Harbor Freight winch owners

[milkie62]

Anybody own any of the harbor freight winches in the 9000 lb rating range.I know you get what you pay for but to maybe pull a tree over while staying at a safe distance would be nice.I sometimes are cutting spruce trees in my woods which are very close together.And instead of having to cut 3 trees to get one down,I thought I could cut the one I want,hook the winch to the base of it and spool it in from the back of the tractor.Sometimes there is not enough room to just drive the tractor with a long cable in the woods.But running a winch off the 3 pt to just pull it over is an option.I have a grove of hemlocks and spruce up to 18" dia that some will just stand there when cut because of the density.I am just trying to selective cut without taking more than necessary down.

 

[olyman]

there was a article in four wheeler,,that said,,that hf hired a enguuuneeeer from ramsey,,and that the winches they produce now,,would compete with the best. for farrr less money...fw said they would be testing them to find out...dont remember the name of the new line of winches..

 

[CJ8Ted]

there was a article in four wheeler,,that said,,that hf hired a enguuuneeeer from ramsey,,and that the winches they produce now,,would compete with the best. for farrr less money...fw said they would be testing them to find out...dont remember the name of the new line of winches..

As olyman states the 4x4 mags test and rave about HF tools and winches. The winch test I remember reading the HF pulled and hung with the big three. But I've never seen a HF in action.

As for your use I'm confused,, an auto sized winch to pull a tree off its base? Or pull a hung up leaner out of 18" timber? What size trees are you cutting?

Ted

 

[Hank Chinaski]

I've got a 10k hf on the nose of my truck. Works fine. Used it for multiple vehicle extractions as well as pulling trees. Good bang for the buck IMHO

 

[Big_Al]

Can't think of the name of their new line but they just had the 12k model on sale for 399. Probably try one when my 9k tabor (warn) gives up.

 

[arlen]

Bad Land

The winches are called BADLANDS http://www.harborfreight.com/media/...b33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/i/m/image_17927.jpg David

 

[arlen]

current draw

I have a question about the winches the BADLANDS winches come in 6,000 9,000 and 12,00. I think I would be interested in the bigger one, but my concern is the bigger one would draw a lot of current could this hurt your electrical system? Will it draw down your battery with your vehicle running. Thanks David

 

[CJ8Ted]

but my concern is the bigger one would draw a lot of current could this hurt your electrical system? Will it draw down your battery with your vehicle running. Thanks David

Hurt the system? No, not if it is wired up correctly.
Will it draw the battery down with the vehicle running? Yes... Under load (for an extended period of time) even the small DC powered winches draw more than even two alterntors can put out. A good battery, and rest between pulls should be fine. I run a "deep cycle" battery to help with the high amp draw. Some guys run a dual battery setup for twice the pull time.

HTH
Ted

 

[ponyexpress976]

High amp alternator with dual deep cycles is the "ultimate" setup. It'll get you out of where you don't want to be and recharge the system the fastest. For pulling over a tree...probably overkill x3. Just put large dia. wire to the winch to avoid overheating and you should be fine.

 

[olyman]

The winches are called BADLANDS http://www.harborfreight.com/media/...b33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/i/m/image_17927.jpg David

thanks,,just wasnt ringing in my head!!

 

[arlen]

Thanks for the input on the electrical questions David

 

[genesis5521]

Anybody own any of the harbor freight winches in the 9000 lb rating range.I know you get what you pay for but to maybe pull a tree over while staying at a safe distance would be nice.I sometimes are cutting spruce trees in my woods which are very close together.And instead of having to cut 3 trees to get one down,I thought I could cut the one I want,hook the winch to the base of it and spool it in from the back of the tractor.Sometimes there is not enough room to just drive the tractor with a long cable in the woods.But running a winch off the 3 pt to just pull it over is an option.I have a grove of hemlocks and spruce up to 18" dia that some will just stand there when cut because of the density.I am just trying to selective cut without taking more than necessary down.

You don't need a 9000 pound winch to pull a tree. There is a gas powered portable winch almost made for harvesting trees. It ain't cheap at at over $1300. But it's perfect for what you want to do. I'm seriously considering getting one of these puppies.

Here's the link to their website: Manufacturer of the best Portable Winch with rope · with capstan and a powerful Honda engine. Ideal for logging, rescue, construction, hunting, ATV, farming or boating · Pulling Docks Portable Winch ATV Winch
Click on "Video Gallery" on the left hand side of the page.

