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Winch Capacity?

LIVEAnimals

1/2 ton status
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Wheatland, CA
I've been on a hunt for a winch ever since I put the Warn Classic on my Sub. I know I want to go with a Warn product. I've been trying to find a 8274 in decent shape, today I found a M10000 in good shape for $600 and a M8000 for $525 brand new. I wanted to go with the 8274 just for the nostalgia and the awesome line speed but is 8000 lb pull enough for my Sub or should I be looking 10k plus. Another option is a Brand new VR8000 for $480 or VR10000 for $580 and even the VR12000 for $680. Thanks.
 
The general rule is 1.5 times the vehicle weight and keep in mind my 89 K5 weighs 6020 lbs. without any gear so I know your burb weighs more than that so definately go with a minimum of 10K preferably a 12K winch. The 8274 is an 8K rated winch but it way under rated.
 
The general rule is 1.5 times the vehicle weight and keep in mind my 89 K5 weighs 6020 lbs. without any gear so I know your burb weighs more than that so definately go with a minimum of 10K preferably a 12K winch. The 8274 is an 8K rated winch but it way under rated.

So an 8274 would cut the mustard
 
Keep in mind that an 8274 will have 5/16" cable on it. Which isn't rated for 1.5 suburbans.
 
My 3/4 ton Sub with all interior, subs and stereo, no spare tire, 40x18in Boggers, 454 with 400+205 with driver is 6850lbs roughly. I weigh 150ish and it had 3/8 of a tank in it. I would shoot for atleast 10000lbs, and remember, a winch only pulls that when there is no cable on the drum, the more cable the less pulling power as the drum gets bigger. I'm sure your aware but just a heads up to anyone that may not.
 
My 3/4 ton Sub with all interior, subs and stereo, no spare tire, 40x18in Boggers, 454 with 400+205 with driver is 6850lbs roughly. I weigh 150ish and it had 3/8 of a tank in it. I would shoot for atleast 10000lbs, and remember, a winch only pulls that when there is no cable on the drum, the more cable the less pulling power as the drum gets bigger. I'm sure your aware but just a heads up to anyone that may not.

Good to know
 
My 3/4 ton Sub with all interior, subs and stereo, no spare tire, 40x18in Boggers, 454 with 400+205 with driver is 6850lbs roughly. I weigh 150ish and it had 3/8 of a tank in it. I would shoot for atleast 10000lbs, and remember, a winch only pulls that when there is no cable on the drum, the more cable the less pulling power as the drum gets bigger. I'm sure your aware but just a heads up to anyone that may not.

Exactly. That is why my sizing method for a winch, is to get one so big that it will pull me out no matter what with a full spool.........

To see what the difference in the amount of pulling power is, check out this chart for my winch.

http://www.paccarwinch.com/braden/products/ahgu2.aspx

As you can see, a winch that starts out with 12,000# of pull, drops to 6300 with a full spool.
Of course, I have my system set to overload it if necessary, so I don't pay much attention to how many wraps I have unless its a very very hard pull.

Like pulling out a loaded dump truck bogged to the axles.
 
Part of it depends on what you expect to need the winch for. The 1.5 times rule is really only needed if buried in mud for something like that. Keep in mind that if you have a 6,000 lb. rig then a 6k winch could pull it straight up and off the ground (obviously depends on the wraps of cable on the drum, etc...). I've had a 9k Ramsey on my 1-ton, 40" tired diesel K5 for years and it's always been able to pull it on a single line. I also don't do mud-bogging where I bury it up to the bumpers, but get into some fairly hardcore trail riding where I need to pull it up hills and over rocks.
 
Part of it depends on what you expect to need the winch for. The 1.5 times rule is really only needed if buried in mud for something like that. Keep in mind that if you have a 6,000 lb. rig then a 6k winch could pull it straight up and off the ground (obviously depends on the wraps of cable on the drum, etc...). I've had a 9k Ramsey on my 1-ton, 40" tired diesel K5 for years and it's always been able to pull it on a single line. I also don't do mud-bogging where I bury it up to the bumpers, but get into some fairly hardcore trail riding where I need to pull it up hills and over rocks.

Haha it won't see much of any deep mud. Mainly will be used for recovery for when my buddies with their heeps n K5s get stuck in the mud and for pullin trees n whatnot when I camp n hunt.
 
Part of it depends on what you expect to need the winch for. The 1.5 times rule is really only needed if buried in mud for something like that. Keep in mind that if you have a 6,000 lb. rig then a 6k winch could pull it straight up and off the ground (obviously depends on the wraps of cable on the drum, etc...). I've had a 9k Ramsey on my 1-ton, 40" tired diesel K5 for years and it's always been able to pull it on a single line. I also don't do mud-bogging where I bury it up to the bumpers, but get into some fairly hardcore trail riding where I need to pull it up hills and over rocks.

Totally an individual preference thing, but really, is recovery gear where you want to skimp on size?

Overkill is king. Its amazing how stuck you can get a rig, or how much force you'll need to pull it out.
 
Don't forget, you can always use a snatch block to effectively double your winch capacity, but it'll pull twice as slow and use twice the length of line. Just connect the snatch block to whatever you want to pull, run the cable through the block and back to a stationary object (your bumper or tree). If what you need to pull is too far away you could always use something like a nylon strap to go between what you're pulling and the snatch block. Or you could triple your pulling power using another block, again three times as slow and triple the length of line. I think there's about a 10% lose of pulling power for each block you use and some more lose depending on the angle of pull at the snatch block.
 
Don't forget, you can always use a snatch block to effectively double your winch capacity, but it'll pull twice as slow and use twice the length of line. Just connect the snatch block to whatever you want to pull, run the cable through the block and back to a stationary object (your bumper or tree). If what you need to pull is too far away you could always use something like a nylon strap to go between what you're pulling and the snatch block. Or you could triple your pulling power using another block, again three times as slow and triple the length of line. I think there's about a 10% lose of pulling power for each block you use and some more lose depending on the angle of pull at the snatch block.

I was planning on keeping a snatch block with me at all times.
 
thats why i mentioned the 5/16" cable. a snatch will double your power, which is why 3/8" would be a good upgrade on a 8274. you should still have room for a fairly long cable too.
 
Totally an individual preference thing, but really, is recovery gear where you want to skimp on size?

Overkill is king. Its amazing how stuck you can get a rig, or how much force you'll need to pull it out.

I really don't consider it to be skimping. Why buy a 2 liter bottle of Coke when a 12 oz. can is plenty? To expand on my previous statement I bought a snatch block years ago to use when my 9k winch didn't have enough power.........and I have yet to use the snatch block. My rig is not a mall crawler either.
 

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