I knew I was on the light side when I purchased a 9k winch for my 100, however I just weighed my truck at 7,270lbs so it's even worse than I thought.
I am not in a position to upgrade to a 12k winch as it would require a suspension upgrade too, so am I pretty much left to always having to use a snatch block with only one wrap around the spool?
I wouldn't worry about using the snatch block and getting down to the first layer. That's just good practice and enough people don't practice that with winches they think are more than adequate for the load that it makes people think it's the winch, not them, when it fries.
I'll bet that your 9k winch will deal with most things you can throw at it without too much complaint. Most stucks don't tax the full capacity of a winch in any case, unless you spend a lot of time in the mud...wait, this is IH8MUD...well, you might. Then you'll have a problem with being underwinched more than likely.
The best thing you can do with any winch is to closely monitor the winch motor temp. Unless it's an emergency that demands the fastest possible recovery, keeping the motor cool on any winch is the best strategy. Again, people with otherwise more than adequate winches often ignore this -- to their peril.
With ANY winch, Keep things cool and it will still pull.
You seems to have a decent understanding of limits of your 9K electric winch and how to use a snatch block to increase the pulling power.
Will this 9K winch/snatch block combo be enough for your UZJ100? It all depends upon the "stuck" situation.
If your '100 just high-centered and needs to be moved 5 - 10 feet then the 9K winch should be fine.
If you bury the '100 over the wheel hubs in slippery mud the 9K winch will definitely be working overtime, and will need that snatch block for some mechanical assistance!
Yup, as the rest have said, its very situation dependent. It shouldn't take too much to get you unstuck for the most part, just know when to quit and winch before you dig yourself really deep, because if you get really deep, you might not get out.
You will be fine! Snatch Block , a couple of shovels . I use a 24v M8000 Warn on my BJ 74 that weighs 5820 lbs plus. I have never had to double line it! I dont get stuck to OFTEN but when I do, I use Warn! LOL!
In these photos I was trying to tread lightly when I broke through the frozen layer of mud.
You'll be fine. A 9k lb winch with a snatch block is very impressive. I regularly buried my 6k lb truck to the frame in sticky alabama clay and could always winch myself out, sometimes requiring the block. If you wheel alone often, get another snatch block And a good length of chain or strap. Alot cheaper than a 12k winch, and you could handle most any situation fine, without even overheating your winch.
The general rule of thumb is to have a winch rated for 1.5x the vehicle weight, but if you can't do that then having extra rope and a pulley block will work. It will take a longer time to move you out but it will put less force on the winch.
Here is a new block we designed for the military so they can use multiple pulleys at once:
Also suggest a winch extension line...a good 3/8" rope extension is rated over 25k#. I carry a 25'er in the RZR and a 50'er in the FZJ80 (and need one for the FJ40...tho it's rarely required since most which needs are short distance.)
with some practice, you can 'braid' a synthetic line shorter quickly...I've demonstrated it a bunch of times during training and it's slick...
No worries. Just do some homework. Physics is a great study.
Someone on here posted a series of photos/vids of an ausssie 45series pulling out a deeply stuck excavator using an 8000lb winch. That's a 5k truck pulling out a 30ton piece of steel using the method in this pic.
Just a matter of having enough line, sufficient straps, and a good anchor.
Being "under- winched" is not near as bad as most make it out to be. If you are a winch rookie then it might pose some problems for you. Anybody that knows what they are doing and has proper gear can get themselves out of almost anything. Having a massive winch is not the cure all. If you don't know what you are doing that massive winch can do horrable things to your rig. Both of my XD9000I's is all the winch that I need. Technically I am under winched with them but I have the necessary recovery gear to use with my winches. At the end of the day the medium and the heavy winches both have their advantages and disadvantages.
The general rule of thumb is to have a winch rated for 1.5x the vehicle weight, but if you can't do that then having extra rope and a pulley block will work. It will take a longer time to move you out but it will put less force on the winch.
Here is a new block we designed for the military so they can use multiple pulleys at once:
