Thinking of getting a winch....

[Godlykepower]

Thinking of getting a winch of some sort for my Defender.

I dont compete in any type of event, nor will I, but am contemplating something for self-recovery scenarios as & when I need it. I dont know many people to greenlane or travel with, so self-recovery may be a real possibility, especially as London to Cape Town is on the cards next year.

I know absolutely nothing about winches and dont know what I am looking for, but have seen several adverts & comments on here that would lead me to believe that something along the lines of a Champion would do the trick. I quite like the "look" of the C9500TDSc.

Can anyone recommend any particular model & tell me why please.

I have a rather large bonus coming soon, so will have a fair bit of cash to spend, but dont want to spend/waste many thousands unnecessarily; by the same token I dont want to get some rubbish either. Something middle of the road, but still decent.

With regards to "other considerations".....what else do I need to consider alongside the winch itself??

ie. Would I need to upgrade to HD suspension to cope with the extra weight? Do I definetley need a second battery? Do I have to get synthetic rope? What do I have to think of when it comes to bumpers? I quite like the style of a tubular bumper, but dont think its really me, so would prefer a HD Defender bumper, but want to keep my spots. Is this possible?? I often see people talking about solenoids & gearing etc.....how does this factor in?

What else do I need to know & factor into the cost???

What rough TOTAL cost should I be prepared for??

Many thanks for all your help.

Martin

[honitonhobbit]

The Champion TDS is a an older version of the TDS sold by Goodwinch. The Goodwinch version has 'V' seals to keep it waterproof.

The TDS is a very good winch. It was designed by the same person who designed the Come Up DV series/Superwinch EP/Premier but as a new venture under there own company name. All the issues with the DV/EP (and there wern't many) have been addressed and improved upon. Pound for £ it's an excellent winch and needs no modification to make it better (so the warrantee works well!)

Interestingly the TDS9500 comes with a choice of gearbox. The highspeed competition/General Porpoise one or the commercial 'pulls like a shire horse on steroids but not as quick' version

The high speed unit is bl%%dy strong but the low geared version makes the Husky look somewhat limp wristed so might be the unit to look atfor overlanding et al.

The Come Up DV/Superwinch EP range are still very much available and an excellent winch choice

T-max are worth a look but make sure you get an Outback version

For overland work avoid AEW/GEW/Britpart/Base spec Champions/Base spec MM/Tabor and such like as these all have water ingress issues and/or build quality problems (mainly the former). Water ingress issues like to raise there ugly heads at the worst moment...

As for price, shop around.

[white90]

just to add

when we met Fiona from here they had a Ryder IIRC which (el cheapo) and when it was most required it failed them miserably

we dragged them out and then saved this one his Warn 8000 had also failed in the drink

see http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n262/wh...ent=wales02.flv

you need to consider a pair of front springs and the winch bumper to carry the winch

a pair of Defender rear springs added to the front will do the job,

but as you mentioned you have some cash why not buy decent and buy once

SteveG has a good set up from First four inc bumper

[Night Train]

If you are not using it all the time it might be worth making something demountable both for security and to allow front and rear mounting.

I did one once with two towing jaws on each end of the chassis as the receivers for a winch frame.

[Godlykepower]

If you are not using it all the time it might be worth making something demountable both for security and to allow front and rear mounting.

I did one once with two towing jaws on each end of the chassis as the receivers for a winch frame.

No can do on a rear mount. All of the rear is commited to storage space & load carrying etc.

[honitonhobbit]

No can do on a rear mount. All of the rear is commited to storage space & load carrying etc.

There is a really nice simple bolt on rear winch mount system on the market about 90 quid IIRC. B*gg*rs up any tow hitxh arrangement but does the job

[Godlykepower]

There is a really nice simple bolt on rear winch mount system on the market about 90 quid IIRC. B*gg*rs up any tow hitxh arrangement but does the job

Nope. I am DEFINETLY not going the rear route. Still not quite decided on building an Overland trailer similiar to GBMUD's rather beautiful creation, so need to keep towing options free.

[honitonhobbit]

Nope. I am DEFINETLY not going the rear route. Still not quite decided on building an Overland trailer similiar to GBMUD's rather beautiful creation, so need to keep towing options free.

Is that the one with the built in shower for bad weather situations?

[draper40]

I've got a warn xd9000i which is quite reliable and about £700 new. Depending on what battery you have you may need to upgrade, I'm running a 664, the biggest that fits in the battery box, or so I'm told. If you are going on an expedition it would be worth considering 2 batteries and a split charge system as I presume you are takking a fridge etcetera?

Pete

[Hybrid_From_Hell]

With an electric winch the considerations IMHO are :

• Price - this then can dicatte
  
• New vs Secondhand
  
• If Secondhand condition and ease of spares
  
• For new model "Lifespan" and ease of spares (manufactuers who keep changing models makes parts difficult)
  
• Reliablity & Reputation
  
• Residual Value - an 8274 will always sell fast SH for good money, lots of winches drop to near nothing value / interest once sold
  

The winches valued by so many people are those for a reason.

With a winch you pay for what you get

I would look at known relaible quality kit 8274 being at the top, Husky close by often available for decent money as they are a bit "Last years" model in the bling stakes, but a Husky is a very good bit of kit

These cheap new winches that appear in all the mags and seem to have new models weekly I wouldn't frankly waste my money on, a good quaklity secondhand 8274 will outperform most if not all and probably outlast all, and offers a huge range of options to upgrade to in the future, oh and will hold its value too

HTH

Nige

[Godlykepower]

I have seen an 8274, wont that big bit on top stop me from keeping the spotlights in place?

[tacr2man]

8274 will not stop you having spots,. I have an ARB bull/winch bar, with an 8274 spotties above, brakets already on bar for same.

If you are going to tow a trailer, you will want to buy a decent winch, and a ground anchor as you will be needing them both rather more often than solo. JMHO

[Hybrid_From_Hell]

Also,

Bacl in the mid 80s, early 90s LR did a genuine parts 8274 mount for a 90

I reckoned it looked one of the neatest units too, they appear now and then and not for a lot of money

I had a piccie somewhere but can't seem to find it maybe someone has one ?

Nige

[JST]

As Nige says it depends on what you want to spend.

if its for occasional use - ie maybe half a dozen times a year you want something that will sit there not deteriorate or require maintenance.

Because of that i would say stick with wire rope as its one less thing to worry about.

If you wanted to upgrade to Synthetic add an alloy Hawse (£35?) and the synthetic rope 100ft - £150?

You would also want to carry tree strops, 2m and 3m ones work for me, Shackles and a snatch block.

Factor in a decent winch bumper - £200 ish i guess, some of them come with integrated A Bars so you could hang your spots off them.

Most winches will come with a wire rope and fairlead.

You can upgrade the solenoid packs to Albrights (£60ish) for any model and also move the solenoid pack up out of the way if you think that may be an issue.

Winch wise - budget depends - Husky for reliability although the TDS range is getting good reports see HH reply as above, failing that an EP9. for your use i wouldn't go 8274 or similar as you are not after the speed.

Suspension - i would upgrade the front end as TC says to rear 90 springs or similar as good value for money. Rear Disco 1 springs also work well here.

If its an overland truck then do you have a twin battery setup anyway? If not then i wouldn't go to the expense just for a winch that will only be used occasionally. Or fit two batteries in parallel.

After all that and its fitted i would make sure i knew how to use it all too!