Should I get a winch? Please school me on them.

[Blue Ridge]

you got the MC bumper but didn’t get their fairlead right??? Then you better order that up if you want a winch, unfortunately MC opts to have a non conformingwinch spec fairlead… they make theirs huge from bolt hole to bolt hole. Most winches will be a fixed fairlead style.

Lots of great choices out there. Good luck

Uh oh. I'll call them in the morning and see what they say. They have 4 different styles for different winches and I haven't decided yet is my biggest problem! Hopefully since they haven't begun the shipping process yet they can help me through it.

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[sass JT]

Uh oh. I'll call them in the morning and see what they say. They have 4 different styles for different winches and I haven't decided yet is my biggest problem! Hopefully since they haven't begun the shipping process yet they can help me through it.

MC’s customer service is top notch… Will and the guys will get you squared away.

I’m sure those 4 choices are :
Roller fair lead fixed (steel wire)
Roller fairlead offset
Or
Synthetic fairlead fixed
Synthetic fairlead offset.

Like I said most winches are fixed( which means middle).

Good luck sir!

 

[NC_Overland]

I just ordered Metalcloak bumpers, and I'm torn between getting a piece of sheet metal fabricated and powder coated to cover where the winch would go, or just buying a winch. I don't plan on any severe wheeling until this truck has been beat up by life a little. But the prepper side of me thinks it would be a reasonable purchase and one of those things you'll be really glad you had even if just once in a blue moon.

A little about me/my driving. I live very close to work, and take occasional road trips. Live in the NC mountains, and do get some snow and ice. I deer hunt in the winter and turkey hunt in the spring; both of which mean driving out in the sticks. Usually hunt with a buddy, but only one (my) vehicle. Unless I pick up the wheeling bug, I don't see a winch getting used often, but want it to work if I need it.

We had nearly a foot of snow this winter and this Gladiator climbed right through it. I easily pulled a Honda out of it using my rear tow hook and a strap. The more I write this out, the less I think it's something I need but if I get one, I'm trying to make the right purchase. Buy once/cry once and all. Is there a drastic difference between 8,000, 10,000, and 12,000 pound pulls? Is synthetic line worth the cost increase? How much mileage loss should I expect? Will the front droop noticeably? Any brands to be looking at besides Warn Evo that are in the $6-700 range? Do fairleads and hooks typically come with them? I ordered my bumper without fairleads added, thinking they should, but could probably change this seeing as it will be several weeks before it ships. Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Want vs need. I’m in about the same situation as you, but I can think of times that I would have used one, not for me, if I had one. I would have one if I already hd a winch capable bumper. The more that I think about it, I actually would have used one quite a bit on the beach over the last few years.

Plus, I’d look cool at the mall.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Plus, I’d look cool at the mall.

Think of the shopping carts you could pull with a winch!

 

[NC_Overland]

Think of the shopping carts you could pull with a winch!

Seriously! A lot!

I don’t think they have shopping carts at the mall, but a lot!

 

[trailless]

I never thought I'd need a winch as I don't really do any offroading that warrants one. However, a friend and I decided to go out wheeling one day. It had rained slightly that day and the trails were stilly muddy. We both got stuck on the side of a mountain at an offroad park on what was supposed to be a very easy trail. The trail was tight and with the mud we both ended up getting stuck. He had his rear tires off to the side of the trail and I was sideways pinned to a tree. I had to call in for someone to come and winch us out...

Side Story: Then by the time we were getting off the mountain it started raining again. As we get down to the entrance and the lady is like, WELLLLL you guys are going to be leaving. When we asked her why, she replied by telling us to go take a look at the only road that leads in to the park. There was a legit river flowing through that road. It had to be 150ft across and it was deep. The guy that helped winch us out had a jeep on some insane lift with 42s and before he even got to the deepest part the water came up past his doors. So there was no way I was making it across in my JKU with a 3" lift and 37s. Nevertheless that you couldn't even follow the road as the road curved... In the end though, we ended up being offered a place to stay by some guy that lived on that side of the river. He offered us dinner and some of that fine Tennessee liquor. I'll never forget it, it was true Southern Hospitality at it's finest. Also we all even went back out on the trails before sunset. Anyway, I vowed that after that I would get a winch just in case.

