Winch wiring: Input needed

Greetings,

I have a gen 3 stock Tacoma.

I installed:

• $480 WARN 103250 VR EVO 8 Electric 12V DC Winch with Steel Cable Wire Rope: 5/16" Diameter x 90' Length, 4 Ton (8000 lb) Pulling Capacity
  WARN 103250 VR EVO 8
  
• ECOTRIC 10x 4 1/2 Cradle Winch Mount Mounting Plate 13,000 Lb Capacity
• Along with the
  $214 CURT 31075 2" Front Receiver Hitch, Select Toyota Tacoma
  CURT 31075 2-Inch Front Receiver Hitch, Select Toyota Tacoma

The winch leads look to be 2/0 AWG.

For wiring front and back, I am thinking of making my own cables using:

• $220 WINDYNATION 2/0 AWG 2/0 Gauge Red and Black Welding Lead & Car Battery Copper Cable Wire - Car, RV, Inverter, Solar, Battery
  WINDYNATION 2/0 AWG 2/0 Gauge Red and Black Welding Lead & Car Battery Copper Cable Wire
• $27 X-Haibei Pair Battery Quick Connect 350A 2/0 AWG Wire Harness Plug for 2/0 Gauge Cables, Jumper Cables Connect Disconnect Plug for Car Bike ATV Winches Lifts Motors
  X-Haibei Pair 350A 2/0 Gauge Battery Quick Connectors

I am still looking for a proper battery connection. Also, looking into if I need to update stock battery. The winch has max amperage of 300A. When I look at the Warn chart, most of the time I will be using 150-175 amps for short pulls.

Do I need any additional parts?

Other: There seems to be a lot of people using smaller diameter cable for this sort of hook up. How are they getting away with this? The max 300 amp needs the 2/0 especially for the back as it is a longer cable.

The parts I need, listed above are going to run about $250. This seems a bit excessive but I do not see a way around it.

Thank you in advance for any input!

 

I have my MM8000 winch connected with 2 AWG wire, the cables that come on winches from the manufacturers are usually 4awg or 2awg. I like to run a breaker, there is someone that has had their winch control short out and the hook ended up shooting into an intersection.

Your battery should be fine if you winch with the truck running. You might notice it getting weaker because the extra load if you actually use your winch but I haven't, I also don't run a factory battery.

 

Thank you for the quick reply Sandman. You made me see a major mistake I was about to make. I am glad I put the question to the board. I almost ordered everything last night.

• Issue resolved: Your response made me wonder if I was measuring the winch leads diameter wrong. I realized I was incorrectly including wire insulation in my measurement which made it about 3/8. After measuring again I see that 1 or 2 AWG is the true size (not the 2/0 I initially thought).

• Breaker: Can you share the breaker that you use? I plan to keep the winch disconnected using the quick connect near the battery when not in use. Maybe in the future, I will add a batt switch.
• Should I wire the cable at the battery end directly to the post-tightening nuts? Or is there a different option?

 

I use a circuit breaker similar to this. If you look up the datasheet for them there are graphs showing how long they can handle an overload, something like 3x up to 30secs. It can be tripped manually to be used like a battery switch too.

$30 T Tocas 200 Amp Circuit Breaker with Switch Button Manual Reset, 12V - 48V DC, Waterproof 200A dc Breakers

https://www.amazon.com/Tocas-Circuit-Switchable-Waterproof-Flush-Mount/dp/B06Y4172LP/

$24 200 Amp 12 Volt Manual Resettable Circuit Breaker Car Audio and Marine CB-200A

https://www.amazon.com/Manual-Resettable-Circuit-Breaker-CB-200A/dp/B01CH34FEY

I use these "military" battery terminals for more room to add things. If your factory bolt has enough room that is fine, or if you have a marine or other battery with secondary posts that is fine too.

