That >8,000 lb. winch is a waste of money.

mechanical advantage I’m guessing?

 

Sure, in perfect world. You are talking like a dude that has been spent too much time behind a desk and not enough time on the trail. Mechanical Engineer here, and fully grasp that yes an ATV winch can move your truck (or a battleship for that matter) with enough line and enough pulleys. But in a real world situation, anchor points can be hard to find, and setting up 4 of them in a short space with the right angles just doesnt happen. You are either trolling or talking out your ass.

 

People, you don’t have to run an MA system all the way from the winch to the anchor.

@Bannerman, I am [was] USAR ops and have used MA systems plenty for tree work too. Maybe I am not the one who is trolling or who has spent too much time behind a desk.

 

You don't need a video, we understand the concept of a block and tackle, it's just not practical in a trail application.

 

Alright Space Cadet, I won't argue with you anymore. Enjoy your ATV winch.

 

Is it Friday already?

I prefer being able to do a single line pull in case I ever get stuck and there's not something solid to attach to 20' in front of the truck.

I'll also take overkill every time over using a bunch of snatch blocks and still maxing out the winch.

 

About 90% of the 'gear' people around here install falls in that category.

 

Glad you mastered Google. You don’t set it up like an illustration from a junior high text book.

 

I mean hell, why stop with an ATV winch? Why not a 20V Dewalt and a drill winch? AlL yOu NeEd Is A 16:1 mEcHaNiCaL aDvAnTaGe!!

 

I didn't even know that was a thing^.

Sad thing is it's probably more reliable than most bumper mounted winches.

 

Don't own a winch so I can't add too much to this.
Did spend a whole day in the woods getting a Ford 8n tractor unstuck. All we had was a come a long, chains and a snatch block. Worried the whole time that something would fail. Wish we had a winch.
Winch= Fewer parts that can fail.

 

Somehow we managed to move loads for USAR and tree work without any winches at all.

I thought you were done replying. You are under no obligation to be hostile simply because you don’t understand something.

 

I understood it 25 years ago, and have a much better understanding of it now. Go get stuck in the sand on the beach and try and find more than 1 anchor point. Now your ATV winch is a paper weight. Go get stuck in a mud pit where the suction of the mud turns your 5k# vehicle in to a 10k# vehicle. Again, your ATV winch now becomes a paper weight. The cable on your winch isn't rated for those heavy pulls and now becomes a danger. Now you ATV winch is not only a paper weight, but its also a fun trip to the body shop, or worse the hospital.

 

Probably not hostility, but rather poking fun of this topic. You came on an off road enthusiasts forum, and basically said that the way things have been done for years is a waste of money. If you didn't think you'd get backlash, you must be pretty new to the internet.

 

He just wants attention.

 

I only said I was done arguing with you, I'll happily stick around and make fun of you.

 

No thanks I'll keep my winch.

 

Thats what I thought too, but the way he said it made it sound like it was a special product or system or something..

Ok. So please, provide us an illustration of what you are talking about.. I have a winch big enough to pull my truck. Therefore Ive only ever practiced rigging a 2:1 snatch block and cant really envision what you are talking about..

Like anything mechanical, they must be cared for. Its an unfair statement to say that they are in general unreliable.

 

As far as all of this is concerned:

My Bumper and winch weigh about 150# combined. That little weight will not affect fuel economy measurably. It especially won't affect economy as much as going up a few tire sizes.

I also did shocks and springs (like anyone with a bumper and winch should) and the truck handles better than stock.

 

Why stop at an ATV winch? If we take OP's argument to the extreme, you can get the same utility out of a box of pulleys and more rope. You'll just have to be super patient

While I do think people overdo it with the winches, OP's argument doesn't seem complete - whats the lower limit?