thearborbarber
1/2 ton status
I'm another Superwinch Tigershark user. I've had it about 6 years and it has always worked when I pushed the button.
CK5
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Advice on best winch for a grand or less
- Thread starter 70jimmy
- Start date
I have a Warn VR on my truck. I like it a lot, it gets used, and it works every time. There are a few key differences between them and the Zeon (if anyone is interested I have the full PDF at work I believe) and I have never seen one come back or fail.
Smittybilt is a good, reliable super budget friendly winch. Either one I would be comfortable selling to a customer.
Smittybilt is a good, reliable super budget friendly winch. Either one I would be comfortable selling to a customer.
Although I haven't used it yet, I opted for the Warn Zeon 10S. What drew me to it was the support Warn provides down the road. There may come a time in the future when I need to rebuild it and with Warn, chances are better that the pieces will be available to do that.
Not that other winches aren't good, but I also wanted the piece of mind that comes with that big W on the case. There are quite mixed reviews about the Smittybilt and other budget winches. First and second use failures and whatnot. Being that I'm probably going to be out alone or be the only guy with a winch, I was willing to spend the money on the Warn as well.
Not that other winches aren't good, but I also wanted the piece of mind that comes with that big W on the case. There are quite mixed reviews about the Smittybilt and other budget winches. First and second use failures and whatnot. Being that I'm probably going to be out alone or be the only guy with a winch, I was willing to spend the money on the Warn as well.
So...comfortable selling it but not comfortable running it on your truck?
The reason I'm gun shy of the Smittybilt winches comes from Larry's repeated failures with them. Still hoping he'll chime in on this discussion.
everything was going well until the cheap POS Smitybilt rear bumper mounted winch went KA-BOOM!
...
Carnage… not sure if I will fix this POS or breakdown and buy a real winch. Every time I use this thing it either doesn’t work (failed solenoid pack) or it breaks. The little old Hickey Sidewinder winch on the front has always been reliable but more times than not I need a pull backwards not forwards further into a mess.
I hear ya. I might have exaggerated a bit when I said it breaks every time I use it. I pulled up some fence posts last month just fine and I pulled a car up on a trailer once. It’s not a complete POS, you just can't use to for vehicle recovery
I have sold literally hundreds of smittybilt winches. Without issue. Larry is out of their league.
runamok151
1 ton status
You want a winch that can handle 1.5x the weight of your truck. So, a 6K lb. truck should have a 9k winch. That's plenty of winch for most moderately built blazers and p-ups. If you build bigger, you'll need a bigger winch. Common sense says a truck on 44s buried to the frame will be a lot harder to pull out that one on 35s.
You should have at least one pulley/ snatch block rated to match the winch. Not only can it be used to double the pull of your winch, sometimes they're necessary to redirect the angle of pull to safely extract a rig.
You also have to look at how you're going to mount the winch. Some bumper/mounts require a remote solenoid.
4wd.com has some really good prices on Warn winches right now.
https://www.4wd.com/b/winches-and-trail-accessories/winches/_/N-clent
You should have at least one pulley/ snatch block rated to match the winch. Not only can it be used to double the pull of your winch, sometimes they're necessary to redirect the angle of pull to safely extract a rig.
You also have to look at how you're going to mount the winch. Some bumper/mounts require a remote solenoid.
4wd.com has some really good prices on Warn winches right now.
https://www.4wd.com/b/winches-and-trail-accessories/winches/_/N-clent
So...comfortable selling it but not comfortable running it on your truck?
The reason I'm gun shy of the Smittybilt winches comes from Larry's repeated failures with them. Still hoping he'll chime in on this discussion.
Then go buy a 10k warn.
I've seen a warn DOA right out of the box. Seen a HF 10K winch pull out a dozen people out of deep mud. A Tabor that just wouldn't die, a harbor freight that never quite worked right, a milemarker electric that was the go to, because a guy lost the solinoids on his warn 9k, my warn winch will pull anything out.
I know guys running just about every winch. Warn is the top of the line but not without problems. A smittybilt is a budget winch, it is not going to be as nice as a warn. But trust me I can give you a dozen examples of warns failing. I can give a dozen examples of other winches failing. For every winch I've seen fail, I've seen more than one of the same brand being seriously abused and holding up just fine.
