. The milemarkers are slow and dont work unless your truck is running. I have used both, and I wouldnt go away from the HS9500I

 

[Fred Swanson]

You could probably get by with the 12K WARN. If you get your truck that stuck, it'll take more than just the winch to get you out.

 

[jimk]

stuck

My father drove in a field about day light in his one ton 4x4 and it did ok far a while. The ground was frozen, but after a while the tempertures came up and the truck fell through and it went to the bottom of the door. I could step of the back of tail board and it was not to far to the ground, about the hitch. The truck had a pto and a tulsa wench. It had half inch cable and a lot of it. I had the fun time of pulling off the cable and hocking the cable to a tree that was big enough to no come loose. I dont know if a 12k wench would have pulled out the truck. If you used a snatch block and double it, probably so. The truck had a leland flat bed and it was heavy.

I did not think it would come out but it did. Mud was coming up the back off the tail board. The truck was a wench truck so the wench was in the rear of the truck behind the cab.

I would not reccomend working a truck that hard. The mud was in every thing under and on the out side also. I thought that the wench would come loose but it would off taken a hugh amount as the bracket was 3/4 steel that was broken to support the wench and bolted the frame with several 3/4 bolts on each side. .

I have seen several wenches used in the oil field and the pto is generally longer life . My father has a international with a l10 cummins and it has a large tulsa and a 9000 electric for lowering the poles and small work. Also used to level up when using two lines. It is great to have a extra wench.

I like both kinds of wenches, just depends on what you wont to use them for. lol Jim