How often do you use your winch?
Thread Starter
JK Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 328
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From: wrightwood,ca
How often do you use your winch?
Before I plunk down alot of money for a warn winch, how often do you use your winch compared to how often you go off road?
I am just curious as the price of various winch's are from 400 to 1500?
Thanks.
I am just curious as the price of various winch's are from 400 to 1500?
Thanks.
JK Enthusiast
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 241
Likes: 0
From: Dallas, TX
I have not been off-road with my Powerplant yet but have used it many times to other duties such as airing up tires and moving my non-running Mustang on and off trailer to move it in and out of storage.
Thread Starter
JK Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 328
Likes: 0
From: wrightwood,ca
probably better question is to ask yourself what conditions do you wheel in? Because we all wheel in different conditions.
For example in my case- most of the times that I've been stuck (mostly high centered), were in areas where it was easy to have the rig in front (or behind) me just hook up a strap and give me a yank. Much easier and faster to pull out a strap and be done with it. Winching is the option of last resort. Only once have I been in a spot where that was not an option (glad I did have a winch for that one).
But if you're doing a lot of crawling over large rocks, or confined areas, strapping to another rig may not be an option.
For example in my case- most of the times that I've been stuck (mostly high centered), were in areas where it was easy to have the rig in front (or behind) me just hook up a strap and give me a yank. Much easier and faster to pull out a strap and be done with it. Winching is the option of last resort. Only once have I been in a spot where that was not an option (glad I did have a winch for that one).
But if you're doing a lot of crawling over large rocks, or confined areas, strapping to another rig may not be an option.
Good point, I don't go on anything extreme by myself, more food for thought. Not really a question of if I'm going to buy a winch or not--i'm going to, more a quesiton of use vs. cost vs. durability.
Thanks.
JK Enthusiast
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 437
Likes: 0
From: Northern, Louisiana
Every time I go to the ORV park. 
Like others say, it is relevant to what kind of wheeling you do and what is easiest. The last and only time I have used mine; there was nothing at all to hook to except the CJ at the top. He has to load his torque converter b/c I kept pulling him to me. Needless to say, it was a hard pull on the 9.5ti.
It was the first time I needed it and it paid for itself. I have no regrets in dishing out the money for the Warn. I decided to buy a winch after the frits time my Jeep "spent the night" on what appeared to be a "trail".
Like others say, it is relevant to what kind of wheeling you do and what is easiest. The last and only time I have used mine; there was nothing at all to hook to except the CJ at the top. He has to load his torque converter b/c I kept pulling him to me. Needless to say, it was a hard pull on the 9.5ti.
It was the first time I needed it and it paid for itself. I have no regrets in dishing out the money for the Warn. I decided to buy a winch after the frits time my Jeep "spent the night" on what appeared to be a "trail".
JK Super Freak
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,905
Likes: 1
From: Oxford, PA
The first time out with my winch it saved me from ripping my front fender flare off. I was pinned up against a tree on a steep uphill with a steep breakover as soon as you got to the top that made it impossible to get another vehicle to pull me up. If I didn't have a winch the only option would have been to go down and the tree would have ripped the flare off, since I had the winch I was able to pull myself uphill and off the tree and escaped just a dented rocker panel and broken Driverside mirror.
When I lost my clutch I ended up winching for about an hour until we got to a point where we could get another vehicle to hook on and tow me back to the staging area.
So it has come in very handy two of the last four times I have been out.
When I lost my clutch I ended up winching for about an hour until we got to a point where we could get another vehicle to hook on and tow me back to the staging area.
So it has come in very handy two of the last four times I have been out.
JK Junkie
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 3,931
Likes: 3
From: slp. Mexico
as stated before it does depend a lot on the terrain you wheel on. I have been to places where winch is a must. then again in other places you don't really need it. however I have used my winch more to pull other jeeps out than my own.