Best winch for the buck? Will be under pelfry built plate bumper

Hello all, I did some searching and didn't find all the info I was looking for. Basically I found which direction I'm going to go with my truck armor, gears, fwc etc. my last thing I need to decide on is which winch to pull the trigger on!!! I've decided on the pelfry built aluminum plate bumper so if There is a specific winch that fits best with this bumper that's an option. The other thing to consider is I will eventually have a fwc mounted so pulling power with that weight included is a must. Thanks for all the insight, fire away

 

You should be able to shoehorn a 10K winch in there if the solenoid pack is mounted off the winch - lots of folks put it in the engine compartment.

My thoughts on winches is that when you need it - you're probably deep in the shit already, and you want the best equipment money can buy. It's also a piece of equipment that can maim or kill you if something goes wrong. So don't skimp.

For that reason I only buy the US-made Warns. Not saying they are the best bang for the buck, but it gives me confidence I wouldn't get from a winch that came out of a Chinese factory.

Check out this winch shootout - http://www.fourwheeler.com/how-to/129-1107-massive-multi-winch-shootout/ Spoiler alert - the Warn won.

Once you've settled on a couple of candidates it's pretty easy to get the specifications/dimensions on the web - Pelfreybuilt can probably help you tell if it's gonna fit as well.

 

copy thanks for the quick response i have had my eye on the warn but want to stay in the 600 range. I will only use it max 5-10 times a year and thats being generous. is there a specific warn i should look at? how about the tjm? iread some stuff on it but wasent very detailed

 

for what its worth, the badlands, smittybilt, tmaxx and similar winches are stamped internally with T-MAXX so those are all the same. i had the XRC 9.5, never got around to installing it as i sold the truck soon after and the winch went with it. i tore it apart to clean the original grease out and re pack it with Lucas Red N Tacky. the original grease was thin and looked like it would easily break down with moderated to heavy use.

if you go that route, i would repack the internals with a better quality grease, check the solenoid for proper connections and "water proof" it with white lithium or whatever electronic grease and then run a small bead of silicone around the housing.

Ive been wheelin for 10+ years and have never used a winch for my own recovery, a strap and a second truck usually does the trick so i can't personally justify a $1000 winch for my own use. a $250-300 winch that just needs a little bit of tinkering with will suit my needs

 

Smittybilt XRC8 is a decent winch and you can get it for $250 sometimes on Amazon. Just seal up the solenoid box

 

Warn M8000-s. Weighs only 55 lbs. Excellent piece of equipment. Consider buying a snatch block along with it if you are concerned about pulling power. The double-line pull is good for the rare event that 8,000 pounds just doesn't cut it.

 

I have the M8000s as well. Yes it is expensive, but Warn often runs rebates that offset the cost a bit. Plus it is a lot of winch for the money - synthetic line and contactor control is good insurance to have. Some of the cheaper winches have a solenoid control which will allow the motor to burn up instead of shutting off when they overheat. And weight savings notwithstanding, synthetic line is much safer if it fails.

 

A wench on a aluminum plate bumper? My concern, bumper will fail before wench fails.

 

Interesting never thought about the aluminum bumper failing.

 

ComeUp makes a very nice winch as well. I have this one mounted in a Bruteforce Hybrid. http://www.comeupwinch.com/pro/detail.php?pid=298&cid=112&f=102#.V4g6Q9T3aK0

You can see my install here if it helps at all
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/bruteforce-makeover.426393/

I've since redone the wiring, ditched the plugs, and added a selonoid and in cab switch. Perhaps the actual install and mounting will help?

 

That does look nice! Didn't see s price though. The main reason I need the winch is I do a lot of remote 4 wheeling in baja etc solo so don't have anothe vehicle to depend on

 

All the more reason to heed this advice:

You are already spending more for aluminum, presumably for the weight reduction. Warn M8000-s.

 

Another item worthy of consideration for safety reasons and for protecting the synthetic line from UV rays is a Factor 55 ProLink thimble instead of the hook that comes with the winch.

 

I'll add my vote for Warn for the same reasons. If you always travel in groups as recommended or don't get too far from help then go with whatever you want. I am usually by myself and while Warns can and do fail on occasion, they have the reputation they do for a reason. My current truck has a XD9000 in the ARB, my last one had an HS9000 and I used an 8274 on my FJ40. The 8000 will probably suffice but with the camper I'd step up to the 9000 if you can swing it, and I'd add a snatch block along with the other winching accesories that you need i.e. tree saver strap, gloves, shackles, etc.

No matter what you get you will need to do some periodic maintenance to it. Most importantly GET SOME PROPER INSTRUCTION ON HOW TO PROPERLY USE THE WINCH. I can't stress that enough. There are far too many dumbasses out there who think they know what they are doing when they are actually unsafe. A winch is a great tool but it can very easily tear things up or kill you if you screw up.

 

Yeah I totally understand the safety concerns and have educated myself on and off the trail on how to properly use the equipment. the m8000 is a little out of my price range I'm not gonna lie. Anything else worthy of looking at in the 600 range? Also what's the reason for a remote silonoid? May be a dumb question but gotta ask. Does the winch come with it or aftermarket upgrade

 

I agree with the Warn M8000s. Tried and true. I have one in my pelfrey bumper. I had to lightly modify the bracket for the contactor box to make it fit on the winch. Pics/details in my build thread.

 

Smittybuilt 98510 xo2 waterproof
any reviews on this

 

Check out the Superwinch Tiger Shark... It's under $500 for the synthetic version and consistently gets good reviews.

 

If you don't mind the extra weight you can get a steel cabled winch cheaper than the same model with synthetic line. I'm not up on the current winch brands so I'll leave that for someone else- I know that the four wheel drives sites are alays doing shootout type tests so hopefully that can help you. Heck, I've read on a couple of forums where people are very happy with their Badlands winches from Harbor Freight. ex. http://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/harbor-freight-winches.516009/ I wil say though that if you've ever priced or needed a 4wd wrecker recovery a winch starts to look like cheap insurance. Amazon has the Warn VR8000 w/ steel line for $499 (no personal experience with their VR series).

WARN 86245 VR8000 8000 lb Winch

https://www.amazon.com/WARN-86245-V...UTF8&qid=1468586062&sr=8-2&keywords=warn+9000

Winches either have a remote or an integral solenoid. The remote just means the solenoid is not integrated into the winch housing meaning that it can fit in a tighter spot. You do have to find a place to mount the solenoid though; most folks mount them on top of the motor if they'll fit, on the bumper or under the hood somewhat out of the elements. Look at the ARB bumpers for example and you'll notice that they are mostly closed on the top which would not allow for the humpback housing of the intergral solenoid.

 

I bought a 12,000lb badlands and swapped out the line for a synthetic line & better hook. Couldn't be happier. Admittedly I haven't used it as often as some but it hasn't let me down yet. Best part is you can regularly get it for under $300 and there's a wireless remote that you can get for under $20 too. Seems like those that had problems had them right out of the box and if you test it out of the box and it works properly you likely won't have any issues.