Wow, Titan 12k winch w/ synthetic line is $650! Damn tempting price...
Best size hundy winch
- Thread starter patrickfinley
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
I've got a warn 9000, but I've yet to actually use it to recover myself. Those damn locking differentials are surely to blame. 
That being said. I'm sure 9000 would be just fine if you consider the cruiser weights 5000-6000 lbs depending on mods/gear/passengers, so you've got an under rated weight with about 3000lbs to lose between the first and fourth wrap on the spindle. Add a snatch block on top of that and you still have way more power than you'll probably ever need. Just my two cents.
That being said. I'm sure 9000 would be just fine if you consider the cruiser weights 5000-6000 lbs depending on mods/gear/passengers, so you've got an under rated weight with about 3000lbs to lose between the first and fourth wrap on the spindle. Add a snatch block on top of that and you still have way more power than you'll probably ever need. Just my two cents.
x2.
Though i'd also add, get a winch line extension if you plan to use a snatch block a lot to save your solenoids and motor on your winch.
The snatch reduces the load by nearly half but you reduce your line length by half, so a winch line extension is also another thing to add to the list.
I know I was all about Warn in my first post but I decided in the end to get a Titan TW12 also. The customer support and price/performance ratio was all the reason I needed. I can buy 2 for the price of the warn and I too have not read of one failing. Duncan is always there to answer the phones which is a big plus.
What is the weight of the Titan 12k?
What is the difference between the Sabre and TW lines that Titan carries? The site is a little old school-ish and it lacking in some areas.
How is the titan better than the new harbor freight badland 12k lb winch? It is getting some good reviews and can be had for as little as $299 with the right coupon. Aren't they both chinese made?
12,000 lb. Off-Road Vehicle Winch with Automatic Load-Holding Brake
12,000 lb. Off-Road Vehicle Winch with Automatic Load-Holding Brake
I was seriously considering the Titan until I saw that. Not trusting HF or the Chinese with my vehicle recovery.
but isn't the titan a chinese made winch? A lot of companies are having winches made to their spec in chinese factories now. I've used a vipir winch by motoalliance on my polaris with great results. With that said, I will only use a warn 8274-50 winch on my rockcrawling jeep. I just want something to mount in a ARB bumper incase I get stuck somewhere.
Duncan told me years ago that he took the best parts of the Warn, Superwinch, and Ramsey winches and then also identified problems everyone was having such as moisture in solenoids, high amp draw, etc....and designed a winch that took the best and eliminated the worst of each of the big boys. Matter of fact Ramsey has patented one of the things Duncan came up with for his winches after they saw how it worked....
He travels to China half a dozen times per year to check quality control and to make changes and give updates as to his specs and designs. It is NOT just him buying mass produced Chinese crap and relabeling it....they are building it to his specs and he is VERY INVOLVED. He has no middlemen and does not authorize them to be sold by anyone else so you pay his price with no mark up from wholesalers, distributors, or retail sellers as you do with the others. That is only reason they are cheaper....
Though it is made in China...it is not the same crap that most associate with high volume, low quality items typically picked up over there. I have had mine totally submerged..covered in mud...snow...ice....made long pulls of totally sunk Chevy Z71 Tahoe up to his frame with no problems.....and multiple FJs of various sizes and weights without a problem also. It runs every time I hit the switch and has never let me down. I had one in my FJC and now also my UZJ100 and never let me down...period. I cannot say the same for Warn and SmittyBilt...which have both let me down in previous vehicles within a year of purchase.
If you dont want to buy because it is Chinese and not American...that is a valid concern.
if you are not doing it for a perceived quality issue from its Chinese manufacturing...those can be thrown out as it is a very well built and reliable system for far less than other comparable systems. Call and talk with Duncan and ask him if you have concerns...he is nothing but upfront and it is him alone running the entire business with help of his wife some....he is VERY INVOLVED in every detail and level of manufacturer and customer support.
He travels to China half a dozen times per year to check quality control and to make changes and give updates as to his specs and designs. It is NOT just him buying mass produced Chinese crap and relabeling it....they are building it to his specs and he is VERY INVOLVED. He has no middlemen and does not authorize them to be sold by anyone else so you pay his price with no mark up from wholesalers, distributors, or retail sellers as you do with the others. That is only reason they are cheaper....
Though it is made in China...it is not the same crap that most associate with high volume, low quality items typically picked up over there. I have had mine totally submerged..covered in mud...snow...ice....made long pulls of totally sunk Chevy Z71 Tahoe up to his frame with no problems.....and multiple FJs of various sizes and weights without a problem also. It runs every time I hit the switch and has never let me down. I had one in my FJC and now also my UZJ100 and never let me down...period. I cannot say the same for Warn and SmittyBilt...which have both let me down in previous vehicles within a year of purchase.
If you dont want to buy because it is Chinese and not American...that is a valid concern.
if you are not doing it for a perceived quality issue from its Chinese manufacturing...those can be thrown out as it is a very well built and reliable system for far less than other comparable systems. Call and talk with Duncan and ask him if you have concerns...he is nothing but upfront and it is him alone running the entire business with help of his wife some....he is VERY INVOLVED in every detail and level of manufacturer and customer support.
Great feedback Brock. Thanks for shedding better light on the product.
I had read on a FJC forum where HF=Titan and so that struck a cord when I read the previous post. Guess that's not the case.
