Thoughts on Smittybilt winches? (1 Viewer)

[snowmatt1]

Hey guys,

So I was going to get the lower end Warn VR10, because its a Warn. Then was talked into the waterproof Smittybilt 10K winch by the 4WP sales rep (they own Smitty). Basically the logic is I get a full, no hassle warranty, and "essentially the same" winch or better, unless I stepped up to the very expensive Zeon line. The lower end Warns are no better than Smitty, according to him.

I will not use this much. Maybe a few times lifetime, likely a couple times a year max. To me, this isn't the piece to really splurge on ($600 vs $1800) as I'm not a "serious" off-roader.

Thoughts? I haven't picked it up yet, so its not too late.

 

[saucebox]

I have the Smittybilt 10K, and it pulls just fine (only used it 2x in 6 months though). It came on the truck, or I probably would have had the same internal dilemma as you, with the same pros and cons.

It'd be a hassle to change out if it broke, but even at that price it's 3 winches vs 1. As long as the tool is properly cared for, I find it hard to believe that it would take 3 Smittybilts to live up to 1 Warn.

 

[MongooseGA]

I just bought a 9500lb Smittybuilt. With the synthetic line and aluminum fairlead, I was at $307 with tax. Throw in $100 my dad threw in at the counter as part of a Christmas gift and it was a no brainer.

I can't speak to anything other than the price point as of now. It just went in yesterday. Would be interested in hearing more from long-term owners.

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• MongooseGA
• Dec 24, 2018

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• MongooseGA
• Dec 27, 2018

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[snowmatt1]

I just bought a 9500lb Smittybuilt. With the synthetic line and aluminum fairlead, I was at $307 with tax. Throw in $100 my dad threw in at the counter as part of a Christmas gift and it was a no brainer.

I can't speak to anything other than the price point as of now. It just went in yesterday. Would be interested in hearing more from long-term owners.

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• MongooseGA
• Dec 24, 2018

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• MongooseGA
• Dec 27, 2018

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Did you just get that bumper too? My rig is going to look almost identical.

How hard was the install?

 

[MongooseGA]

Just installed both, yes. Install was easy enough. The bumper did require a little drill bit finessing for some holes that didn't line up perfectly or for using larger hardware to replace stuff that wasn't in the kit. I did have to clock both the clutch and the motor on the winch to mount it in the bumper.

 

[hidesertwheelin]

Where did you mount your solenoid? I just mounted the same bumper and winch on mine. I'm thinking of using some 300 lbs 3m tape and just slapping it on top of the bumper.

 

[MongooseGA]

TBD. On the bumper would be great but I don't think there's enough real estate there while still having good access to the clutch lever. I've gotta get it up and play around with it though. I was just focused on getting it all on the truck before I leave VA to go home on Saturday.

 

[ktmracer01]

I've run a Smitty built X20 10k and a 12k in two different vehicles. The 12k I bought when the X20 was initially released and ended up getting an upgraded control box and remote as t they worked through some of the bugs. I just recently installed a 10k in my LX build.

I've been very happy with each application I have run it in. They both came with the synthetic line and aluminum fairlead, I always upgraded the hook to a Factor55 unit.

 

[sleepycruiser]

I just bought a 9500lb Smittybuilt. With the synthetic line and aluminum fairlead, I was at $307 with tax. Throw in $100 my dad threw in at the counter as part of a Christmas gift and it was a no brainer.

I can't speak to anything other than the price point as of now. It just went in yesterday. Would be interested in hearing more from long-term owners.

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• MongooseGA
• Dec 24, 2018

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• MongooseGA
• Dec 27, 2018

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Do you have a link to that price with synthetic line? Thanks!

 

[MongooseGA]

It was a black Friday deal through 4 wheel
parts. Wasn't advertised this week in the store but I found the same deal with free shipping from quadratech online and 4wp was able to see the promo price behind the counter and matched it.

 

[ClassyJalopy]

Yes a link would be awesome

Do you have a link to that price with synthetic line? Thanks!

 

[MongooseGA]

It's no longer advertised. I just happened to know they had a sale for black Friday and they matched it. It doesn't look like the price from quadratech is the same anymore either. It may take some shmoozing at a 4WP to get the price now. They do still advertise $299 for the same winch with cable instead of synthetic.


Edit, I'm an idiot. The winch with synthetic line was $388 on sale. The $307 price I mentioned was after a $100 contribution from my dad .I apologize for the confusion.

 

[ClassyJalopy]

Don't play with our emotions bro

It's no longer advertised. I just happened to know they had a sale for black Friday and they matched it. It doesn't look like the price from quadratech is the same anymore either. It may take some shmoozing at a 4WP to get the price now. They do still advertise $299 for the same winch with cable instead of synthetic.


Edit, I'm an idiot. The winch with synthetic line was $388 on sale. The $307 price I mentioned was after a $100 contribution from my dad .I apologize for the confusion.

 

[REKCUT]

Bought the 9.5 smittybuilt couple of black fridays ago for $299 with synthetic line and fairlead. Don't see how i could go wrong. Works great on 40. IF i was using a winch multiple times a week then 5 times price increase to a Warn top of the line could be justified but for the small amount of times i use it i am happy. Have a 10k warn on a 60 and a 12.5k t-max that was abused and rebuilt. Have probably used it the most.