irish44j
Well-known member
I've used winches before in various capacities (from industrial to maritime) and done plenty of reading, so just throwing this out there for some opinion. I plan to pick up a winch for general utility duties and last-resort trail backup (which I expect to rarely/never use). The winch will be on a hitch receiver plate so I can move it around to different vehicles as needed:
1. Primary: use in loading cars on my trailer, since I pick up non-running projects a few times a year (nothing too heavy). The trailer will have a hitch receiver at the front of the deck to mount the winch tray when needed.
2. Secondary: my wheeling vehicle is a 2-door Dodge Raider. So my total trail weight is probably never going to exceed 4000lbs. It's not an overlander, just used for day-trails, so not looking to "carry heavy" with a bunch of super-heavy gear. It will eventually have a front hitch receiver as well. But really, I don't do anything particularly hardcore in it - no big rock-crawling or mudding, just green and blue trails - which it shouldn't ever have any real issues with. I may carry a winch along just in case something unexpected happens - but again, would prefer not to have a ton of weight load.
3. Third: for racing (stage rally) I have a Sequoia tow rig, with front and rear receivers. Never had a need for a winch since it doesn't do any serious offroading, but never know when we're clearing a stage and want to drag a fallen tree off the road or something. It would NOT be used to actually recover the Sequoia, since it doesn't go anywhere it could get stuck, in general. It is used on roads, in muddy paddock areas, and on fire roads at most - never actual ORV trails.
Since it'll be on a hitch mount, the winch will not live on a vehicle, but will be in the garage or inside a vehicle at all times when not in use - so it won't be getting rained on, or muddy, or whatever.
So....I'm thinking of just going with one of the larger budget UTV-type winches (like HF Badland 5000lb), which is light enough to haul around in the Raider without too much weight penalty and seems like it would be fine for trailer loading and the occasional light utility pulls. In the event I ever need to recover the Raider for some reason, I would use a snatch block to multiply the load.
Again, this would mostly be used for trailer loading - any use on-trail would be extremely rare and only as a last resort (I always wheel with friends who have capable rigs as well, and carry a snatch strap). We're not out in the Moab, just in forests here on the east coast....so it's not like I'll be stranded if I get stuck anyhow! And of course with the very little use, I'd prefer not to spend a ton of money on something that is just gonna sit there.
I know based on the "1.5-2x GVWR" number a 9k winch would be "ideal" and doesn't cost that much more, but that's 100+lbs vs. about 35lbs. (which matters in the little Raider and when we're hauling 6-800lbs of race gear in the Sequoia - it all adds up quick).
So, any reason a 5k Badlands winch wouldn't accomplish those tasks just fine?
Photo just because threads are more fun with a photo....
1. Primary: use in loading cars on my trailer, since I pick up non-running projects a few times a year (nothing too heavy). The trailer will have a hitch receiver at the front of the deck to mount the winch tray when needed.
2. Secondary: my wheeling vehicle is a 2-door Dodge Raider. So my total trail weight is probably never going to exceed 4000lbs. It's not an overlander, just used for day-trails, so not looking to "carry heavy" with a bunch of super-heavy gear. It will eventually have a front hitch receiver as well. But really, I don't do anything particularly hardcore in it - no big rock-crawling or mudding, just green and blue trails - which it shouldn't ever have any real issues with. I may carry a winch along just in case something unexpected happens - but again, would prefer not to have a ton of weight load.
3. Third: for racing (stage rally) I have a Sequoia tow rig, with front and rear receivers. Never had a need for a winch since it doesn't do any serious offroading, but never know when we're clearing a stage and want to drag a fallen tree off the road or something. It would NOT be used to actually recover the Sequoia, since it doesn't go anywhere it could get stuck, in general. It is used on roads, in muddy paddock areas, and on fire roads at most - never actual ORV trails.
Since it'll be on a hitch mount, the winch will not live on a vehicle, but will be in the garage or inside a vehicle at all times when not in use - so it won't be getting rained on, or muddy, or whatever.
So....I'm thinking of just going with one of the larger budget UTV-type winches (like HF Badland 5000lb), which is light enough to haul around in the Raider without too much weight penalty and seems like it would be fine for trailer loading and the occasional light utility pulls. In the event I ever need to recover the Raider for some reason, I would use a snatch block to multiply the load.
Again, this would mostly be used for trailer loading - any use on-trail would be extremely rare and only as a last resort (I always wheel with friends who have capable rigs as well, and carry a snatch strap). We're not out in the Moab, just in forests here on the east coast....so it's not like I'll be stranded if I get stuck anyhow! And of course with the very little use, I'd prefer not to spend a ton of money on something that is just gonna sit there.
I know based on the "1.5-2x GVWR" number a 9k winch would be "ideal" and doesn't cost that much more, but that's 100+lbs vs. about 35lbs. (which matters in the little Raider and when we're hauling 6-800lbs of race gear in the Sequoia - it all adds up quick).
So, any reason a 5k Badlands winch wouldn't accomplish those tasks just fine?
Photo just because threads are more fun with a photo....
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