Does still leave the Chinese problem though... I'd really rather buy American. If it's a 10% savings that is an easy decision, but with a 50% savings on a $1500 item it's much more difficult to put your money where your mouth is. You have to ask yourself if it's worth $750 of your own money to contribute to the American cause (or however you rationalize it). That of course assumes Titan Quality = Warn Quality. If not then there's added value in the $750 delta. Wish I could determine what that added value was...
I had read on a FJC forum where HF=Titan and so that struck a cord when I read the previous post. Guess that's not the case.
Does still leave the Chinese problem though... I'd really rather buy American. If it's a 10% savings that is an easy decision, but with a 50% savings on a $1500 item it's much more difficult to put your money where your mouth is. You have to ask yourself if it's worth $750 of your own money to contribute to the American cause (or however you rationalize it). That of course assumes Titan Quality = Warn Quality. If not then there's added value in the $750 delta. Wish I could determine what that added value was...
The difference I see is that the Sabre line are 2 speed winches. I assume these will be available with synthetic line soon online. If you call Duncan I'm sure he would ship one with synthetic if you didn't want steel cable.
Regarding the Harbor Freight Winches... I've also been hearing good stuff about these as well. You can see 80 series cruisers testing the new HF winches at moab on the HF site. http://www.harborfreight.com/badland-winches.html The new HF winches were aparently designed by an ex mile marker engineer. Here is a post from Woody (owner of IH8MUD site) in the winching forum:
The Badlands is a new series for Harbor Freight, and yes, they hired an engineer from MileMarker to design them.
I've got a 12k on the front of my 80 right now, one of the early versions. Other than a controller connection issue, it's worked flawlessly...and they were redesigning that and a couple other minor items that I had pointed out.
It drug a couple rigs up Escalator in Moab with no issue (and as Mark from MetalTech put it, "it doesn't sound like a bag of rocks" (like most cheap winches do...ha)...)
In Golden Mountain TN, it drug my 80 up a rock/muddy hillside that bent the 3/8" cat guard pretty well...
Just used it again this weekend to winch out bushes
The test for ME is how it works after a winter in WI...but thus far, I've been impressed with it...especially for the price.
When I spoke with HF, they were well aware of their '****py tool' persona, and this is one of the items the intend to alleviate that impression.
Watch for synthetic winch rope too...I replaced my cable instantly with synthetic, but they mentioned that it is on their list of product offerings.
not saying it is not possible...but impression I got from Duncan the first time I talked to him is that he is the one calling shots on the Titan Winch..... Now I have heard that once you have a product being manufactured...the Chinese will sell that design to others and sometimes use cheaper parts but cant really stop them as they dont follow the same copyright rules that are observed here... Not sure if this is true or not...or if it is just the SABRE line that is similar to the HF lineup...but the Titan models are of Duncans design and influence.
I cannot speak for the Sabre line of winches....as I have no knowledge or experience with them.....just the Titan TW12 (12,000lb) with steel line, wired and wireless remote, and heavy duty serviceable snatch block that came with mine.
I would place a bet that every winch manufacturer out there has parts made in China. Made in USA is such a relative term anymore, Fery few products are actually 100% made in the USA. The percentage goes down as the product becomes more complex. Open-up the controller of a Warn and you may find a circuit board that was made in China. That doesn't make it a good or bad product. We all bought a truck that was made in Japan probably with some Chinese parts. This whole I only want to buy products made in the USA discussion belongs on a Big Three board, I expected that most of the LC folks would be above that. The Titan is a proven American Design with an American Headquarters and American Customer Support that happens to be made in China to reduce the cost to a reasonable level. The QA/QC is just as rigorous as any other company and Duncan stands behind the product. Warn carries a lifetime mechanical warranty while Titan only has a two year but for the important electrical parts they are both the same at one year. If you want to spend $1500 go ahead. I'd rather put the grand saved towards a set of tires of some other recovery gear.
Oh, and I agree that a 12K is appropriate for our truck. One less thing to worry about. I carry 2 snatch blocks but want to have them available for creating angles in tough winching situations. not to double my pulling power.
Oh, and I agree that a 12K is appropriate for our truck. One less thing to worry about. I carry 2 snatch blocks but want to have them available for creating angles in tough winching situations. not to double my pulling power.
for correction....it is a North American design, company and headquarters....as Duncan lives in Canada. Though....close enough by my book.
So this is gonna get moved to chat but...
I complete disagree about your 'Big Three' statement. Why? Because in the case of the LC there is no 'Big Three' alternative. I have the LC because it's the best at what it does. I would love to buy a 100% American equivalent but we simply don't have it. Now with the Warn vs Titan issue we do have it and it's Warn.
Now back to 100 Tech... Does Toyota really use Chinese parts? That wouldn't be a complete surprise, but I would have bet on not. Especially in the LC. Beno?
Jumping back down off my soapbox, the $1500 vs $750 is a BIG gap indeed! And yes, if it's truly the equivalent I'd rather have those nickles going elsewhere. But I've also learned many times over that cheap is often more expensive. Thus the great and trusted feedback from fellow MUDders here. Still on the fence.
Lastly, regarding the 12k. vs 9.5xp... I think Spressoman has wheeled more than most of us ever will and I know from his posts that he's pulled a lot of heavy stuff with the 9.5xp and found it reliable and tough. It's most likely underspec'd. TW12 vs 9.5xp seems like a null issue in the real world.
I have my 12K Titan on my 98-02 ARB Sahara bar. No issues. Make sure to get the synthetic rope. MUCH MUCH MUCH Lighter.