[nadox]

hey guys, after slipping getting stuck for 2 hours waiting road service assistant to pull me out of 20 inch of snow, I have decided to get a winch.

Im hoping if you guys could help me find one with the following features

1- 8000 lb towing capacity
2- synthetic rope
3- compatible with ARB Bumper
4- not too heavy to the point that i need to change HD coils ( currently got front and rear bumper and rci full set )
5- remote control
6- doesn't requires me to change stock battery ( its extremely unlikely i will use it more than twice a year for 5 or 10 minutes)
7- preferred price : 400-650

I know the Warn M8000 meet these all of these criteria and i might get it if i cant find anything else but hopefully you guys know one or two winches better/cheaper

 

[Iconic_]

Consider the relatively new Warn VR8s. Seems pretty cool.

Also consider some type of traction devices. TREDs or Maxtrax. Would be helpful to have without the cost or weight of a winch and more useful considering there might not be an anchor point for a winch around.

 

[Joabmc]

Warn makes a solid winch. But trying to find better and cheaper is tough. There are some aftermarket companies out there that sell a comparable rated winches at lower prices but they are not dependable. And they usually fail when you need them the most. Folks have bought the cheaper and then retrofitted with name brand components (mainly electrical). But I'm not convinced it's worth it.

I have the M8000 and the ARB bull bar setup. Getting a remote is easy enough but haven't gotten around to buying one yet.

Here is my only observation. The M8000 is just at the limit of recommended use. 1.5x vehicle weight. It's the perfect scenario winch IMO. I've used mine enough to really test it and it does well. But I am concerned that I've more than maxed it out on several occasions.
Using the M8000 on flat ground with no resistance is perfect.
Then you start considering the what-ifs:

Throw the rig in a ditch while climbing a steep incline. Now you're greatly reducing load capacity and introducing resistance. These are the scenarios that start to tax the winch. If the truck goes in a ditch and is wedged against a rock or obstacle. You may be doubling the load to break the truck free.

I have noticed mine struggling under these situations. I wheel whenever I get the chance and it's usually not an ideal scenario when we finally give up and resort to winching.

And often times I'm using my winch to help others in need. That's where it gets a little sketchy. I've pulled some pretty heavily modded 80s out of mud holes. The whole time I'm thinking the suction of them being stuck, the weight of their rig and the percent of slope has to being weighing on my winch.

When it's time to upgrade I'll go with a 10 or 12k winch for piece of mind.

Southeast Overland make very good synthetic lines and you can't go wrong with Factor 55 accessories. Really safe stuff as the industry is evolving.

 

[Iconic_]

Warn makes a solid winch. But trying to find better and cheaper is tough. There are some aftermarket companies out there that sell a comparable rated winches at lower prices but they are not dependable. And they usually fail when you need them the most. Folks have bought the cheaper and then retrofitted with name brand components (mainly electrical). But I'm not convinced it's worth it.

I have the M8000 and the ARB bull bar setup. Getting a remote is easy enough but haven't gotten around to buying one yet.

Here is my only observation. The M8000 is just at the limit of recommended use. 1.5x vehicle weight. It's the perfect scenario winch IMO. I've used mine enough to really test it and it does well. But I am concerned that I've more than maxed it out on several occasions.
Using the M8000 on flat ground with no resistance is perfect.
Then you start considering the what-ifs:

Throw the rig in a ditch while climbing a steep incline. Now you're greatly reducing load capacity and introducing resistance. These are the scenarios that start to tax the winch. If the truck goes in a ditch and is wedged against a rock or obstacle. You may be doubling the load to break the truck free.

I have noticed mine struggling under these situations. I wheel whenever I get the chance and it's usually not an ideal scenario when we finally give up and resort to winching.

And often times I'm using my winch to help others in need. That's where it gets a little sketchy. I've pulled some pretty heavily modded 80s out of mud holes. The whole time I'm thinking the suction of them being stuck, the weight of their rig and the percent of slope has to being weighing on my winch.

When it's time to upgrade I'll go with a 10 or 12k winch for piece of mind.

Southeast Overland make very good synthetic lines and you can't go wrong with Factor 55 accessories. Really safe stuff as the industry is evolving.

Good points. With my 9.5k Warn I've bogged it down pretty good pulling a stuck FJ up a steep incline. A higher output alternator and good battery probably would help too.

 

[ZerosFJ]

Some good info already and valid points to consider...

Remember "anyone can make something worse and sell it for less"

There a lot of options these days and you'll get good and bad reviews on all of them.

