Winch Advice Request (1 Viewer)

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J

Joejetpilot

Joined
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Location
Mississippi
Is the Warn Zeon Platinum "S" model worth the money?

I own a '17 LC and Slee is going to install a ARB bumper. I'd like to have them install a winch at the same time. I don't have any experience with winches.

Also, I don't know what rating, i.e., 10,000 pound, 12,000 pound, etc. I should install.

Please advise.

Thanks!
 
A loaded 200, flat on the ground, not sunken in mud or wheels behind rocks can be between 7000 and 8000. Add in those other variables and your winch is going to be pulling more than the vehicles weight. Do you want your winch at its max rating or have a ton buffer? That being said, for safety and duty cycle sake, I went with a 12.5k. I personally wouldn't go any less.
 
TonyP said:
A loaded 200, flat on the ground, not sunken in mud or wheels behind rocks can be between 7000 and 8000. Add in those other variables and your winch is going to be pulling more than the vehicles weight. Do you want your winch at its max rating or have a ton buffer? That being said, for safety and duty cycle sake, I went with a 12.5k. I personally wouldn't go any less.
Click to expand...

Agree. While it's true you can use a snatch block and double capacity, it's really nice to not need to do that for quick pulls.

Warn Zeons are the same size and weight for 10,000 vs. 12,000. I went with the 12 and am glad I did. It easily fits within the TJM and ARB, so why not?
 
Ditto. The Warn 12m fits inside the ARB bumper (as well as the control pack for a clean look) and is nice knowing the extra power is there if needed.

Edit: conventional wisdom recommends 1.5x vehicle weight for the capacity of the winch. Check with the guys at Slee, too, as a phone call costs nothing but a few minutes of your time and the return is huge!
 
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I thought I was "under-winched" with my Warn 9.5xp, but it's the winch Amory from Slee recommended and we talked about it briefly at LCDC - Amory gave me the distinct impression that the Warn 9.5 is among the most reliable winches out there.

FWIW, I doubt you'll use a winch more than I have. :) I've winched my truck and other trucks probably 40 times in the past 2 1/2 years. I'm on my second winch line and I've never had an issue.

I'm not plugging the Warn 9.5xp by any means, just relaying my experience. In Moab, we were in a situation where it was pitch black, we were facing a 14-foot sheer rock wall, another winch in our group had mechanical issues and my winch had to work to get myself and 4 other trucks up.
 
Canyonero said:
I thought I was "under-winched" with my Warn 9.5xp, but it's the winch Amory from Slee recommended and we talked about it briefly at LCDC - Amory gave me the distinct impression that the Warn 9.5 is among the most reliable winches out there.

FWIW, I doubt you'll use a winch more than I have. :) I've winched my truck and other trucks probably 40 times in the past 2 1/2 years. I'm on my second winch line and I've never had an issue.

I'm not plugging the Warn 9.5xp by any means, just relaying my experience. In Moab, we were in a situation where it was pitch black, we were facing a 14-foot sheer rock wall, another winch in our group had mechanical issues and my winch had to work to get myself and 4 other trucks up.
Click to expand...
Only 40? I was guessing closer to 100!
 
Canyonero said:
I thought I was "under-winched" with my Warn 9.5xp, but it's the winch Amory from Slee recommended and we talked about it briefly at LCDC - Amory gave me the distinct impression that the Warn 9.5 is among the most reliable winches out there.

FWIW, I doubt you'll use a winch more than I have. :) I've winched my truck and other trucks probably 40 times in the past 2 1/2 years. I'm on my second winch line and I've never had an issue.

I'm not plugging the Warn 9.5xp by any means, just relaying my experience. In Moab, we were in a situation where it was pitch black, we were facing a 14-foot sheer rock wall, another winch in our group had mechanical issues and my winch had to work to get myself and 4 other trucks up.
Click to expand...

Electrical issue. One of my ground cables came loose on the unit due to me not tighten it on installation.
 
I agree with @Canyonero on the 9.5XP.

I've had mine since 2004, it's made hundreds upon hundreds of pulls, sunken in water, and pulled my 200 out of gumbo mud that was dragging, yes dragging on the frame, with the rear axle as one of the biggest anker point pulls I've seen past when my buddies 2nd gen 4Runner was completely under the mud.