Go to youtube and do a search on "portable capstan winch", and you'll find a ton of videos.

Hope this helps,

Don <><

 

[Photog95]

Here is the 10k HF winch in action pulling my buried ass out.

 

[milkie62]

for CJ8Ted

I would just be pulling the ones that hang up that do not fall over.Somewhat dense where I cut at times and some trees are not heavy enough to fall over when they hit a thick branch of an adjoining tree.This way with a winch I could be at a safe distance when one does get hung up and try to pull it down.like I said my wood roads are tight in places and being able to leave the tractor stationary would be a help.Looks like I will be seriously looking into one of these Badland winches for my occasional use cutting my firewood .Thanks guys lots of good info from my simple question.I am not a big HF fan but some things do work.My Snap-On guy even said for the homeowner even he cannot fault their impact sockets.My dad bought a 3/4" HF socket set about 25 yrs ago just to work on our tractor.Other than substituting a Craftsman ratchet which I aquired rather cheaply the set has served me well.

 

[olyman]

[/QUOTE]

KIDS!!!!!!!! :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[Rudedog]

I have a 1999 Tahoe LT that has the tray available for a second battery. I would just have to figure out how to hook it up. I was thinking of getting one of these to help pull large logs into a better position (lie and closer to the road/trailer) to be bucked among other things. I saw that they also carry a hitch mount for $69. Do they sell cables so you can still run it off of your battery in the engine compartment? Am I better off attaching it to the front bumper where I have my two hooks to run the cable back to the truck while using a snatch block.

 

[Hank Chinaski]

be wary of HF's welded items like their tow points, receiver inserts etc, look inside the box and make sure you're happy with the welds etc and pay close attention to them when you're using them.

HF's pin on winch cradle does not inspire faith in it IMHO.

A winch that is mounted to your frame or proper bumper setup is much stronger than a pin on. But pin on's have some advantages.

The HF winches come with enough good sized electrical cable to mount properly to your front bumper area. I took mine apart and swapped the short/long cables from the control box, so I could mount the winch solenoid/control box under the hood by the battery instead of on top of the winch exposed to the elements, and it helps me to remember to keep my hood up when winching (in case of cable failure)

To install dual batteries, you can either hook them up in parallel where you leave the orig where it's at and simply add the second batt by running a cable from the + to the orig + and from the - to the orig batt -. It works MUCH better/longer if the batteries are the same brand/age etc.
Another, better option is to use a battery isolator and follow the directions. That will allow the power of 2 batts, but won't totally discharge your starting battery past where it will start your vehicle.

 

[IHDiesel73L]

Anybody own any of the harbor freight winches in the 9000 lb rating range.I know you get what you pay for but to maybe pull a tree over while staying at a safe distance would be nice.I sometimes are cutting spruce trees in my woods which are very close together.And instead of having to cut 3 trees to get one down,I thought I could cut the one I want,hook the winch to the base of it and spool it in from the back of the tractor.Sometimes there is not enough room to just drive the tractor with a long cable in the woods.But running a winch off the 3 pt to just pull it over is an option.I have a grove of hemlocks and spruce up to 18" dia that some will just stand there when cut because of the density.I am just trying to selective cut without taking more than necessary down.

I always looked at the HF winches kind of skeptically but after this thread I'm willing to take the plunge. I'm going to use a hitch mount (I don't think I'll get that from HF though) so I can full from the front or rear with my new 'Yota wood hauler.

 

[Hank Chinaski]

for ya'll wanting to use it at the rear, if you're not planning on using it there very often, instead of gong thru the hassle of running another set of cables rearward, you can build/use a good set of long jumper cables for the winch hookup. I'd take the calmps off one end and put on ring terminals and bolt it directly to the winch, then you'd have your cable w/your winch all the time and you could move it to/from any vehicle with a receiver. When you're storing it, just wrap the cable around the winch top.
Just make sure the cables are large enough gauge. I'd run at least a 2, if not an 0 or 00 (for bigger/longer trucks). There are plenty of online calculators to figure it out if you'd like, just keep in mind that most winches draw between 300-550+amps when loaded and err toward the larger/safer size.

 

[Hank Chinaski]

and to add as an alternative there's a few guys in our 4x4 group that love these: TUFF STUFF 12,500LB Electric 12 Volt Winch | TruckandWinch.com

It'll prob be the next winch I get.

and for a few $ more, waterproofing and a 3 yr warranty: http://truckandwinch.com/tuff-stuff-xtreme-12-500lb-waterproof-winch.html