Winches:

twisted

twisted

New Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2006
Location
Charlotte
I need some opinions on winches. I know that warn is the top dog when it comes to winches but I just don't have the money for one of those and I have heard all kinds of bad things about Ramsey winches. So my choices are Mile Marker, Tabor 12k (warn's off brand), and the T-Max. Which one do you think would last the longest and be worth getting? I can get a mile marker 12,000 for $599, Tabor 12,000 for 585, and the T-max 12,000 for $695. So wich one would be the best buy?

Thanks for your info.
 
You can easily get a used 8274 for that much money or less, and it'll pull as good as any of those, but at 3x the speed..
 
yes this will be for my jeep. I am basically going to add another couple hundred pounds of stuff to the jeep bumpers tire carrier roof rack frame stuff. I have been told that when you buy a winch you want to get one that is double the weight of the vehicle. So lets say the jeep is 4400lbs add 400-500lbs you basically get around 5,000lbs. So I would need atleast 9,000 - 10,000 lbs winch right. Correct me if I am wrong. Plus it seems the lower in weight I go the more expensive they are. Thanks for the info keep it coming I want to make sure I get the best deal since I don't have a huge budget for this project and a very short time to get everything. I want to get some wheeling done before it gets cold out.
 
It depends on the kind of "stuck" you planning on getting yourself into, but......Generally 1 1/2 times your weight is sufficient. Personally I think that an 8k winch is plenty for a 5k Jeep, that's what I run and it's pulled me out of anything I wanted it to. Most of the time you just need a short tug. If you needed to pull your vehicle up the left side of Guardrail at Tellico or up the big step at DPG you might want more but I still think you would be fine. Rarely have I seen any winch not do it's job as long as it was operating properly. My recommendation would be to get a smaller Warn rather than a bigger something else for the same money, my .02.
 
Get yourself a used warn winch....

I got an 8274 for 4hundo
aimg.photobucket.com_albums_v214_nhodierne_MVC_009F_7.jpg
 
I've been running a MileMarker 12000 for several years now...with AmSteel synthetic line...and it has yet to fail me...(other than getting the "cord" to the remote cut in half twice when flopping over on rocks...just twisted/taped to repair it)...

I'm not going to say it's not Chinese-made "junk"...or that it's as fast as a Warn...because it is S-L-O-W, but that hasn't been a problem for me, except for the extra time to respool...as I'm rarely in a hurry when recovering myself or anybody else...

If you're looking MileMarker, I would only consider the 12000 or 9500...with the series wound motors. I personally just wouldn't want a permanent magnet motor in mine.

the 12000 has pulled many Jeeps, a K5, as well as a couple Bobcats (which were heavier than any trail rig)...

Greg
 
I ran A mm12000 for several years.
IN MY OPINION, ON A JEEP, I would MUCH rather have an 8k warn than a 10k Any of the above.

If I could get a used 8274 it would be choice #1.
I dont think the 8274 is up to a full size (I know plenty will argue) but for a JEPP they are unbeatable
 
I would say a 9000 pound would be plenty for a jeep unless you are using it hard every weekend. My brother has a warn 12000lb on the front of his dodge and only time he stalled it was pulling a concrete truck out with 9 yds of concrete in it. Winch was doing great pulling him even without the concrete truck driver helping much except one time he stopped pulling and tried to start back and it stalled but took right back off when driver used truck to help it again. Now the warn winch mount I thought was gonna come off at any time. I wouldnt recommend doing this everyday with one but we were all amazed it even moved the truck. Pops had already gone to get the cat d6 dozer and cable.
 
I've got a superwinch EPi9.0 (9000lb) that has yet to let me down. It has about 10-15 pulls on it. It's series wound, low amp draw compared to all the other winches in its class and has a unloaded line speed of about 47ft/min. Also features an external brake which helps keep the drum cooler. About $600 brand new.
 
jeepmkcomin said:
I've got a superwinch EPi9.0 (9000lb) that has yet to let me down. It has about 10-15 pulls on it. It's series wound, low amp draw compared to all the other winches in its class and has a unloaded line speed of about 47ft/min. Also features an external brake which helps keep the drum cooler. About $600 brand new.
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X2 on the EPI9.0. Mine works great mounted on a 05 Rubicon Unlimited.
 
okay now that I have the info on what brand of winch, which is better electric or hydralic? I have read that hydralic winches are better than electric winches. I just want to make the best choice so that if I need to use it it is going to work everytime.
 
well hydraulic will severly limit your brand choice, and the engine has to run for the hydraulic to work...
 
x3 on the 8274. I picked one up locally for $400.
 
jeepmkcomin said:
low amp draw compared to all the other winches in its class .
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Low amps = low power. Pretty much every Warn in the last 10-15 years are series wound.
 
Rich said:
Low amps = low power. Pretty much every Warn in the last 10-15 years are series wound.
Click to expand...

Yes you are correct as far as motor horsepower... 4.6hp in the superwinch vs 4.8hp for a m8000 or 6hp for a xp. But superwinch still has a nice line speed compared to many winches on the market, especially at the price. For example in the m8000 compared to the epi9.0 warn gets an extra .5ft/min for 175amps on an 8000lb pull or with the 9.5xp you get an extra 1.3ft/min for 165amps more. So warn has a slightly faster line speed but the price and/or amperage are higher. It's more of a personal preference and whether or not your electrical system can sustance the draw.

I only referenced series wound so the original poster would know to stay away from permanent magnet if he is going to expect much use out of it. I never made the claim that warn winches are permanent magnet.
 
So if I bought a Mile Marker 9500 winch since it is only 499.00 it would be a good buy? I have tossed the thought of used or new and if I can get a new one for almost the same price as a used one why not get the new one.
 
twisted said:
I have tossed the thought of used or new and if I can get a new one for almost the same price as a used one why not get the new one.
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Because you can get a better winch used. It's like good tools...

You can get a new, cheap tool, or a used, good tool. The used tool might have 10 years or more left in it, while the new tool, being of lesser quality, won't even last 10.

The better buy is the used one, obviously.. Though they're both the same price, the better one will work better throughout those 10 years, even though they still are similar on paper.

In this case, I've seen countless 8274's (and all the previous numbers it went by) that are 30 years old, and with some inexpensive maintenance, are still puling strong. Even the M8000 has been out for ~20 years now.

Numbers don't tell the whole story.
 
with an electric motor AMP=Torque. Of course GR and some other factors play in but a low draw motor will not pull as hard even if it is faster.

On the new vs. used argument, put it like this.
A brand new Kia costs 15k a 4 year old Lexus can be had for 16-18k. Now which is a better car? Obviously the Kia its new! Of course if you can find that elusive Lexus with 5,000 miles you have hit a homerun and have the best of best worlds....
 
on the hydro vs electric... the hydro can be made to have alot more pulling power, has almost unlimited duty cycle... but the electric can be used without the engine running, and also doesnt affect the hydraulic system on your vehicle ie. steering, brakes, etc (unless you use a seperate pump)
 
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