is a 6000lb winch good enough?

[ritzy]

I'm looking to modify my front end, without spending a whole lot of money. I've been looking into the Smittybilt Dual Tube Front bumper, but it can only hold a 5 or 6000lb winch. Is that enough weight for a 93 4-door eddie bauer?

 

[Burke Lauderdale]

A good friend of mine, also 17 years old, has a 94' XLT. He just got a Warn Brushguard with a Warn 8000 lbs. winch. Every time that hes gotten stuck, it pulled him out with no problem. I dont know how much you want to spend, but i say go with what you know works. Thats all I can say about a winch.

Burke

------------------
91' Eddie Bauer

 

[MATTADAMS#2]

Ritzy,
The 6,000lb is ok for your front yard but won't cut it off road. When you throw a couple boulders and a killer mud hill in front of your truck you'll half to be able to pull a lot more than 6,000lb. I would say atleast 1.5 times your truck weight. Most explorers are from 4,000 to 5,000lbs. As far as the 6,000lb rating SMITTYBUILT gave you, dont worry about it. Probably 400+ people on this page have bolted on a 8,000 or 9,000 and just reinforced the bumper. You could weld it or bolt on some strong steel brackets to help with strength. RAMSEY is selling a REP8,000lb winch for $399. I not familiar with it but it has planetary gears and a 95 foot cable. It sounds like a good deal check into it. It should bolt onto the warn winch plate(also needed with the bumper).

 

[Green92]

Ritzy,

I think that a 6000 lbs. winch is pushing it, but you might be able to handle it. As long as you don't get reaally stuck you should be OK. 8-9000lbs. would be ideal so there isn't much strain on the motor. It might be worth buying a 8000lbs. winch because the life on a 6000lbs. is shorter, especially under a lot of strain. I am in the same position as you are, both of us are 17, and we are working on a limited budget, but doing it right the first time is better than haveing to do it agian!

Green92

 

[ex91]

iv got a 91 and i need a winch and bumper BUT i live in canada and now one here has then for onder $1000 and that only a 6000 help is needed

 

[Extreme4x4]

If the only place you are going to get stuck is on level ground, and not because you are in mud, then 6000lbs will be fine. However, if you are actually going to wheel, and want to be able to unstuck yourself...... or someone else, you will need at least an 8000lb. I have winched an 83 Toyota standard cab, which weighs well over 1000 lbs less than an Explorer with my 8000i. He was in heavy mud, and even with a snatch block, we barely got him out.

I also had a friend with a Fourrunner (84), that was told a 6000 was plenty. He probably still regrets it to this day. Again, the FourRunner is alot lighter than the Explorer.

Frankly, the difference in price between a 6000, and a 9000 is not much. This is especially true when you are stuck between large rocks, and just want to get home for dinner.

If I hadn't have had this 8000i for 15 years, I would have put a 9000 on my Beast.

Gloria
93 EB Explorer (highly modified)
94 F150 Lightning

 

[Eagle]

I do not have a winch my self but have looked into it for my other vehicle. Most winch manufactures that I have talked to suggest getting a winch that is capable of pulling 1.5 times the gross vehicle weight. That info is on the driver side door jam.

------------------
98 Sport 4.0L SOHC auto
There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

 

[Kevin Loughran]

I have e an 8000 Warren and I wish I had a 9000. When I get stuck I do a good job. If you do a lot of wheeling I would don't get anything under a 8000

 

[GJarrett]

I must respectfully but strongly disagree with the welding suggestion brought up by MattAdams#2.

Welds (unless done by someone such as a person holding a certified aircraft welding rating)can and do break.

Most of us are aware of the lethal danger posed when a metal towhook breaks free and goes ballistic under the stress of a winch pull. The DFW area Jeep club I went wheeling with last weekend has a strictly enforced rule that no towpoints of any nature on any vehicle can be welded. It seems a welded bumper that broke free during a tow-out critically injured and nearly killed someone. I have been told that most other serious 4x4 clubs also have a rule that all towpoints must be bolted, not welded. Of course the bolt must also be fashioned crossways to the stress direction so that the bolt itself takes the stress instead of the threads.

Just something you might want to think about.