 

[mtudb24]

A winch is only as good as the tow point you can attach it too. If you hunt or offroad a lot in a wide open field, or sand dunes, you better carry a large danforth boat anchor some other type pulling device or your winch will be useless. As you said, you usually only take 1 vehicle, so unless you have trees or rocks or something to pull with, your not getting home without help.

Synthetic line is better then steel in my opinion. My last 2 winches were synthetic (9000 and 12000lbs). Its lighter, somewhat more durable, and if they break, they usually don't fly through the back window damaging your truck (or somebody else's or taking their heads off). Even with synthetic, I still put a heavy canvas blanket over the rope to make sure it drops to the ground if it breaks.

You'll get 100 opinions on what brand to get. Everyone says Warn without a doubt. People are sometimes hung up on brand names. Yes, the are damn good winches, but there are others. Even the off brands have their merit. When I was building square body K5's and PU trucks in the 80's and 90's everyone said Ramsey winches sucked. But if you look at 90% of the tow trucks out there back then, they all run Ramsey winches.
I've had Warn, Smittybilt ,and Rough Country. While I never used any of them more then 20 times in a given year, I have never had an issue with any of them.

Good luck with your decision


Yes, I'm no hard core rock crawler or mud bogger, but I wheel my trucks in Michigan UP logging roads, muddy fields and trails for hunting, and sand dune etc. The majority of my winch uses are to pull SOMEBODY else out vs trying to get myself out of a sticky situation.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Seriously! A lot!

I don’t think they have shopping carts at the mall, but a lot!

Closest mall here has Target as an anchor store - yeah, all those red-handled carts all over the place LOL
I don't go to the upper scale mall on the other side of town where the exclusive high-dollar stores are.

 

[ArmyMP]

Looking for a budget, but decent winch.

The Xbull 10k and Zesuper 13k look to be identical except for the name. The Amazon page sketches me out.

I'm aware of the Badlands winch but are there any other budget winches that typically get recommended along with them??

Smittybilt makes some good winches

 

[KurtP]

reasonable purchase and one of those things you'll be really glad you had even if just once in a blue moon.

I deer hunt in the winter and turkey hunt in the spring; both of which mean driving out in the sticks. Usually hunt with a buddy, but only one (my) vehicle. Unless I pick up the wheeling bug, I don't see a winch getting used often, but want it to work if I need it.

thoughts.

get one

warn evo vr 10s would be perfect

factor 55 lead and ultrahook

a winch is rarely needed, but when it is, rarely can something replace it.

 

[KWin]

Reading this thread it's almost as if you asked a bunch of crack addicts "i dont do crack, never have, but got a pipe(bumper), should I get some crack, just incase?"

 

[FrankFrqnkFrank]

I ordered a WARN 87800 M8000 Self-Recovery Winch 100' Spydura Synthetic Rope and Polished Aluminum Hawse Fairlead on December 15. The projected ship date is October 10! I chose this winch because it’s made in America. Now I’m guessing it’s handmade in America

 

[Gladiator832]

Unless life throws a curve ball--- this truck will only see the beach---- again just got one for the beginning of this sentence!

 

[Broke Owner]

I had been on the fence about ordering one but I wasn’t too sure, didn’t want to purchase something for a pretty penny and not use it. I had my eye on a badland but I discovered the X-Bull ones, seems like a solid budget option with good reviews, and if you buy from them directly they do free shipping and no taxes (I’m in Texas if that matters) I don’t mind using an off brand and I think the orange would look cool in a Mojave.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Overland with MOPAR style steel bumper, HF Badland Apex 1200 winch. So far, used to rescue others but that's where a large part of the value is to me. There if I need it. It's Iowa - snow, ice, ice and snow, mud, whatever.

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