Winches

[MerkL]

Do you guys have a preference of one name brand over another, and if so what is the reason for it? I'm looking into installing a winch sometime in the near future, and I know that Warn is a good name brand, but what about Ramsey or Milemarkers? Are they cheaper for a reason, do they not perform as well? Just some thoughts I've had.

Thanks

 

[OutOfStep]

I have a "thing" for the hydraulic Milemarkers personally, though most will probably suggest electric instead :wink:

 

[LGR]

i myself have a warn and it works great..never really had any problems with it..i'm sure if i had to buy another it would be a warn also. a friend of mine got a milemarker and another has a superwinch and they both like theres..its just what you get the better deal on i guess..heh.

 

[jps4jeep]

In my 4wd history, I have had two different winches, on my first YJ I had a cheap 6000 lb Ramsey winch that I got used for $100 at a local salvage yard, and it was a piece. Never needed it, thank god. On my 77 blazer I had a old school PTO winch that was awesome. I think it was produced by koenig or keonig, I don't recall, but I got it surpluss off a 75 military chevy rig for short cash. This winch was the best!! When I bought my YJ I would have put this on, but the output off the T-case was on the wrong side so I sold it for about twice what I payed for it. the only down point of the winch was if there was a fear of hydrolock or if the engine was not running, the winch was useless.

If I could find one for my YJ I would snatch it up in a heart beat! either that or a warn 8274.

I am pretty sure Bounty will elaborate on the warn 8274, great winch!

 

[MerkL]

New Rockers

I was wondering because I found a Ramsey 8000 pound winch for $400. I don't think I'll ever need anything over 8000 lbs. so no need for the 9000 or 9500.

 

[White]

ramsey 8000 for 400 must be the rep series ?
Check the line speed, motor hp and be sure you have enough power for it. I personally believe ramsey are the best quality for the money. The mile-markers are slower then mike looking for his glasses (inside joke ).......

 

[MerkL]

Is there anything wrong with the rep series?

 

[avyoung]

I plan on getting an REP 8000 when I get the money. You can only assuem that it will be slow but slow is better than nothing.

 

[far_right]

my 6K ramsey rep isnt that slow

 

[TwistedCU]

Far Right- How's that 6000lb winch working out for you? Plenty of power for a Jeep? I've been looking at winches for a while now and will probably get one soon. I'm contemplating how much pulling power, motor size, and current draw I need.

All - It's kind of complicated when you think that with a stock alternator and a good battery (i'll probably upgrade to an Optima yellow top or similar), that thing is going to be drawing way more current than the electrical system ever could keep up with. So my dillemma is...

Would it be better to get a powerful unit that has a fast line speed but draws an incredible amout of amperage, or a slower one that draws a whole lot less? One would kill the battery quickly and the other could kill it by taking too long.

 

[MerkL]

For pulling myself out mainly, would I be better off to get an Optima Red top or Yellow?

 

[far_right]

TwistedCopper, .

mine has been GREAT... i wish i could say the same for my jeep... but my winch has never failed me and has been pulled hard a few times and never really seems to get hot or anything? i love it

 

[TwistedCU]

Far Right- That's what I hoped you'd say. Thanks

For pulling myself out mainly, would I be better off to get an Optima Red top or Yellow?

The winch will have a recommended minimum CCA rating for your battery. Either of those 2 batteries should be well ever that recommended rating, but the Yellow Top is a deep cycle battery. What difference that makes for winching I can't tell ya, but they're like $20-$30 more than the red top. I may just go get a big ol' interstate battery or the baddest die-hard.

 

[White]

If you measure your voltage ( 12 off ) (13-14 running)
Measure it while winching with a stock alternator ( 10-11) at best.
With voltage drop, current rises .
I would keep a stock battery and do just a alternator upgrade.
If you can't keep 12v the winch will draw more power and never reach a full pull of 8000.
Another trick is to upgrade the system to 16v or a seperate 24v winch. But thats another story.
Nothing wrong with a slow winch, The rep's are still better then the milemarkers. And a good value !

 

[White]

Has anyone ever hooked two winches together ( to each other ) to see if one could out pull the other ?
Anyone wanna try

 

[Mxpx182lit]

i have a warn 9000 and its running off the stock battery and alternator. It has more then enough power to pull me and my friends up and out of whatever we get ourselves into. I would go warn.

 

[White]

can we please get the ads and menu off the side?

If its doing fine with the stock alternator, How do you think it would do with a 200 amp Ohio Generator or Power Master ?
Someone want to list each electric part of a jeep and its current draw ? Bet you will find with everything on you will have less then 40amps to power a winch.

 

[TwistedCU]

trip to vegas, think we will make it?

If you measure your voltage ( 12 off ) (13-14 running)
Measure it while winching with a stock alternator ( 10-11) at best.
With voltage drop, current rises .
I would keep a stock battery and do just a alternator upgrade.
If you can't keep 12v the winch will draw more power and never reach a full pull of 8000.

That was my theory before an earlier thread on this subject prompted me to research this issue, but...

Current Draw on a Warn M8000
80 amps@0 lbs
200 amps@2000ibs
285 amps@4000lbs
350 amps@6000lbs
435 amps @8000lbs


Using a Warn M8000 as an example, a 8000lb winch draws 435 amps at full load. What alternator could possibly put out this kind of current? None! This is why Warn recommends a battery of at least 650 CCA (Cold cranking Amps) but makes no recommendation as to an alternator.

What this means is replacing your alternator to power your winch is rather pointless because when a winch is working hard it is draining the battery. This is why it is best to make sure you have a good, solid battery with a decent CCA rating.

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

You still need to get the juice back into the battery as quick as possible, and there's a large difference between a stock 70A and a 136A unit, and they make even higher.

 

[White]

435 amps @8000lbs @ 12v
I know most stock alternators dip to 10 volts.
Not 100% sure of the math, that makes the 435A go to about 540.
So in a "real" test, a vehicle with 13.5 or 14 volt using the same winch might only pull 360-380 amps. www.stingerelectronics.com makes some close to 300 amps.
We mostly run 180-200 amp. I also notice a 1 fared cap helps with the initial jolt to the system.
What Jeep does not come with a 600-650 cca battery anyway ?
( Not a jeep owner) But stock must be close to that ?

In short, I believe 2 exactally the same vehicles, 1 with a big battery, 1 with a high output alt.
The Alternator will pull harder.
Changing a battery is easy, Know how many people would not buy a winch if they thought they needed to change the alternator ?