Harbor Freight has a sale going and the Bad Land winch is one of the items. I'm interested in hearing from my Mud brothers concerning this winch. Pros and cons.
I don't have direct experience with the HF winches specifically, but I have messed with other Chinese winches. They all seem about the same to me...which is, they are reasonable and they work, but don't expect them to be really nice. I had a Champion 8000 on my old 4runner that saw a fair amount of use, and it always worked like a champ. It always sounded like a box of rocks when in use though.
I currently have a Bulldog 9500 under my 80. I haven't done much more than play with it, but it also works. It's quieter than my Champion, smooth but very slow.
For occasional/incidental use, I'm OK with cheap winches. (whether HF or any other...all are equal to me, so just get what's cheapest) If you want something you can really rely on, buck up and get a Warn. You can buy 3 or 4 HF winches for the cost of one Warn though, so it really depends on if you have a real NEED for a winch or just a desire.
I have that exact winch on my truck. So far I used it to drag out the truck twice and a lot to move heavy rocks on our land. It worked flawlessly every time.
I guess it depends on your needs. If I went with a single truck into areas where I get stuck easily and your well being depends on it, I would probably not buy a cheap winch. For what I use it and it dies on me, it won't matter.
And yes, it fits into an ARB bumper with some spacers and by mounting the control box remotely.
Look into engo 12k. Engo usa has amazing customer service. If it breaks they will send you new parts for free. I had my old metal cable wind up all on one side and broke case. They sent me basically a new winch. Didn't even charge shipping. I switched to synthetic line. I have a lot of pulls on the unit. Been good for about 4 years.
Been very happy with mine for 5+ years now. At the time I did a lot of research on MUD and Pirate and rising sun. Nobody had a bad experience with them. Just like here, it was posts that you should buy a Warn. No issues with mine so far, I just need to get around to buying a synthetic line! When I go on a long overlanding trip by myself, I might buy a Warn. For my normal trips to Moab and here in Colorado, I have been happy with the HF special.
I ran the badlands 12k on my XJ and another one on my first 80. both held up fine. Never had an issue with either. I used the one of my XJ quite often. I moved a bunch of rocks and railroad ties around my property for landscaping for months. Also pulled many folks out of the snow. My old TJ had the warn winch with compressor built in. I don't remember the name of that winch. I spent 4 times the price on that one and it had a pile of issues. The compressor was a joke. In regards to warranty, HF offers an extended warranty for not a lot and they are very good at honoring their purchased warranties. I purchased the warranty on both badlands I bought but never needed either. I ran the Rubicon twice with many pulls with a badlands. Are they great winches; No. But for the price; it's a great deal. I have an 8k winch on my 80 right now (came with it) and I plan to swap it out soon for the 12k badlands once some funds open up.
Just to toss in another curve ball. I ran the Rough Country winch on my WJ and it also held up great. Another made in China winch to consider. They often run promos/discounts and free shipping. Customer service is in the US and pretty good. Here is the exact one I purchased. They have a 12k as well but I don't have experience with that one. 9500lb Pro Series Electric Winch | Steel Cable
In general with electric motors, if its too hot to touch the motor for a few seconds with your hand, its too hot. Just let it cool and then continue your pull. At least that's what Ive learned from my internet forum experience and told by electric motor guys.
Ha. Ok. Guilty. I was regurgitating info from here from previous HF discussions. Seemed to make sense at the time. The longer the loaded pull the longer it needed to rest before the next pull. Same as your welder. Maybe it is heat and aformentioned circuitry.
Ill concur with you on the field maint know how. I have a brand new never unspooled unit that did not survive a batt to fender grounding incident.
i run one on my trailer, used it to do some car moving around my property and even pulled a few trees up a 30' deep ditch. no issues at all and the wireless controller worked great. its heavy, slow and a bit of a goof to use but for the cost i cant complain.
i run one on my trailer, used it to do some car moving around my property and even pulled a few trees up a 30' deep ditch. no issues at all and the wireless controller worked great. its heavy, slow and a bit of a goof to use but for the cost i cant complain.
carslutt's post brings up a good point on how critical are your needs for your winch? If Im taking my family through the Colombian rain forest solo Im not taking a HF winch even if its free.
carslutt's post brings up a good point on how critical are your needs for your winch? If Im taking my family through the Colombian rain forest solo Im not taking a HF winch even if its free.
Very true. I ran the Rubicon twice with one BUT each time I went with a large group. I would not have brought the HF winch along if I ran the con solo. The price is a dead give away to not trusting it with my life. I have had great experiences with the HF winches but I would not rely on them as my only form of recovery. If you always wheel in a group and only occassionally need to winch then the HF winch is perfect. If you winch regularly and wheel/explore alone, then don't buy it.
Any planetary geared winch design has significant duty cycle limitations. You have the gear at one end and the motor at the other. Both are normally pretty well enclosed, so very little ventilation. The gears are less of an issue, but the motor will get hot simply because you're pounding hundreds of amps into a tiny space and transforming it into work and heat. Put that in 12k form and most winches get hotter much faster than most inexperienced users expect.
A minute is a long time to run one, you may want to check at 30 seconds. It's not so much slow but steady as it is intermittently steady that works. Get one of those infrared remote thermometers if you don't want to risk laying a gloved hand on the motor to monitor things, because even with the glove on be prepared to get it away as soon as you sense the heat.
Most of my winching experience is with the Warn 8274. My first planetary was a 5k Warn on my old Trooper II and it taught me to take it easy. I've not done a direct comparison between my 12 k Smittybilt, which is a toaster, and other winches, including Warn in that weight class. I'd hope the Warn ran cooler, but I'd bet it isn't by all that much vs time, so caution is still advised with any planetary design winch, regardless of brand name, until you know its heat habits well.
As for wiring, a less than optimal sets of power cables is usually provided although YMMV. Bad wiring isn't usually the winches fault beyond that, but the installers and once again brand isn't as much a factor as is the amount of coin and love you put into your install. Given the high price of copper and the low price of many winches, you might consider that until you've put a significant % of the cost of the winch into wiring it, you're probably not as sufficient as might be desirable as could be.
