How to Care for a winch cable?

[DaktariEd]

This weekend's run from Lake Pleasant up to Crown King gave me a chance to actually use my winch for a recovery rather than just for play. A Tacoma broke his rear ring & pinion gear (hope that's the correct term) and couldn't make it up the last part of the hill obstacle...so I got to pull him up! A real recovery!

I just re-spooled the steel cable after the car wash....
So...do you care for the cable in any special way (e.g., to prevent rust on the cable)?

:sombrero:

 

[BogusBlake]

Hopefully, you respooled it under some tension. The rolling weight of your vehicle is enough. Just strap the hook to some pole or another vehicle, put your vehicle in neutral, and winch yourself in, letting your vehicle roll. This keeps the cable from bunching up to one side of the spool when you put real tension on it next time.

 

[DaktariEd]

Yup...I know about the tensioning. That's actually why I respooled it...it was bunched up to one side since the winching angle was little off-centered.

I am just wondering if the cable itself should be treated with WD-40 or some such...

:sombrero:

 

[Andrew Walcker]

Ed, know what you mean. When my winch was new the cable had some type of light grease, maybe cosmoline (sp?)? Not sure what to tell you but I'm sure someone will pipe up soon with the facts.

 

[ntsqd]

While I can not recall ever seeing any applied to a recovery winch cable, there are cable-specific lubricants used on heavy working cables. Some are grease, some are waxy. I've no experience with any of them.

 

[Alaska Mike]

I've never done anything to my cable to treat it, despite being in a fairly wet and muddy location. I don't see any rust or other corrosion on the cable, and it certainly hasn't frayed to indicate any deterioration. To be honest, I'm more worried about flat spots and kinks than corrosion.

 

[DaktariEd]

Well if you guys up in Alaska don't have a lot of rust issues, then I won't worry about it.
Probably dust is a bigger issue around here...

 

[upcruiser]

I'm following this thread with interest since I'm still a winch newbie. I gave my winch its real first hard use a couple of weeks ago and the cable showed some wear from it. I had to winch a fellow ExPo member across a pretty long section of mud. I had to do it from a slight angle and the cable spooled to one side. At one point it began rubbing on the support braces, causing some slight fraying. I pulled it back out and spooled it more to the other side before resuming. Along with that pull, a couple of others, including a self extraction caused a kink in the cable seemed to straighten back out. If I'm seeing minor fraying and some flat spots where my cable kinked, should I be worried? FYI, I'm running a Warn 8,000. The terrain we have here varies widly from sandy conditions, to rock and mud. Most trails have a very high mud content, so the cable and winch are going to be seing alot of moisture and mud despite my best efforts to avoid it.

 

[Alaska Mike]

Fraying can be a strength issue, and really hurt when they poke your hands through your gloves. Ouch. The thicker the glove, the better. Use you best judgement there and keep a close watch on that M8000 when winching. That loading issue was one of the main reasons I went with a 8274. I loved the M8000, but un-binding it can be a real pain.

The flat spots might pull out if you re-spool under load, depending on how bad they are.

 

[upcruiser]

Yeah, some of the frays could definately be real hand eaters for sure. I've been having a hard time getting a good respool on it too, even when respooling under load. The cable looks like mess on the drum and it just doesn'tseem to be rolled as tight as I want it. I might try messing with it more. Maybe try to find a hill to pull the truck up to put a bit more weight on the respool. Doing it on flat ground, the truck seemed to pull a bit unevenly in regards to constant pressure.

 

[Photog]

Would there be any problem with using the E-brake, for a little added tension, during a re-spool?

 

[kjp98TJ]

more tension is OK.

keep cable clean, and i usually run the cable through a clean motor oiled rag when respooling.

 

[ntsqd]

MISF re-spools with the t/c in 4hi and the e-brake on fairly hard, but not so hard that he flat-spots the tires. No idea if that's good or bad, but it's how he does it and the cable winds on nicely.

Thinking on the lubrication deal, in a dusty environment the last thing you want is something that will attract grit to stick in/on the cable. The cable is a lot like a motorcycle's chain in that regard.

I'm thinking that treating the cable similarly to climbing rope is the best mindset. Don't step on it, don't let lay in the dirt any more than necessary, etc.

 

[oldcj5guy]

I switched to synthetic rope. Can't say enough good about it. I was originally giving it a try for weight savings, but after a few pulls it has been a lifesaver.