Winch for Car Trailer

[Tumbleweed]

Received my local Harbor Freight adds today and I saw where they have a 2500 lb winch for $60.00. I was wondering if this was big enough to put on my car trailer to winch up the CJ.
https://images.harborfreight.com/cpi/emails/4816/b/images/14.jpg

[RICKG]

Hi George, for the money I waited for the sale on the 5000lb unit, the Lock/Free mech is much more robust as is the fairlead. I think is was right at 100 bucks 3 yrs ago on the promo. I keep a snatch block handy in the tool box too.
KNOCK ON WOOD I haven't had to use the winch yet but the chance is always there..

http://www.harborfreight.com/5000-lb-atvutility-electric-winch-with-automatic-load-holding-brake-68144.html

[Tumbleweed]

Thanks Rick,

Good advise and I do have a coupon! Good to hear from you and I hope your staying warm. Did you mount your to the front of your trailer? If so how did you fasten it?

George

[RICKG]

Mine is on a braced pillar on the tongue. I like how some guys use a 2" receiver hitch setup up front so the winch can be stored out of sight and "plugged in" when needed. If I were to have a do over I'd prolly go that way.

[Ryan_M]

I started with a 3500lb HF winch and it exploded during its first use (pulling a shed, not a 3A, mind you, but that's a whole different story). I ended up installing the 9000lb one instead. You can see a few pics of it installed at the bottom of this thread:

http://www.cj3apage.com/cgi-bin/3Ayabb26/YaBB.pl?num=1432586707/6

I've been very happy with this one so far.

******
Edit:
Here are pics of the smaller winch about halfway down the page. You can get a better view of the receiver hitch set-up that I used:

http://www.cj3apage.com/cgi-bin/3Ayabb26/YaBB.pl?num=1425138958/165

[Tumbleweed]

Ryan,

Thanks! I like the way it slides into the receiver. I think that HF is still having a sale this week but I'll keep an eye open for a deal. Looks like the few extra bucks are worth it to upgrade. I don't think I'll be pulling any sheds up just a CJ and a Willys wagon.

[Ryan_M]

I think I paid $299 for that 9,000 lb'r but I have since seen coupons with them as low as $269.

Go bigger than you think you will need. Your current 3A may roll easily onto the trailer but you need to plan for that inevitable "next project" - the one with 4 stuck wheels that has sunk down in the ground up to its axles. That one will require a little more "oomph".�

[johnrb3b]

For the most part, Harbor Freight stuff is pretty good.
The main thing you need to be aware of is that their ratings are pretty optimistic. You don't want to push them to the top end of their rating as they may well fail. There is little margin beyond the maximum.
So
If you want to pull a one ton vehicle up the ramp onto a trailer, if it rolls freely you may be OK with the 2,500 lb winch.
But
You'd be much better off with the 5,000 lb unit as you now have a good margin of safety. You won't be stressing it to its limits.

In general, I try to use HF stuff at about half it's rated strength to be sure I'm not pushing it beyond it's inherent strength.

I have the 12,000 lb unit on my JK. Got it on sale for just under $300. I figured 6 tons would be adequate to pull my 2 ton Jeep. Hoping it doesn't blow up the first time I put a real load on it. So far I've only pulled the JK across the level back yard to snug up the cable.

[RICKG]

Don't forget to pack along a snatch block for less wear and tear on the winch motor and line.� Always weight your line to prevent "bullwhip" in case of line breakage, hands always clear of the fairlead. Go's w/o saying?? Winch accidents happen and they can be ugly. We were all "winch rookies" at one time, if you're not sure of proper technique check out some of the many u-tube vids on the subject. Stay safe friends!