Go buy an old 8274. Rebuild repaint. Rest assured you likely have one of the best winches ever made. That should fall within your 1k budget
Vombrown
Mountain Man
Man I just gotta say that is dead on. I have personally had VERY good luck with some "cheap" winches. Having run them to death for close to 20 years I only have a few things to add. The harbor freight winches are a bargain. I think I have two or three of them around here, two on trucks. I have YET to have one let me down. I always get the 10k version or the 12k. Now then, it will get hot with a ton of use. most of that can be negated with cable upgrades which I ALWAYS do. Toss the stuff that comes with it and redo it with better quality and you'll have the equivalent of every import winch in my opinion. For my limited and sporadic use the do the job in grand style. Warn, smithy built, Tabor, all of those are great winches no doubt about it but it all depends on your realistic expectations and needs. If you need one for five minutes every few weeks or less....get a HF 10k and go on about your business. If you have heavy prolonged use in mind get a higher dollar winch. If you plan to use it every day then you don't want an electric winch at all. You need hydraulic or PTO. I am a long time believer in a PTO winch and use them often. My new project truck will have one on the back. Where the real work get's done.
Yup
thats why i have 2 of them waiting for freshen up and put back in service . and only real difference from old to new is the motor and its drive gear . so even if old unit you can bump it with newer motor and the gear .
yep in the towing industry there is a reason we use hydro winches . and most are ramsey brand some warn .
i have a 8k hydro ramsey planetary waiting to be mounted in the rear bumper of the PLOW MACHINE build in the link below .
Vombrown
Mountain Man
Yeah I see them around here for 3-400 bucks all the time. Often times I just search craigslist for "Winch" most that I see folks don't know what kind it is, look at the pictures and you can pick out a 8274 from a mile away. For me the shape has never been very desirable, I like something I can hide a little better but they are awesome winches for sure. The 8k lbs rating is merely a suggestion. I've seen them pull 15k with a little struggle. They are tough SOB's
Harbor Freight has their 12,000 lb winch on sale for $299 in the flyer I saw in Sundays paper!..
I'm half tempted to buy one rather than spend $300 to have a tree cut or pulled down,and do it myself..then I'd have it for other uses later,like when my plow truck gets stuck...you cant even buy a smaller ATV type winch with under a 3000 lb pull for that at most other places..
I have several of those 1500 lb winches ,one is a SuperWinch,and one is labeled "Sears",another is a Dayton,they all look identical--they aren't the most powerful things,but they have saved my butt a few times when I got my truck stuck once,I pushed snow across the street and went too far,and the front diff dropped over into the ditch..
I use them often on my garden tractors too,with a snatch block they are pretty impressive,what they can do,despite being so small..
I keep one in my truck,in case my plow lift fails--better than being stranded if a hose pops and you cant lift the blade..
I used one to lift things on my truck crane weighing close to or more than their rating with no failures either,despite them saying "NEVER USE FOR OVERHEAD LIFTING"..
I once lifted the rear end of a Dodge Ramcharger off the ground at the junkyard with one of them,using a snatch block--and my trucks left front tire came off the ground!..
..we had to pull the rear end out,and the loader was broke down..I was quite surprised it did it,and it didn't kill it..
I'm half tempted to buy one rather than spend $300 to have a tree cut or pulled down,and do it myself..then I'd have it for other uses later,like when my plow truck gets stuck...you cant even buy a smaller ATV type winch with under a 3000 lb pull for that at most other places..
I have several of those 1500 lb winches ,one is a SuperWinch,and one is labeled "Sears",another is a Dayton,they all look identical--they aren't the most powerful things,but they have saved my butt a few times when I got my truck stuck once,I pushed snow across the street and went too far,and the front diff dropped over into the ditch..
I use them often on my garden tractors too,with a snatch block they are pretty impressive,what they can do,despite being so small..
I keep one in my truck,in case my plow lift fails--better than being stranded if a hose pops and you cant lift the blade..
I used one to lift things on my truck crane weighing close to or more than their rating with no failures either,despite them saying "NEVER USE FOR OVERHEAD LIFTING"..
I once lifted the rear end of a Dodge Ramcharger off the ground at the junkyard with one of them,using a snatch block--and my trucks left front tire came off the ground!..
..we had to pull the rear end out,and the loader was broke down..I was quite surprised it did it,and it didn't kill it..
Since I'm running a receiver hitch mount, Wifey's vote is to just buy two of the dirt cheap winches and pocket the savings.
Since I'm running a receiver hitch mount, Wifey's vote is to just buy two of the dirt cheap winches and pocket the savings.
Have you shared this before or did I miss it. Simply put. Don't. Usually fine but I've seen many times the inability to put a winch in. Usually when needed the worst.
Watch craigslist and facebook marketplace. I sold my Warn xd9000i on there for either 500 or 600 last year. It was a $1,000 winch I bought it brand new. I used it maybe 4 times and only 1 of those was to actually pull myself out of something....
Has anyone rebuilt a warn? I just picked up a used m8000i. Trying to find more info on possibly upgrading to the faster 6hp motor too. I've never seen a cover like this either
that is the integrated solenoid model, hence the i in M8000i and the reason the cover looks the way it does.
