whats the best winch

[bungalow4x4]

What is the best type of winch to go for and where would the best place to get it from.

thanks

[clarkey]

I've been doing lots of research - what is your budget, and what do you intend to do with it, and how often?

[pugwash4x4]

best winch? a pto driven 15,000lb hi speed centre mounted winch on a front and rear pulley system designed to exactly match wheel speed. Cost? to do it well will cost about £5k+.

for commercial use- a hydrualic driven from the crank or transfer PTO. For electric then soemthing worm driven

for competition use- twin 24v motor 8274 with upgraded brake and freespool, backed up with a 150amp 24v alternator and a big pair of batteries- available from Jim at Gigglepin.

For everyday use and light competition use then a TDS from goodwinch seems to do very very well.

[SmokinV8]

I'd second the Tds from Goodwinch too, got one on the front of my 90 and found its been great for occassional use. Real nice guy that owns Goodwinch too, David Bowyer very helpful and pleased to discuss your needs.

[Kermit power]

What are you actually going to use it for?

I've seen lots of people with winches on their 4x4s. I can only remember seeing one person actually make proper use of one. The vast majority of them seem to be nothing more than heavy, expensive status symbols.

[bigblock]

pugwash4x4 said:

best winch? a pto driven 15,000lb hi speed centre mounted winch on a front and rear pulley system designed to exactly match wheel speed. Cost? to do it well will cost about £5k+.

for commercial use- a hydrualic driven from the crank or transfer PTO. For electric then soemthing worm driven

for competition use- twin 24v motor 8274 with upgraded brake and freespool, backed up with a 150amp 24v alternator and a big pair of batteries- available from Jim at Gigglepin.

For everyday use and light competition use then a TDS from goodwinch seems to do very very well.

I think a PTO driven winch is ok for static winching but has its drawbacks when having to carry out drive assisted winching. Loss of winch drive when the clutch is depressed can be problematic and if the PTO is through the transfer case on a auto, juggling between neutrals to get the correct power to the wheels and winch is a real headache.

For self recovery in most off road situations a quality electric winch and well mounted front and rear recovery points will be good enough.

The most important thing anybody need to know about winches is how to use them and how to use them safely.

Kermit power said:

What are you actually going to use it for?

I've seen lots of people with winches on their 4x4s. I can only remember seeing one person actually make proper use of one. The vast majority of them seem to be nothing more than heavy, expensive status symbols.

Kermit I don't think you have been doing very much off roading otherwise you would have seen the vast majority of them being used, although not always in the right way.

[Kermit power]

bigblock said:

Kermit power said:

What are you actually going to use it for?

I've seen lots of people with winches on their 4x4s. I can only remember seeing one person actually make proper use of one. The vast majority of them seem to be nothing more than heavy, expensive status symbols.

Kermit I don't think you have been doing very much off roading otherwise you would have seen the vast majority of them being used, although not always in the right way.

I've done plenty of off-roading, but not on my own. 99% of the time, if someone has got stuck, then it has been quicker and easier for someone else to tow them out than it would ever have been to rig up a winch, hence winches not getting used.

The only sensible use I've seen of a winch was on muddy ground where nobody could get traction to pull a bloke out. Along comes a battered up old Landcruiser with a winch and a ground anchor and the guy popped out in seconds. Other than that, why bother?

[normalbloke]

I'll stick to my rear Hydraulic Werner and ground anchor/spragg.It works for me,electric won't cut it,and it'll work ALL day long.

[Gafferjim]

As has been said, it depends on your budget, and what for, and how many times you thing you'll use it.
If it's for comp use, then you'll need a fast one, if it's just for "just in case" then most of the electric 12v winches will do you. As has already been said, it's not the winch, but how you use it that counts. read up on winching, watch some of the antics on "you tube" to see both good and dangerous ways of winching, you'll learn a lot.
towing out should always be considered first, as winching correctly is not a quick process, but is a sure one if done right.

[300bhp/ton]

TVR Moneypit said:

What are your chaps views on 2nd hand winches for occasional use?

Again I think it depends on what you'll really be using it for, and the vehicle it's on. If it's a sub 1000kg Jimny or a 2500kg+ truck.

It then depends on the winch you are looking at and it's condition.

[300bhp/ton]

bigblock said:

Kermit I don't think you have been doing very much off roading otherwise you would have seen the vast majority of them being used.

I think it depends what type of off roading you do. I'm in agreement with Kermit, that you often don't see them used very often, and then it might only be to straighten out someone else's bent bumper.

I do mainly RTV trials and spectate some CCVT ones too. For such competition you can't stop on section, so a winch is useless and just makes the vehicle bigger, longer and heavier.

[bigblock]

300bhp/ton said:

bigblock said:

Kermit I don't think you have been doing very much off roading otherwise you would have seen the vast majority of them being used.

I think it depends what type of off roading you do. I'm in agreement with Kermit, that you often don't see them used very often, and then it might only be to straighten out someone else's bent bumper.

I do mainly RTV trials and spectate some CCVT ones too. For such competition you can't stop on section, so a winch is useless and just makes the vehicle bigger, longer and heavier.

I think it depends on the type of terrain that you drive on. The biggest problem I encounter is peat bogs which are virtualy impassable without a winch.

I can only speak from personal experience but as I spend a great deal of my time off road solo I find a winch an invaluable asset. When a tow recovery is not available or practical a winch certainly saves alot of digging, jacking and generaly scrabbling about in the mud.

