A winch is a mechanical device that moves heavy objects, cars or, trucks, and boats. It consists of a cable, drum motor, gear train, and a hook. It is a great tool, especially for any kind of truck, either Atv or utility trucks, and helps during self-recovery without much hassle. Using a winch and other proper recovery gears like a tree trunk protector, snatch block, you can carefully pull yourself out of a tricky situation.
A winch can also assist in other applications like during construction, marine operations, some sports, and others. Different types of winches vary depending on the source of power, where they are applied and size. Some include electrical, hydraulic, air winches, mechanical capstan, and more. Winches may also differ in the parts they contain.
Winch Types
There are many different types of winch classified on the source of power it uses and their modes of operation. They include:
Electrical Winches
These winches operate through a vehicle battery or an independent battery. They use an electric motor and require a power supply. Electrical winches apply when working on light or heavy items for a short period.
Advantages
- Easy to install
- Can be used even when the engine of the vehicle is dead
Disadvantages
- Uses a lot of energy from the vehicle’s battery
- They cannot work in a wet environment as they are affected by water.
Hydraulic
It is a winch powered by a vehicle steering pump while its motor by hydraulic pressure. The winch uses fluid power and utilizes hydraulic systems and the motor pumps of the generator set. This winch can work and pull heavy objects for a long time and, therefore, be more reliable and robust than electrical
Advantages of Hydraulic Winch
- Work underwater
- Don’t overheat if used for a long time
- More durable
- More powerful and reliable
Disadvantages
- Can’t operate without an engine
- Can’t work if the steering wheel alters while winching
Hand Winch
It lifts or pulls heavy objects and designed to work with either strap or cable. These winches do lighter duties compared to other winches.
Pros
- It can work in remote areas, even without power.
Cons
- Require you to use extra energy while in operation
- Less efficient for heavy duties
Car Winch
It’s a portable winch you attach onto a car to drag it along or pull another stuck vehicle. It operates with a small winch motor or a power another car.
Mechanical Capstan
The winch contains a dog clutch that connects to the crankshaft, pulley, and then draws power. How does a mechanical winch work? Capstan has a vertical winch drum that pulls horizontally and mostly applied in marine practice in sailing boats. It uses power from the engine.
Mechanical Drum
The winch gets power supply from a running engine, whether the gear is engaged or not. It is fast in dropping and retrieval of loads. This winch can be more powerful than an electrical winch. It also offers anchorage.
Pros
- Easy to install
- Work efficiently with any type of rope/chain
Mechanical Portable Winch
A hand-made winch that runs independently of the vehicle to which they are attached. It applies in any location since its portable.
Air Winch
It is also called air tugger and uses air as the source of power. The winch lifts objects in gas and oil industries and construction sites. I am sure you have observed it lifting construction materials from the ground up a story building. It’s preferred because of safety, durability, and been versatile.
Mooring Winch
The winch is used by ships and boats for anchorage. It occurs in different types, tension-type, and force of drive.
Truck Winch
It has a cable that is puled by the motor or engine of the vehicle. The engine’s force allows the wire to wrap around and pull the object. The winch can either be electric or hydraulic or use energy from the motor or battery.
Wake-Skate Winch
The winch mostly assists in watersports and consists of a spool, engine, and some other mechanisms. It can pull a person at a speed of 24 – 40 km/h on an open water body while standing or lying on a surfboard.
Lever Winch
In this winch, self-gripping jaw replaces the spool. This self-gripping jaw move ropes using the winch. They can also drag several tones of weight if the leaver is being pulled front and back by someone.
Check this too: Best ATV Winch
How Winches Works?
A winch usually has a spool where the cable sits and a crank. Crank is motorized or operated by hand and allows for pulling in the rope or tightening its tension or releasing it. The pulling and tightening of the line will enable you to haul or lift and object. If you pull a stuck vehicle, you need to unwind the cable and reach out to the car. Fasten the spool to the recovery point on the car and get the motor started.
If your winches use an electric motor, plug in the remote and start the engine. Remember safety measures like the use of winch line damper and tree trunk protector. These tools are essential when using steel cables.
Which Type of Winch Should I Get for My Truck?
The most common types of winches are electric and hydraulic winches. Electric winches have a faster winding speed and are easier to install. They also offer the advantage of using a remote control, allowing you to stand at a safer distance during recovery. On the other hand, hydraulics are reliable, robust, and can work underwater, though a bit expensive. Hydraulic suits better in wet areas and can save you from a situation when the engine is on.
Which Winch Should I Choose?
The best winch to use for your truck in electric winch due to its safety and fastness, it’s also easy to install, especially you are not skilled, and you’re all alone in the trails. But you need to be very cautious while using it not to touch the water and ensure you have an extra battery as a source of power. If you don’t have electric hydraulic is also efficient, especially in muddy, wet areas.