It did that pull off a single line, no snatch block, and on the 2nd wrap.

9.5xp is plenty strong for a 200, time tested, simple, almost no fancy electronics like an electronic clutch to fail. It can be completely rebuilt by anyone, parts are cheap and on amazon. And you can run it off a wired remote for the ultimate of reliability.

Now I did blow the motor when it was about 6 months old. That was mounted to a single cab 4cyl Toyota pickup that weighted 4,000 lbs. since the new motor, it's been absolutely unstoppable. It was under warranty at the time. Was it a bad motor? I don't know, but for 12 years it been on 3 different Toyotas, and been absolutely used for what it is, a tool, and if it breaks, I'll get a bigger one. But it hasn't broken yet.
 
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Taco2Cruiser said:
I agree with @Canyonero on the 9.5XP.

I've had mine since 2004, it's made hundreds upon hundreds of pulls, sunken in water, and pulled my 200 out of gumbo mud that was dragging, yes dragging on the frame, with the rear axle as one of the biggest anker point pulls I've seen past when my buddies 2nd gen 4Runner was completely under the mud.

It did that pull off a single line, no snatch block, and on the 2nd wrap.

9.5xp is plenty strong for a 200.
Click to expand...

Definitely a lot to be said for a track record like that...
 
By the way... If anyone buys the Zeon Platinum series (which I have) that is wireless ONLY...

**Make sure you contact Warn! They had a bad batch of remotes go out, which rendered mine basically useless at first!
-Emailed Warn...and without even proving ownership/purchase, they sent me a new remote, and BOOM. All is right with the Winching World..

Also... I talked to a local 4-Wheel-Parts shop... They told me that Warn had asked for ALL Platinum Series winches back...and they returned them all again--with the updated remote. So... If you own a Platinum series winch? -Check your remote. If you aren't getting easy control from a couple blocks away from your winch? Call or email them, and definitely get the new remote from them for free.

Once that little issue was dealt with, this Zeon 12-S Platinum has been 100%. :)
 
Markuson said:
By the way... If anyone buys the Zeon Platinum series (which I have) that is wireless ONLY...

**Make sure you contact Warn! They had a bad batch of remotes go out, which rendered mine basically useless at first!
-Emailed Warn...and without even proving ownership/purchase, they sent me a new remote, and BOOM. All is right with the Winching World..

Also... I talked to a local 4-Wheel-Parts shop... They told me that Warn had asked for ALL Platinum Series winches back...and they returned them all again--with the updated remote. So... If you own a Platinum series winch? -Check your remote. If you aren't getting easy control from a couple blocks away from your winch? Call or email them, and definitely get the new remote from them for free.

Once that little issue was dealt with, this Zeon 12-S Platinum has been 100%. :)
Click to expand...
See that is a great point, Marks electric heavy winch had a early failure, and is now good.
My electrically simple winch had an early failure, and is now good.

I know I play devils advocate a lot... well most of the time, but I just like to ensure we think about more aspects than the most advanced version of something.

But we all drive 200 Series land cruisers... so... it kinda fits the territory.
 
If you get stuck...and your winch does not work...what would you pay to free yourself? I would go with a WARN...I understand the concept of saving money on items but not a winch...maybe a lesser model of WARN? I have a m12000 with synthetic line...but have also owned a Ramsey for 10 years...
 
mpho said:
If you get stuck...and your winch does not work...what would you pay to free yourself? I would go with a WARN...I understand the concept of saving money on items but not a winch...maybe a lesser model of WARN? I have a m12000 with synthetic line...but have also owned a Ramsey for 10 years...
Click to expand...

No company is immune to problems, but I'd want to go with a company with a long, healthy reputation.

I actually had an early issue with my Warn Zeon 12-S Platinum...BUT it turned out to be a defect in the remote--an issue for which they have since issued a redesign. This was not an announced product redesign as it maintains the same part number. However...it is worth noting that the difference is night and day and is definitely a revised remote unit. Completely resolved the issue. So while even companies like Warn can misstep, they made good...and didn't leave me hanging. They actually sent the replacement without even waiting for a return, which I appreciate. For a while there, I was afraid I had gambled on a remote-based setup that had backfired. But once the issue was resolved, it's been 100% perfect, as I have tested it dozens of times already. Not because I've been stuck dozens of times, but because I want to make sure it is reliable...and it has shown itself to be so.