The winch allows me the ability to self recover and without this I would be restricted to what off roading routes I could take. Part of the fun of off roading is the challenge of exploring new routes and getting stuck, then getting unstuck

[300bhp/ton]

bigblock said:

300bhp/ton said:

bigblock said:

Kermit I don't think you have been doing very much off roading otherwise you would have seen the vast majority of them being used.

I think it depends what type of off roading you do. I'm in agreement with Kermit, that you often don't see them used very often, and then it might only be to straighten out someone else's bent bumper.

I do mainly RTV trials and spectate some CCVT ones too. For such competition you can't stop on section, so a winch is useless and just makes the vehicle bigger, longer and heavier.

I think it depends on the type of terrain that you drive on. The biggest problem I encounter is peat bogs which are virtualy impassable without a winch.

I can only speak from personal experience but as I spend a great deal of my time off road solo I find a winch an invaluable asset. When a tow recovery is not available or practical a winch certainly saves alot of digging, jacking and generaly scrabbling about in the mud.

The winch allows me the ability to self recover and without this I would be restricted to what off roading routes I could take. Part of the fun of off roading is the challenge of exploring new routes and getting stuck, then getting unstuck

Agree, fully


Terrain and use are the important bits on if they are worth it. I've looked several times and tried to convince myself into buying a winch, but I can't honestly say I've ever really needed on.

The only time recently (well ok 4 1/2 years ago) that one was really handy in the stuff I do off road, was while setting up an RTV with a friend, the drop arm link on the steering of his 90 snapped, leaving his vehicle without steering at the bottom of a bomb hole. It took 3 vehicles to get it out, one with a winch and two others stepped to the winch vehicle to stop it being pulled into the hole as well.

[Kermit power]

bigblock said:

300bhp/ton said:

bigblock said:

Kermit I don't think you have been doing very much off roading otherwise you would have seen the vast majority of them being used.

I think it depends what type of off roading you do. I'm in agreement with Kermit, that you often don't see them used very often, and then it might only be to straighten out someone else's bent bumper.

I do mainly RTV trials and spectate some CCVT ones too. For such competition you can't stop on section, so a winch is useless and just makes the vehicle bigger, longer and heavier.

I think it depends on the type of terrain that you drive on. The biggest problem I encounter is peat bogs which are virtualy impassable without a winch.

I can only speak from personal experience but as I spend a great deal of my time off road solo I find a winch an invaluable asset. When a tow recovery is not available or practical a winch certainly saves alot of digging, jacking and generaly scrabbling about in the mud.

The winch allows me the ability to self recover and without this I would be restricted to what off roading routes I could take. Part of the fun of off roading is the challenge of exploring new routes and getting stuck, then getting unstuck

If I were in Scotland, I expect I'd fully agree. Sadly, in the Home Counties, the chances of exploring new routes legally is effectively zero, and the only places you're really likely to get stuck are at pay and play sites where it's almost always easier to get someone else to tow you. This does preclude competition driving as said earlier of course.

[bigblock]

Kermit power said:

bigblock said:

300bhp/ton said:

bigblock said:

Kermit I don't think you have been doing very much off roading otherwise you would have seen the vast majority of them being used.

I think it depends what type of off roading you do. I'm in agreement with Kermit, that you often don't see them used very often, and then it might only be to straighten out someone else's bent bumper.

I do mainly RTV trials and spectate some CCVT ones too. For such competition you can't stop on section, so a winch is useless and just makes the vehicle bigger, longer and heavier.

I think it depends on the type of terrain that you drive on. The biggest problem I encounter is peat bogs which are virtualy impassable without a winch.

I can only speak from personal experience but as I spend a great deal of my time off road solo I find a winch an invaluable asset. When a tow recovery is not available or practical a winch certainly saves alot of digging, jacking and generaly scrabbling about in the mud.

The winch allows me the ability to self recover and without this I would be restricted to what off roading routes I could take. Part of the fun of off roading is the challenge of exploring new routes and getting stuck, then getting unstuck

If I were in Scotland, I expect I'd fully agree. Sadly, in the Home Counties, the chances of exploring new routes legally is effectively zero, and the only places you're really likely to get stuck are at pay and play sites where it's almost always easier to get someone else to tow you. This does preclude competition driving as said earlier of course.

Living in the Highlands does have its benefits. I currently have access to two estates which gives me around 52,000 acres to play on.

The downside is I have a 20 mile round trip to buy a paper and a pint of milk

Edited by bigblock on Thursday 22 April 14:45

[Ayahuasca]

Anyone tried a hand-winch like this one http://www.landroverweb.com/Brano/Brano-1.htm

I can see they have a lot of advantages over automatic ones - i.e. you don't have to carry it around everywhere, no reliance on batteries / engine, cannot short out if under water, can fit it to rear or front as required, simple to 'install'.

Downside is a bit of muscle required and I guess it takes more setting up, plus you need to store it and the cable somewhere in the car.

[pugwash4x4]

yep- stick with a Tirfor- its not like me to criticise Dave Bowyer (who really does know his stuff) but for hand winching a tirfor has to be the way forward.

[Eggman]

Forestry winches will certainly keep you fit! Recovering a vehicle with one, or with a Hi-Lift and chain, is very hard work indeed; some friends and I had a go to familiarise ourselves (so our first attempt wouldn't be 'for real') and it quickly became evident that the winch doesn't do the work for you - all the energy required to move 2 tons of vehicle from A to B definitely comes from your muscles!

On the plus side, having a forestry winch does motivate you not to get stuck. Mine has accompanied me as an 'insurance policy' on many an outing, and the previous owner took it to Australia and back overland. As far as I'm aware, in all that time the winch cable has never been off its spool!