Most planetary winches without integrated solenoid packs have similar dimensions and a standard footprint to fit in the ARB. If you think you need a 8000 rated pull I would look at winches with a higher capacity that 8000lbs for the simple reason that you state you want to use synthetic rope. You need about 8 wraps of synthetic rope (twice that of steel) remaining on the drum when you start to pull. This leaves very little space left on the drum so the distance you can pull whilst on the bottom layer is very short. As you build up the layers the effective power of the winch deminishes up until top layer when you have only about half the rated pull. So you need really to pull the required capacity on the second layer not the first.

Personally if I was going to only require a winch once in a blue moon then I would not mount it to the front of the vehicle but run a demountable unit. This would mean that you can have mount points and power front and rear, for self recovery you most commonly want to pull backwards or as in your ditch scenario even sideways... a well set up demountable can do all of these if you have the right kit to attach it front, rear or even to the tree across the road. You can run a smaller unit with the use of snatch blocks. Keeping inside also keeps it out of the elements.

 

[BIGGUY]

Some good points. Being stuck in mud might turn a 5000lb vehicle into a 15,000lb block of metal with the suction holding it and the force needed to free it. You also need to consider the rating of the winch. It might be an 8000lb winch, but that's with all but about 5 wraps of the cable stretched out so say you have 100ft of cable, are you going to be able to hook up to something 95ft any time you're stuck so that you can use the winch at it's rated capacity?

There are many choices from brand names such as Warn to inexpensive from Harbor Freight to Smittybilt and others that people have used. Some have had problems with the expensive brand names and some with the inexpensive ones. Some have had good luck with both types. It just depends on what one can afford and how often it might be needed.

Here's a few threads on winches. Other search terms may bring more and/or better threads too.

Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum - Search Results for what winch to get fj cruiser

 

[nadox]

thanks guys for the advice, I have decided to go with Warn M8000 with synthetic rope and get 2 or 3 snatch blocks.

before i purchase the winch, do i need any kit or anything else and is the M8000-s basically M8000 with Synthetic rope ?

 

[ZerosFJ]

thanks guys for the advice, I have decided to go with Warn M8000 with synthetic rope and get 2 or 3 snatch blocks.

before i purchase the winch, do i need any kit or anything else and is the M8000-s basically M8000 with Synthetic rope ?

I would recommend you purchase a good quality isolator switch to put in line on the live feed so that your winch isn't permanently live on the front of your vehicle. You would also be wise to add in a fuse too. Neither of these will be supplied with the winch.

 

[nadox]

I would recommend you purchase a good quality isolator switch to put in line on the live feed so that your winch isn't permanently live on the front of your vehicle. You would also be wise to add in a fuse too. Neither of these will be supplied with the winch.

if its not too much to ask, can you provide with links to purchase them. i will have auto shop install the whole thing

 

[ZerosFJ]

if its not too much to ask, can you provide with links to purchase them. i will have auto shop install the whole thing

This is the one I and others have used. It has the advantage of the cab switch but is the most expensive.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0016HRUPE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is another option:
https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Sea-Sys...id=1485104826&sr=1-6&keywords=Blue+sea+switch

Or this is the budget option (I used this type for years on my LC)
https://www.amazon.com/Cllena-Batte...id=1485104952&sr=8-1&keywords=marine+isolator

And fuse:

https://www.amazon.com/ROSENICE-Fus...d=1485105807&sr=8-6&keywords=mega+fuse+holder

Here's mine mounted with the solenoid pack on a bracket that sits under the battery, fuse connects between the isolator and the battery.

 

[nadox]

This is the one I and others have used. It has the advantage of the cab switch but is the most expensive.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0016HRUPE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is another option:
https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Sea-Sys...id=1485104826&sr=1-6&keywords=Blue+sea+switch

Or this is the budget option (I used this type for years on my LC)
https://www.amazon.com/Cllena-Batte...id=1485104952&sr=8-1&keywords=marine+isolator

And fuse:

https://www.amazon.com/ROSENICE-Fus...d=1485105807&sr=8-6&keywords=mega+fuse+holder

Here's mine mounted with the solenoid pack on a bracket that sits under the battery, fuse connects between the isolator and the battery.

Alright, just placed the order for the winch and fuse you recommended. as for the isolation switch, would this switch be compatible https://www.amazon.com/Cllena-Batte..._rd_wg=CC2uz&refRID=ZE6EZRCZ792JA3D4Y03N&th=1 ?

 

[ZerosFJ]

That switch looks OK. My only query would be it is only 200A continuous most winches under load will pull more than that.


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[Sanderhawk]

I had a 8000 lb winch and it seemed to struggle. I sold it and got a 12000 lb vipermax. It was about $300 and its pulled me out of the snow a few times already. It does have a steel cable instead of the synthetic rope you want but it definetly gets the job done.