I have a stock 2010 jku with a bestop full width front bumper. Smittybuilt 8000lbs winches are on sale for 300 on amazon.com. I plan on getting a tire carrier 35s and a 3.5 inch lift over the summer. Will this winch still be affective?

 

a good general rule of thumb is to get a winch that can pull twice the vehicle weight. JKU= roughly 4500 lbs so a good winch to get would be rated at 9k or higher. harbor freight is selling a 12k winch for just 399 and a 9k for 369. their not the best in teh world but for minimal use they'll be plenty fine. 8k winches with jku will work depending the situation but i always think worse case scenario- like getting stuck in a deep mudpit. times like that you'll be wishing you had a 9k or higher rating

 

If you really really want this exact winch then I would suggest getting a pulley. http://www.quadratec.com/products/92144_0104.htm

 

I would personally go with a 9k or more for your setup.

 

Unless you go Synthetic. If so ARB pulley is much better.

ARB 10100020 - ARB Snatch Block 9000 - 38,500lb Breaking Strength - Quadratec

 

JKU's are heavy man, get a 9k or better. If my 9k ever dies Im likely going to go up to 12k. You really cant have too much winch. Especially if you do any wheeling in the mountains where your winching up inclines or recovering vehicles up hills and have long pulls where snatch blocks eat up too much line length.

Rob

 

Good call Roy