Winch questions

[hovenator]

I am looking to get a winch. It will mostly be used as a work winch and rarely used as a self recovery winch. I will use it to pull logs, pull out stumps, and vehicle recovery on limited occasions, etc. I am thinking of getting a used Warn 8274-50 and rebuilding it, OR do I buy a new Superwinch 8.5 or other similar planetary type winch. Any winch I buy, I will be adding synthetic winch line and an aluminum hawse fairlead.

Warn 8274-50- bought used in good shape for around $500 and rebuild it.
Superwinch 8.5- bought new for $399.
Warn M8000- bought new for $539.
Or other similar winch in the same price range.

I am not limited to an 8000 lb. series winch, but that is the price range my budget will allow.

Your thoughts and comments are appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[scarysharkface]

From what I gather on this site and others, the 8274 is the one you want. It's fast, doesn't have heat issues, is relatively bullet-proof and easily maintainable.

disclaimer: I've got one I plan to rehab this Spring..

John

 

[Antichrist]

Given what you want to use it for I'd look for a used hydraulic or PTO winch setup, but it would probably take a while to find one in your price range.
Second choice would be a worm drive winch, which you should be able to find (I got my used Ramsey RE10000 for $200)

Also, given what you want to use it for, based on many years experience doing exactly what you want to do, I'd use wire rope and not synthetic.

 

[Jim K in PA]

I concur with Tom's input. Synthetic winch lines rapidly lose strength when they get abraided. For your use, protecting the line while working will become a tedious chore. For prolonged use, a hydraulic is my preferred way to go. It will run all day with no electrical supply issues, no heat issues, and a steady, consistent speed.

I found my Mile Marker 9k hydraulic for sale on Craigslist. It was about 5 years old and attached to a big honking bumper. I paid $475 for the whole setup, and just sold the bumper for $225. The winch was hardly used. The wire rope is tarnished, but has no damage and is perfectly usable. However, I already picked up a brand new 100' length of 5/16 cable with a new hook for $40 (shipped). It was a take off from a guy switching to synthetic.

If you are dead set on electric, the 8274 is a beast, and what I would use if hydraulics did not exist.

 

[I Leak Oil]

Given what you want to use it for I'd look for a used hydraulic or PTO winch setup, but it would probably take a while to find one in your price range.
Second choice would be a worm drive winch, which you should be able to find (I got my used Ramsey RE10000 for $200)

Also, given what you want to use it for, based on many years experience doing exactly what you want to do, I'd use wire rope and not synthetic.

Ditto...You won't be happy doing what you want with an electric winch or with synthetic line.

 

[chasespeed]

I will add another vote for hydraulic. Mine may not be as fast as a the 8274, or even other electric winches... BUT, I have 100% duty cycle.... I DO use it to pull logs. I also have a "high gear" on the winch, for when I dont really need the extra pull..... nice for dragging some of the smaller logs...

If you were to absolutely go electric, either a 8274, OR something bigger... 16.5... Stay warn... and get more batteries.

They just dont have the duty cycle that an hydraulic does....

Speaking of which... I need to make new lines this year.......... want to run hardline from the winch, into the engine compartment....

Chase

 

[goldenbeagle]

Smittybilt XRC8 (8,000lbs) 299.00

Great winch, takes a beating, bout the only thing smittybilt has made in the last 5 years that I think is worth the money.

By far the best bang for the buck.

 

[hovenator]

Though I am not interested in a hydraulic winch, this is the input I am looking for. It appears that everyone is in agreement on the Warn 8274 for an electric winch. Anyone else have their .02 cents to put in, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks everyone for their input.

 

[sasaholic]

my vote is for a rebuilt 8274. ive got about 200bucks in mine if that and it looks and works just like brand new. i totaly stripped it down and went through it and found only one gear that needed replaced. parts are fairly inexpensive and are easy to come by.

 

[Master-Pull]

8274 would be my choice if you can spare the space, along with a couple of good deep cycle batteries. If you want to run synthetic I would pick up a choker chain to wrap the logs or whatever else you are dragging so you don't damage the rope.

-Alex

 

[Antichrist]

If you want to run synthetic I would pick up a choker chain to wrap the logs or whatever else you are dragging so you don't damage the rope.

I've been harvesting firewood for almost 40 years and also did logging and ran a skidder professionally in VT. It's not like vehicle recovery and I assure you synthetic line won't last, even with chains on the logs.

 

[1911]

8274 would be my choice if you can spare the space

Mine too. You can buy an old used one pretty reasonably and they're easy to rebuild with new parts readily available. Very simple, very strong.

 

[hovenator]

This is why I love this site. Great people with excellent information. Looks like the 8274 wins hands down. What is a reasonable price to pay for a good used one? A guy in Tampa has two of them on Craigslist for $600 each. Is this too much?

FYI- I won't be doing any sort of commercial logging. I own a lawn and landscape service and need the use of a winch only randomly for tree duty. The rest of the time it will be used for SAR missions and the like.

 

[1911]

Looks like the 8274 wins hands down. What is a reasonable price to pay for a good used one? A guy in Tampa has two of them on Craigslist for $600 each. Is this too much?

If it was in really good shape it would be OK; new ones go for about $1,800. I bought mine locally for $400, it ran fine but had some rust on the drum. I ended up re-building the whole thing just to be sure and spent another $200-300 in parts. Later on I put a 6hp motor on it for another $300. If all the pieces are there, even a crumby one is worth a couple of hundred dollars since they're so easy to re-build.

 

[chasespeed]

FYI- I won't be doing any sort of commercial logging. I own a lawn and landscape service and need the use of a winch only randomly for tree duty. The rest of the time it will be used for SAR missions and the like.

All the more reason to run wire rope, instead of synthetic... unless, you are going to keep extra, and become very adept at repairing/resplicing the synthetic.... even then...

For the sake, of argument....

Synthetic, if you nick it... how much damage have you done? How about heat? Dragging? Sunlight? etc.

With wire rope, it will be easier, to use it, and keep track of damage/wear.

If you are also going to be using this for SAR, I would certainly go wire rope. I would also keep a spare on-hand.

For your situation, I would REALLY REALLY steer you away from synth. I love the stuff, its great, but, everything has it pros and cons.

Do what you will, but, I think in the long, and short runs, you will be better served with wire rope. AND, I would also recommend being a little more aggressive in maintaining it than some are....

Take this from a 10 year sailor......

Chase