Gerald
'99 EB 4x4



[This message has been edited by GJarrett (edited 02-08-2000).]

 

[mattadams]

I'll agree with Gerald... HOWEVER there are a few inconsistencies when it comes to winching. For example, a 9000lb. winch (like the one I have) is only rated at 9000lb's when it has about 10-25 feet of spooled wire still on, past that it is actually rated at less os if you are winching to something 20 feet away you won't be pulling nearly 9000 pounds. Also, I've heard that doubling the winch cable back to yourself doubles the amount of pounds you can pull - however I've heard the 9000 is rated doubled back, so it is actually a 4500 pound winch. I don't believe that though as I've winched out a full sized GMC Blazer that was stuck in sand and freezing water (http://bart.is-s.com/~explorers/longwater/longwater.html) and had no problem - and I'm quite sure the blazer was pulling more then 4500 pounds.

Also, most winch mounts are only rated at 6,000 pounds. I know the smittybilt tubular bumper that Rick and Dave Meisner and a few others on the list have is rated at 6,000 pounds. When I asked the Warn winch mount that I have is rated at ~8500-9000 pounds though it was a salesman saying that so who knows. The winch mount is only as strong as the frame it attaches to of course. So if your winch mount is only rated at 6,000 pounds then putting a 9,000 pound winch on it might be overkill - you will probably be able to winch more then 6,000 but you run the risk of breaking stuff, and winching at full load is not the time to go breaking stuff like welds. Like Gerald said - a flying winch cable is a bad thing, and it will go through anything, putting your hood up will slow down the cable but it will still fly right through the windshield if thats the course it wants to take.

Lot of things to consider - keep in mind how serious of wheeling you are going to be doing. If you want something to get you unstuck as you are going uphill stuck in mud a foot deep you'll probably want the most pull - if getting stuck to you is just on level or slightly slanted surfaces something not quite as heavy duty should do the trick.

------------------
Matt Adams
94 Explorer 4-door nick-named "Tippy"
http://bart.is-s.com/~explorers/explorer/explorer.html

 

[PryBry]

A couple of other things to consider when buying a winch... line speed and cable capacity.

I've got a 6000 pound which thats got a line speed better than twice that of a 8000 lb winch. What that means is I can get out a small stuck faster... and a big stuck I double line it and still match the speed of a single line 8000 lb. I also doesn't zap the battery quite so bad...

just a thought...
What about a removable mount so it can be used front or rear..?
the nice deal with that is you store it inside where it's safe and clean...
A friend has a setup like this and it works great...
for what its worth...

------------------
PryBry
98 XLT V8

 

[mattadams]

Prybry - I thought about that when I first got my Explorer but thank goodness I was talked out of it. First off I didn't realize how heavy the winch is - the XD9000i I believe weighs in at about 95-105 pounds. If it was inside the vehicle it would have to be VERY secured because if it got airborne or started tumbling there would be very little stop it from going through a window or a windshield or worse yet, the back of your head. ALso, if you are stuck and need to get the winch out in a hurry and start winching, ESPECIALLY if it is raining or muddy, or a steep uphill climb, unsecuring it from the cargo area, lifting it out, walking it to the front, manuevering it into the hitch, and locking it in there - a lot of work. Just try to imagine how difficult it is to walk through some of that mud now add in to that that you are carrying 100 pounds worth of somewhat akward weight. It would get a bit interesting. On top of that your ground clearance would be severely compromised. I know in Truckhaven there was several spots where I came within inches of hitting my lights/front bumper when coming down into washes, etc. and thats with a 5.5" lift, if I had had that winch in there like that I would've been dragging it all over the desert! I'd say go with the Warn Classic mount, thats what I have and I love it.

------------------
Matt Adams
94 Explorer 4-door nick-named "Tippy"
http://bart.is-s.com/~explorers/explorer/explorer.html

 

[Eagle]

How about mounting the winch to the back bumper instead of the front. It seems logical to me that it would be easier to pull your stuck truck out of the ruts you just created than to pull yourself through a virgin trail. I guess the answer is get a winch on both bumpers.

------------------
98 Sport 4.0L SOHC auto
There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."