What Should I Look for in A Winch?
Pulling capacity
Winches vary in size and capabilities, so while choosing, consider its units of strength. It is advisable to buy a winch that is 1.5 times the weight of your vehicle. If your truck is 4000lbs, use a winch with 6,000lbs and above. A winch with higher capacity will save your situation without much strain and therefore increase its durability.
Gear System
There are various types of gears, as planetary, worm gear, and spur. The apparatus determines the speed of a winch.
- Spur gear. It excels at offering reliable winching with fast line speed. However, the weakness is its lack of stability to hold loads and typically requires a functional and robust brake.
- The worm gear is a bit slower but more useful for longer pulls, and it’s easy to repair and maintain. Its ideally suited for industrial or workman applications. Its specialties are load holding and lowering, which makes them a popular choice for tow trucks.
- Planetary is faster than worm gear, but it generates more heat while pulling. The gear is typically more compact, which allows for less weight and less cost. It most common in electric winches.
Steel/Synthetic Rope
Steel rope is the most common since it has several advantages. It is durable, reliable, and therefore used for a tough situation. But, with time, it can fray, corrode, and sometimes break. When subjected to a lot of tension and break, it results in severe injuries.
Synthetic ropes are light, and if they snap under tension, chances of injuries are less. They don’t resist abrasions if working in rocky and rough surfaces hence less durable than steel. Synthetic require care while using them to prevent abrasions. For steel, ensure you use dampeners to minimize any chances of injuries.
Length of the Cable
A cable should be long enough for any recovery process, but not extra long as it may lead to jamming of the drum and cause injuries when it gets cut. The short cable may not offer much help, so it’s not the best choice.
Wired Remote Control/ Wireless
A wireless remote control is best and offers you an advantage to operate at a safer distance in case of an accident.
Waterproof
Choosing a waterproof winch will depend on your nature of adventure for wet areas. If so, you should consider purchasing a waterproof winch. But if you love rough terrains, it may not be necessary to acquire a waterproof winch.
Mount options
It is also one of the most important considerations when choosing a winch. There are three popular options that you can mount your winch.
- Bumper mount: This is the simplest option mounting option, offers the most versatility, and it’s super easy to install.
- Multi-mount: It is a little more complicated than the first one. A Multi-Mounted winch is not very durable because of the mounting point. The multi-mounted winch is perfect for you if you’re one of those who want the security a winch provides without permanently mounting it to your vehicle.
- Winch bumper: This mounting option has become popular day by day as it looks part of your vehicle and provides protection to your car’s front side.
Qualities of A Good Winch
- Should have a high pulling capacity
- Have a fast gear that generated less heat
- Have a long cable enough for the operation
- The wire should be strong and durable
- Easy to install
- Should be easy to repair and maintain
- Best and safe mounting option
Do I really Need A winch?
If you love riding off-load with your four-wheel, having a winch is not a luxury but a necessity. It comes in handy when you are stuck in the middle of nowhere with no one to help you. A winch saves your situation as you can install it and do self-recovery. The following are reasons why you should own a winch:
Helps When Stuck
A winch saves you from a challenging situation when stuck where a tow strap can’t work. A belt may not have all the capability and power to get you out and often leads you into a deeper mess and may cause damage.
A Winch Operates in A Steady and Slow Manner
A tow strap requires more pulling while operating, and it’s more violet causing damage to your vehicle. On the contrary, a winch works slowly and steadily during recovery. You can control the situation step by step until the car recovers fully.
Efficient in Hardcore Trails
Having a winch gives you the pressure to ride in rough terrains even with hard cores without any worry. A winch will quickly rescue your vehicle when in drop-offs, stair-steps, and not cause any damage.
A Winch Reaches Out
A winch contains a lengthy cable which is 100 feet than a tow strap, 30 feet. A longer cable gives you the allowance of using several options to save the situation. If your vehicle is on a ditch, you can easily pull it up the hill using a winch due to the long cable.
Best When You Roll Alone
When stuck in the trails deep in the forest alone, you can be stranded, and a high chance of walking home is high. But with a winch, you can recover your vehicle all alone; unlike a tow strap, you require another vehicle to help you pull.
Helps in Rollover Recovery
When a vehicle rolls down a cliff, a winch can help to get on its wheels first, then pull it up. It may be impossible for the tow strap since it can’t position your vehicle before pulling, and this causes more damage.
Best in Pulling Non-Operating Vehicle
A winch is usually fixed at the front of the towing vehicle or the back, ensuring its straight and stuck vehicle dragged or pulled to a mechanic. You should park the towing car on a stable ground with the emergency brake and wheel stabilization engaged.
Helps Change Pulling Angle
A winch can pull your vehicle through an angle of 90 degrees or more through a snatch block. The block aids in a better pulling angle and doubles the pulling capacity of your winch capacity.