 

What's your take on the cheaper breakers? I've read some negative reviews on them. They're really not that much cheaper than Bussmann.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-...f=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B06Y4172LP

https://powerwerx.com/eaton-187f-waterproof-circuit-breaker-surface-mount

 

Never used them. Mine is Bussmann but it's nice to see different styles, like the one that doesn't need lugs on the wire.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...witch-bracket-protect-your-investment.619464/

support a member, buy this

 

#truckbling

 

Me too, I was just curious. Bussmann 285 series highest amp is 150 and the cheaper knock offs are up to 200 amps and even 300. I'd never trust one of these cheaper ones on a $1200+ winch.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/30-300AMP-...Marine-Stereo-Audio-FuseInverter/184488734569

 

Damn you got expensive taste

 

It's a damn nice winch



http://shop.comeupusa.com/p/seal-gen2-9-5rsi-12v-winch?pp=12

 

Haha you didn't have to advertise, I knew what brand you bought. to each their own. I trust my winch and have used it many times. I bought it used and broken, then fixed it. Could buy a dozen more for that "Gemstone" price.

*Can we turn this thread into a dumpster fire yet?

 

Ok we'll talk about wiring, no worries. It wasn't meant as an attack on anyone or any brand they use new or used. As for the breakers I actually bought one of the cheaper ones when I was putting in my compressor. Had a lengthy discussion with the guy who makes the comp and he suggested not to use the cheaper breakers for a myriad of reasons. Was just pointing out some owners may have issues with these no matter the component cost.

 

Its well worth it

 

OP, sounds like you have a pretty good handle on what’s needed.

A couple of things. One check the max amps recommended for the winch motor and size your breaker accordingly. I’ve seen burnt motors from using too high a rated breaker.

Second while good plug connections the plastic is a bit brittle. Drop them on a hard surface they crack and chip. I used some heat shrink on my second set. Problem solved.

 

Thanks for sharing.

 

To use a breaker or to not use a breaker....

This is a question that people often ask, and has been discussed at length many times. Opinions are all over the board on this one.

Firstly, you can't burn up a winch unless it's internal heat protections are not functioning properly. If you are over-working a winch, it will shut itself off, there is no need to use a breaker to "protect" it.

2nd, Warn tells you to connect your winch directly to the battery. I tend to opt to their guidance here. They kinda know what they're talking about.

3rd, IIRC my VR10 can pull ~400 amps. And you want to put a <300 amp breaker on it? I guess if you want to prevent your winch from reaching its max potential...

Thhat said, Warn does sell a power interrupt kit that uses a solenoid. And it has a remote switch you can locate anywhere you want.

IMO this is a better solution if you want to use something thatdisconnects the power.
https://www.warn.com/power-interrupt-kit-62132

 

I've been told both from reputable sources. I know there's quite a few owners and Warn themselves who suggest wiring it directly to the battery.

This is why I put in a 200A breaker, suggested from their site




"A circuit breaker is an automatically operated electrical switch designed to protect an electrical circuit from damage caused by overload or short circuit. The basic function is to detect a fault condition and then interrupt the current flow.

To choose the correct circuit breaker amperage rating for you COMEUP winch, we need to know the current draw at full load. For example Seal Gen2 9.5rs, the current draw at 9,500lbs is 380A



We want to choose a circuit breaker that will allow full load current draw for a set period of time. The circuit breaker manufacturer will provide a chart similar to the one shown below. The opening of a circuit breaker is not determined only by the amperage rating, but by the amount of time and the percentage over its amperage rating at which it is being operated. The higher the percent of the load current to amperage rating, the faster the circuit protector will trip. This chart is for reference only, you should refer to the circuit breaker manufacturer’s chart for the specific unit you are considering.







For our Seal Gen2 9.5 winch, a 190A circuit breaker would be ideal because it can hold full load current of 380A for 30 seconds."

 

What about putting just a fuse and not necessarily a switchable breaker?

Something like a 400A ANL fuse?

$6 ANL Fuse 400A 400 Amp For Car Vehicle Marine Audio Video System Gold 2 Pack (400 Amp)

https://www.amazon.com/Vehicle-Mari...t=&hvlocphy=9010810&hvtargid=pla-943921668641