I'm on my way to purchasing my first landcruiser HJ61 and it comes with a PTO winch. What are the benefits to having a PTO rather than electric winch? What are the downfalls, if any, of a PTo winch. I love the idea, just don't know anything about them. I'm not too fond of the stock front bumper. Is it possible to get a different front bumper that accomodates the PTO winch? Does ARB make anything?
There are no bennefits at all to having a PTO winch over electric. NONE! Just think, you need your engine, transmission and half of your transfer case to run it You also need your small driveshaft and pillow blocks to ALL be in working order for the PTO winch to work.
If you dump your cruiser on its side and cant run your engine you are screwed. If you cant start your cruiser and you are stuck you are screwed.
I do like PTO winches if everything is in operational order but ;
If you plan on using the winch as a tool, say for yarding logs or other such extended use, then a PTO winch is what you need. They handle repeated, lengthy pulls much more handily than an electric winch.
True, for vehicle recovery, a PTO winch has a few less options than an electric winch will. But if you are getting stuck in mud a lot, then a PTO may still be better. Presuming the water associated with the mud isn't high enough to bother the engine and you'll probably not be rolled, then a lengthy pull through mud can be done much better with a PTO winch.
A PTO winch won't overheat or draw down your battery, merely work away with the engine running at not much more than idle all day long.
If I bought a truck with a PTO winch already in working order or easily repaired, I'd not feel a need to replace it with an electric.
Thanks green, I wasn't sure if it was an item I should be changing right off the bat or not. I'll run it for now, and if need be I can change it at a later date.
ive been out many times with my pto to rescue those with electric winches when they fail,however i have a 10,000 lb electric on the rear just in case.learn about your pto they can and will do a lot of work.ive also righted a vehicle with the pto by using the starter while in drive.no matter what winch you choose there will be times when you wish you had the other one.
I have a PTO winch on my '70 and use more than I like to admit. Yeah electric winches have some benefits over the PTO, but I can say it has never left me down. No electrical gremlins to worry about, no worry about overheating, and you can vary the speed using different gears and throttle. I would like to replace it with something else, but I can't see spending the money when I don't really need to.
I forgot to mention I have both. Like anything there are Pros and Cons. As a rule of thumb I run the hand throttle @1200rpm for electric and pto winching.
How do you like the picnic table (PTO winch bumper) on the HJ61?
That's my concern is the helicopter pad sized bumped in the front! are there other options, does ARB have anything that accomodates the PTO winch but slims down the bumper? If all else fails, I'll have somethig fab'd but it's f*ckin huge man.
:Yup it is huge. If you do a search, you might come up with a good idea. If I remember correctly someone had a post of fitting a PTO head in a ARB front bumper.
The u-joints on the PTO driveshaft need to be kept well greased. They get exposed to all the usual crud underneath a truck, but the fact that the shaft is not run continuously like a driveshaft means that corrosion needs to be kept at bay.
I think I am going to look at tapering the corners in this will help allot I think. I need to take some measurements but I don't think the center sticks out too much more than an ARB
mate, don't listen to the guy that says PTO has nothing over an electric, he is probably just jealous of your winch and wants it for himself. PTO will "poop" all over electric any day and at anything. maintenance? did you notice your winch came out of factory when new and is still going? just common sense. it will be in the same condition in next +20yrs. anyway... i also have a JDM hj61 with the same winch and the "parkbench" bumper.
i took the bumper off and left the aluminum loop for time being, it looks much better imo.
my other truck hj60 has a modified ARB bar to fit similar but aftermarket PTO winch. works a treat for last 5 years or so.
i am in the process of modifying another steel bullbar to accommodate the factory hj61 winch and it is much easier job because the winch comes with the cradle already around it. just a matter of cutting the bar a tad and welding the cradle in.
ps: if you think the "parkbench" bar sticks out way too far, guess what? its an illusion, it actually sits 1" closer to the radiator then the "arb" mod'ed one.
ps2: for people that keep on saying "mechanical winch is only good as long as your engine is running" please don't forget that it also applies for electric winches. very few will work for longer then 60sec before the batteries are beyond use. BUT... few pto winches can be utilized as a manual winch with appropriate handle attachment and that you ALSO can use your engine starter motor to make your pto work like an electric winch anyway.
LZ_pan,
Nice trucks! I really like the looks of the one with the ARB, but that's just a personal weakness for them
Good point, too, about the winch being located in pretty much the same place in relation to the front of the truck with both the OEM "porch" and the ARB bumpers. I suspected that was the case, just never had a chance to do a side-by-side comparison.
Nice pics. I like PTOs , I hope you guys werent thinking I was slagging them. I was just sayin some pros and cons. That PTO on the white HJ 60 looks amazing attached to the ARB.