I cannot imagine a manufacturer of a $200 winch even expecting their own product to perform particularly well or for very long, and especially not under any serious strain or adverse condition. I would have huge quality concerns at a price range like that...especially for protection from the elements such as the effects of water exposure, sealing, and possibilities of rust, corrosion and the associated electronic or mechanical failures of compromised internals. To me, it's one of those essential items that I want--at the very least-- a manufacturer with a long, positive reputation. No company is immune to problems, but Warn certainly has a long history of hard-core success.
 
Reckless said:
I am new to winches but it has good verified reviews on amazon and ebay:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FU5QL1Q/ref=s9_acsd_hps_bw_c_x_2_w
X-BULL 12000LBS 12V Electric Winch Towing Truck Trailer Steel Cable Off Road 4WD | eBay

They have sold ~800 units on ebay with no negative feedback.
Click to expand...

I'll play devil's advocate here. If you don't really expect to use it, especially living in flatlandia, I'd consider the $200 X-Bull. Not everyone wheels like TonyP or Canyonero.

There are lots of people that buy bumpers, lifts, winches, etc and never take their rigs offroad. If you're building a truck because you like the look of a built-up rig, and want to be able to say it has a winch, then absolutely go cheap. As much as some people on the forum will rag on guys whose built up truck never leaves asphalt, who cares? (I'm not saying this is you, @Reckless, just pointing out that if someone's goal is the look, why not go cheap?)

If you want a winch because you think you might offroad with buddies a few times, or need to pull someone out of a snow bank in a midwest blizzard, and it's possible you might need to use it once in your life, then durability or things like the motor isn't really a big concern - you just want to know it will work for you once or twice. This is where we can debate whether it's worth spending more. A $200 may very well work fine the first couple times you use it, but the motor may give out after numerous uses. Or it may rust out over time and the first time you try and use it 3 or 4 years from now it's corroded. Or it might be a chinese knockoff but be built identically and be fine.

OTOH if you're going to use yours dozens or possibly hundreds of times over the course of years or decades then you want something durable. If you expect to wheel in remote places where you might not see another person for days, then you absolutely want the most reliable recovery gear you can find.

FWIW in my experience the cheaper or knockoff solutions for anything mechanical tend to cheap out on the internal parts. The body may be steel, but the bolts and hardware are uncoated steel or low grade zinc instead of stainless steel, the internals use plastic gears instead of metal, tolerances between gears or other contact points are sloppy, etc. It's like the first sump pump I put into my house - it was a $99 Rigid from Home Despot, made in China, could only run for 6 seconds before requiring a 15 second cool down period, and worked for about a year until the motor rusted out and then firing it up broke a plastic gear. I replaced it with a quality $200 Zoeller with a metal impeller that can run for hours so long as it is submerged, and it's been running flawlessly for years now. If I had a sump that never took on water, the Chinese made Rigid pump would likely be fine for the one or two days per decade it was required. But if I need it to run regularly it's a poor choice.

All that said, when I do get a front bumper and winch, I'll likely buy a Warn, though I may end up picking up a used one and rebuilding it.
 
Buy once, cry once.

A co-worker asked me the other day about which winch he should get. I told him, when you absolutely have to use a winch you want it to work. It's the last line of defense for getting over/through an obstacle. If it fails on that one chance you absolutely need it, it was a waste of money, be it $200 or $2000. It should be dead nuts reliable, and I don't foresee a $200 winch being dead nuts reliable. Also, a cheap winch can be downright dangerous. Think of 8000 pounds of 200 Series being held from certain doom (for the passenger and vehicle) by a cheap winch and having a plastic gear snap or the cheap rope give away. Is your life worth $200?

But then you buy a good winch and you don't tighten a ground wire like I did with mine and have to fiddle with the wiring while your rig is at a 45* angle :)

If you want to look cool, buy a Trans-am, a Jean jacket, and smoke Marlboros at the local high school parking lot.
 
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