How Strong Should My Winch Be?
The higher the winch capacity, the better and more reliable it will be. Heavy trucks require more powerful winches than small cars. As a rule, a winch should be 1.5 times the weight of your vehicle. You can approximate your winch capacity by multiply the gross vehicle weight by 1.5.
- GVWR= Base weight + passengers/ cargo
- Winch capacity= GVWR× 1.5 e.g., if your vehicle has a GVWR of 4500lbs the winch capacity should be;
- 1.5 4×500= 6750lbs winch capacity.
- 1.5× is the standard industry rule, though it’s safer to have a more winch capacity than that.
How Do You Calculate Winch Capacity?
You can calculate winch capacity using the 1.5 by GVWR formula. This power can be increased or lowered depending on how you use the winch.
How to Calculate the Pull Load?
The formula for pull load is F= T/X, where F is the weight of the load(line pull), T is the output torque, and X is the distance from the center of the winch axis. The force required to move the load you express in Newton, Power in Kilowatts, and Torque in Newton meters. In physics, watts are in Joules/seconds.
The required torque( line pull × effective drum radius) moves the load at the required speed, and the higher the rate, the more the power is needed. Power in kilowatts express as P(kW) = F(N) × V(meters/minutes)/ 1020× 6, V= line speed in meters per minute, 1020 is a constant, and 60 conversions from minutes to seconds ( Nm/s).
For line pull when load travels up an incline the formula is as follows:
Required line pull= W(Gr+ Cf) where W = weight, Gr = gradient resistance and Cf = coefficient of friction. If pulling a steel bin on wheels up a 30% cement grade with a total weight of 5tons, what line pull winch do you need?
- Line pull= 5 tons ×( Gr+ Cf)
- Coefficient at 30% = 0.288
- Load on wheels = 0.02 to 0.05
- Line pull= 5tones × ( 0.288+ 0.02 to 0.05) = 1.54 to 1.69 tons
Formula for Measuring Drum Capacity
L=( A+D) × A× B× K where k is the constant obtained by dividing the square of the actual diameter, B= transverse in inches, A = (H-D)/ 2, D= barrel in inches and H = flange diameter in inches.
How Much Can My Winch Pull?
Your winch can pull 1.5× capacity as the standard rule, which only occurs under optimal conditions. These conditions are; a single cable with one wrap on the drum, straight pull, and perfect electrical system. To ensure your winch gives the maximum power, ensure you leave at least five wraps of the cable on the drum when you need to winch.
How Do You Double A Winch Pulling Power?
You can double your winch pulling power by:
Using Multiple Line Pulls
Using this method, the recovery speed halves while the pulling power doubles. If, for instance, your winch has 12,000lbs, it will give out 24,000lbs after doubling the power. You can achieve this by ensuring you have a pulley block, damper, and tree trunk protector. Hook your line through a pulley block attached to a tree trunk protector and back to your four-wheel recovery point. Ensure you place your damper over the ropes so incase of snap; the cables will go down, hindering any injuries.
You can also add a pulley block to the vehicle’s recovery point. Run the rope to a second tree with a tree trunk protector and add winch dampener. This extra pulley will triple the winch energy and now becomes 36,000lbs. Using multiple lines helps to get more rope out of the drum, which increases the winch power.
The pulley block method allows you to achieve directional winching, which is essential during recovery. Winching in an upward angle enables you to get the vehicle out of the mud. Remember, with multiple lines or double; you need to be extra careful as the amount of stress is increased on the cable. Your anchor point should be powerful; to withstand the force of the pull.
Using Double Line Pull with A Snatch Block
You should run a cable to a tree saver where you connect a snatch block, get it through the block on a pulley, and back to the truck. A shackle should also secure the cable. The snatch block allows you to spool out more rope to reach your winch power’s maximum rating.
- Remove extra rope from the drum to allow operation in the pulling zone. If the anchor is too close, double the line, but if too far, ensure you remove the extra rope.
- Ensure the stuck vehicle gas remains on, as this will increase the pulling momentum and minimize strain on your winch. The winch works smoothly to its optimal power. Before recovery, make sure to dig out around the tires or build a block to give the vehicle some traction.
Conclusion
Winches are perfect devices that aid in lifting or moving objects and trucks. They make work easier in construction sites, during vehicle recovery, marine operations, and more. For you to enjoy all the benefits of a winch, be sure to choose the appropriate type for the service. If in truck recovery, electric winches are the best, considering other factors like gear, remote control, and more.
It’s advisable to use a winch with 1.5 times more power than the GVWR. This high-power assists in preventing strain on your winch, and this makes it more durable. Again, ensure you observe other precautionary safety measures while winching like the use of winch dampeners. Lastly, follow the explained tips on doubling your winch power, and this will make your operation more comfortable.