Winches..110 or 12V ???

[Harleybullet]

Has any one used a 110 V winch on there truck as opposed to the 12 V. The 110s are cheaper and more powerful and I use the truck (for getting into trouble) with my camper on it that has a generator, so I could just plug it in... just wondering..any comments. Dave

[Tom_Anderson]

You can buy a Harbor Freight 12,000lb. winch on sale for about $300. I can't imagine finding a 110V winch with anywhere near the same capacity for a similar price.

If you're going to use it regularly, the Harbor Freight one is probably not the hot ticket but for occasional use, it will do just fine.

[KD4UPL]

SoCalDesertRider wrote:

JoeChiOhki wrote:
Hydraulic if you can afford it :).

The PTO drive gear, controller and wiring, driveshaft, hydraulic pump, mounting and hoses to connect to the winch are pretty expensive to set up. Hydraulic winches aren't cheap either.

For something that may only be used a handful of times, if at all, in the life of the truck, an electric winch would be far more cost effective.

Now if it was for a vocational tow truck, then yes, by all means, get a PTO powered hydraulic winch system, it'll last a lifetime and pay for itself quickly!

Who said anything about a PTO? I agree that would be really expensive. I would go with a Mile Marker winch or equivalent that is hydraulically powered off of the power steering pump. I think I heard that all of the military HumVees have this set up. That's way better than adding extra batteries and huge 12v cables. As long as the engine is running you can winch and don't have to worry about battery drain.

[kohldad]

The 12V winches are also designed to be out in the weather and can be used in wet conditions. Haven't seen 110V winch designed for those conditions. I wouldn't want to use a 110V winch in the pouring rain while standing in a mud puddle.

Minimum rating is 1-1/2 times the weight of the vehicle but this rating is for when you are getting axle deep stuck in mud. If you only need to get out when you lose traction, you can get by with less. This is my use and already had it sitting on the shelf from my jeeping days so I mounted a 9,000# warn to the front of my truck despite it's loaded weight of 10,000#. Figured better than nothing and with the block, should get me out of most places I'm willing to take my rig.

[SoCalDesertRid1]

JoeChiOhki wrote:
Hydraulic if you can afford it :).

The PTO drive gear, controller and wiring, driveshaft, hydraulic pump, mounting and hoses to connect to the winch are pretty expensive to set up. Hydraulic winches aren't cheap either.

For something that may only be used a handful of times, if at all, in the life of the truck, an electric winch would be far more cost effective.

Now if it was for a vocational tow truck, then yes, by all means, get a PTO powered hydraulic winch system, it'll last a lifetime and pay for itself quickly!

[Harleybullet]

Thanks... always thinking

[Bedlam]

If you're just looking for tool that will give you pull you out of a place where you cannot get traction, there some winches that could help you even if they were just receiver mounted. If you expect the winch to pull you out of a ditch or mud hole, you will have trouble finding a winch with the capacity you need and creating a mounting point that is strong enough to use without causing more damage.

I have a cheap brand high weight rated winch with two pulley blocks that mounts to my receiver. I have not had to use it for my own recovery, but it has dragged 12K lbs across dry pavement with all four wheels locked using double line pull. I expect my winch will last me a while since it is used infrequently, stored indoors and used at half its work load rating.

[Boatycall]

I was an avid Jeep'r for years, every rig I built had one or even two winches. I'm not aware of any 110v winch that would have the pulling power to pull out a truck hauling a TC.

General rule of thumb is to have at least twice the rated pull power of the rig you're putting it on. My jeeps all had 8,000lb minimum, even the ones where I put one in the front, and one in the rear - and even at that me or my crew would snap cables.

Remember - a winch is a piece of safety gear. If you're going to go someplace where you may ultimately need it, you need it because you're stuck and it's your last option to get you home. Cobbling something together because it's the cheapest option isn't likely to be your best option.

Now, I will say this --
If you need to save a buck, Smittybilt winches never once failed anyone in my crew. They're not as fast as a comparable Warn, but the big thing you need from a winch - we never had one fail.

[JoeChiOhki]

Hydraulic if you can afford it :).

[jimh406]

I wouldn't do 110V for outside unless you have to, but I would wonder about the watts required and duty cycle. It seems you'd want less things to go wrong if you needed it, and adding a generator is one more thing that could go wrong.