Mark Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Been Thinking about trying to fit an isolator switch to the winch, since I don't have one at the moment... Given that I am in a Disco, I don't have any nice convienient panels on the front of the car to mount a switch on that would be accessable while the winch was in use. I also don't have the Winch battery under the seat, so running the main winch power back into the cab, just so an isolator switch can be fitted dosn't seem like a worthwhile exercise either. Which leaves me with a couple of options: i) Fit an conventional isolator switch somewhere inaccessable, and run a bowden cable back into the vehicle to operate it. ii) Find a big relay that can be operated by a switch in the vehicle. Is the relay permitted by ARC rules and regs and the like??? Cheers Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 We did something similar in reverse on the 90. Since the winch man also needs to be able to stop the winch in a hurry! The main cut out switch is on the seat battery box but we have "choke" type cables running forwards and aft from it fixed to the lever. If you pull either cable pull front or rear it pulls the lever and trips the cutout. You could do the same the other way round! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 The Warn XD9000i supplied as a Genuine kit by Land Rover has an electrically operated cutoff solenoid fitted so you could try looking for one of those. I prefer a manual switch personally though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 I have just done a smart battery cutoff for someone, started as "can you repair" and ended up replacing almost everything That was quite a good system though, had a button to "arm" it (turn on) and then the "off" button(s) were NC switches in series so you could mount several wherever you want and any one of them would cut the battery, because they're NC (the thing is only on as long as there's a circuit) it also makes it "fail safe" if the wire is cut or damaged. Apart from the alternator protection circuit I replaced a PCB full of components with one normal car relay The only drawback is all the time it's on the main solenoid draws current, not so bad for arming your main winch on an event but I doubt you'd want it on a daily driver's main battery feed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 I like Mr Orgasmic's solution. A safety cutout has to be positive. I would argue a relay is not a good option because if the contacts become welded together, they will stay welded when the coil is de-energised. At least with a switch, you should be able to feel it! I Personally would go for a pair of Anderson type connectors. One with a loop of wire between the contacts and the other screwed on somewhere useful. At least you know that if you have pulled out the link, you can bet your life the circuit is dead! Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Sorry to hijack the thread, Mark ... I have a mechanical switch already but thinking of the winchman, I've got an emergency stop button which I was going to wire the Albright solenoid earth wire through and mount on the grille panel. Is this a good idea ? Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted April 25, 2007 Author Share Posted April 25, 2007 Mr. Orgasmic's suggestion was what I started considering - mounting the switch that I have under the bonnet and running a bowden cable (ie a choke or bonnet release cable) to the switch. The only issue with the switch is that when you turn the switch off, the key comes out so you would have to go digging under the bonnet to reset. The anderson connectors I like a lot, and have used them for other things, but I can't reach from within the car. The entirety of the electrics for my winch are contained in a small area (see pic) giving me nice short cable runs. Any other suggestions most welcome though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orange Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 This may sound like a silly question, but could the cut-out be on the in-cab or remotely mounted controls? Not on the wander lead, but anything hard-wired to the car, if you know what I mean..... Just thinking, cos this would be an easier solution for Discos and RRs and I need to put in some in-cab controls for my set-up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superpants Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 How about both? I might be complicating matters a little but an internal cab switch could trigger the relay and would be easily accesible to the driver, then a switch on the battery, or Simon's anderson link would be the ultimate failsafe, and would be accesible by the winch monkey (I wonder who that might be ) . Keeps all the power wiring together, and should be relatively easy to install. Just a thought! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outrage Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 I have just done a smart battery cutoff for someone, started as "can you repair" and ended up replacing almost everything That was quite a good system though, had a button to "arm" it (turn on) and then the "off" button(s) were NC switches in series so you could mount several wherever you want and any one of them would cut the battery, because they're NC (the thing is only on as long as there's a circuit) it also makes it "fail safe" if the wire is cut or damaged.Apart from the alternator protection circuit I replaced a PCB full of components with one normal car relay The only drawback is all the time it's on the main solenoid draws current, not so bad for arming your main winch on an event but I doubt you'd want it on a daily driver's main battery feed. Sounds like a basic latching circuit, this general arrangement is used on basic motor starters to start and stop motors (and other loads using 2 spring return pushbuttons (Push to Latch = NO, Push to break = NC). As long as the latch part of the circuit is correctly wired before the push to break switch and not after it it is a sound system to use. As fridge has stated, if the control loop is broken or power is removed then the latch is removed. Simon R is also correct that contacts on relays can - and do weld in. This can be overcome by operating 2 relays in parallel but wiring the contacts in series. If one Relays contacts welds in the circuit will still be broken by the second relays contacts as it is unlikely both relays will weld at the same time. you can also purchase positively guided relays and the like to further reduce the likely hood of this. I would also advise the use of contactors as opposed to relays as these are generally used for higher current operations and are more reliable. I can post a wiring diagram if anyone needs one. Cheers, Lee O **EDITED TO ADD:** Since the load making and breaking is being done by the winch solenoids, the relays shouldn't (unless button pressed in emergency) actually be switching a load. This means that the chances of relay welding is dramatically reduced since this occurs when the contacts meet/release causing an arc, with no current flow there will be no arc which means no degradation of the contacts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsie Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 I fitted a genuine warn isolator to my car and it has been fine for 3 year.Think its listed as a warn power interupter kit or somthing similar and it consists of a solenoid and all the wiring and an illuminated switch.My plan for if it ever fails is just bypass the solenoid to get it working,but upto now-no problems Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Br00n1e Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 Have Anderson connectors on my two Warns and the thin earth wire on a switch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yella 90 Posted April 25, 2007 Share Posted April 25, 2007 paul...you do realise you just jynxed yourself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Divster Posted April 26, 2007 Share Posted April 26, 2007 I fitted a genuine warn isolator to my car and it has been fine for 3 year.Think its listed as a warn power interupter kit or somthing similar and it consists of a solenoid and all the wiring and an illuminated switch.My plan for if it ever fails is just bypass the solenoid to get it working,but upto now-no problems Paul I looked at the Warn Power Interrupt for my last motor. The setup looked simple so I just copied it using none Warn parts. It worked well with the cheap solenoid I'd bought eventually turning out to be the weak link. I had thought about using something similar in my latest truck but employing an albright instead of a cheap solenoid. I eventually decided to go for the low maintenance option and put a large manual cut out in the cab and anderson connectors close to the winch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.