A Class front wheel drive winch assistance?

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Touringtheworld said:
I am not an expert but the winch would be pulling a rolling/driving subject not a vertical dead lift.
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True - but a badly mired vehicle can cause drag significantly higher than its curb weight. More than a dead lift under really horrible conditions.

I've been involved in offroading for a couple of decades and no one uses a winch of less than 5000lb unless its on a quad or ATV - they just don't have the umpf to move a full size vehicle - even if only mildly stuck. And if its that mildly stuck, then there are better recover solutions.

And if you do want a winch, you want a good safety margin - both in terms of the winch itself and all fixings, including the winch wire/rope, hooks, etc. Having seen the damage a steel wire can do when it lets go... nasty (You Tube it!).

The winch as advertised earlier might make a marginal difference, say getting a MH out of a damp field on the flat, with drive assist, but not much use for anything else. Don't waste your money.
 
I had a small electric two ton boat winch with remote, used to pull boat and trailer up steep slippery slipways, great to pull small trees down ,sand bags one ton around the garden etc,etc.
Always carry it in MH plus long length of strong rope, be prepared as they say.
If all else fails get farmer with tractor.
 
Psychoman said:
True - but a badly mired vehicle can cause drag significantly higher than its curb weight. More than a dead lift under really horrible conditions.

The winch as advertised earlier might make a marginal difference, say getting a MH out of a damp field on the flat, with drive assist, but not much use for anything else. Don't waste your money.
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There is such a principle as the 'Least Friction Pull' i.e. if you are going to pull anything heavy then the lifting pulley should be higher then the load, preferably at an optimum angle - which I've forgotten!

Getting back to the Miltary - sorry Alf - using this principle we could make recoveries that looked downright impossible!
John
 
Psychoman said:
If you do go for an electric winch, you'll need something a lot more beefy than the "winch in a bag" idea - thats basically an ATV winch!

Ideally you want a winch rated to twice the weight of the vehicle, including safety margin - typically something in the 9000lb range for a Landrover for example - that's for serious off roading, but the safety principle is the same. I would also recommend switching from steel cable to plasma bowrope - safer, lighter, easier to handle. You'll be looking at around £450-500 for a decent set up. No point buying a cheap winch that will likely fry itself the first time you use it in anger.

Personally - for your purposes I would stick with a tirfor, unless you want to spend the money on a proper electric winch.

For extra grip you can get plastic waffle boards now - lighter and easier to use than pressed steel sand ladders.
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Twice the weight of the vehicle???? kin ell! Don't want to pick the friggin m/h up off the ground ;)!.... seriously though, I would be looking at calling a tow company if It got that bad. My father in his car with road tyres was able to get me off the final bit of the ground after a bit of ground prep. Using a pulley system in conjunction with an electric winch would also increase pulling power.
As I said, a Tirfor would require a hefty cable which I would not want to carry, and plastic waffle boards or ladder type tracking did not help much at all with traction, the tracking just sank in and the wheels spun on the tracking due to the weight of the m/h. Thanks anyway for your tips. :D
 
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There is a massive difference between whats needed for off road recovery and a slight pull on slippery surface, but I suppose the temptation is to go into place you wouldn't normally simply because you have a winch, thats when the little winch will leave you stranded.

Obviously difficult to say, but looking at pictures, I reckon airing down would have got you moving.
 
i'm with mark,flatter tyres could have done the job,but that winch with a decent block and tackle would be nice to have around.i have used a block and tackle with a small car and have moved some pretty good loads !
 
mark61 said:
There is a massive difference between whats needed for off road recovery and a slight pull on slippery surface, but I suppose the temptation is to go into place you wouldn't normally simply because you have a winch, thats when the little winch will leave you stranded.

Obviously difficult to say, but looking at pictures, I reckon airing down would have got you moving.
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Yes, I suppose the temptation to to 'off road' could be a possibility, but I know I have a big lump of a m/h and to 'off road' would be rather silly.
Something I did not consider, was 'airing down', but hopefully will in the future, as I have an electric air pump on board the m/h.
 
All fair comments - but the key point is - don't use kit that is not up the job at hand. If you are winching a big vehicle, spec accordingly. Sure - my experience is more off-road biased but the safety aspect is the same. I would NEVER consider towing a 4 1/2 ton motorhome with a 1 ton shackle - thats just asking for trouble.

Apologies now if you think I'm being OTT on this subject, just trying to share experience of winch use, which (to be honest) not many people generally have. I'll get back in my box now.
 
a ratchet strap is also good just to give you a bit of movement but like a winch you need something to pull off
 
Psychoman said:
All fair comments - but the key point is - don't use kit that is not up the job at hand. If you are winching a big vehicle, spec accordingly. Sure - my experience is more off-road biased but the safety aspect is the same. I would NEVER consider towing a 4 1/2 ton motorhome with a 1 ton shackle - thats just asking for trouble.

Apologies now if you think I'm being OTT on this subject, just trying to share experience of winch use, which (to be honest) not many people generally have. I'll get back in my box now.
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No need to apologise, I asked for advice and you gave it..:)
I would love to be able to afford the best of the best equipment, and if I had the money, change the two wheel drive to six..:cool1:
It would not be possible to buy a 500 quid winch set up.... £200 tops maybe.
The pull winch I used in the woods was rated at 1 ton and easily done the job in that situation with a steel cable.
 
Beemer said:
No need to apologise, I asked for advice and you gave it..:)
I would love to be able to afford the best of the best equipment, and if I had the money, change the two wheel drive to six..:cool1:
It would not be possible to buy a 500 quid winch set up.... £200 tops maybe.
The pull winch I used in the woods was rated at 1 ton and easily done the job in that situation with a steel cable.
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Here you go. 5 difflocks too, lol :)
 

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Psychoman said:
All fair comments - but the key point is - don't use kit that is not up the job at hand. If you are winching a big vehicle, spec accordingly. Sure - my experience is more off-road biased but the safety aspect is the same. I would NEVER consider towing a 4 1/2 ton motorhome with a 1 ton shackle - thats just asking for trouble.

Apologies now if you think I'm being OTT on this subject, just trying to share experience of winch use, which (to be honest) not many people generally have. I'll get back in my box now.
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Yes you are right, recovery, winching etc can easily become lethal.
 
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Don't know the make - likely a chinese copy of a Warn winch - but not necessarily a bad thing. For occasional use this will be light years ahead of a quad winch. Just make sure you have a good mounting point on the chassis and heavy wiring to your batteries - big winches kill starter batteries for fun :)
 
Beemer said:
I have considered this one.... I also have the ideal mounting point under the bonnet, so it cannot be seen normally.
I would consider this one too...
5 ton heavy duty electric winch with 13 meter steel wire rope | eBay
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I have had a smaller version of these and they were rubbish.

I was thinking of using a temporary fitting using our two towing eyes at the front or towing hitch at the back to attach to when needed and carry it in the boot out of the way when not.
 
Beemer said:
I have considered this one.... I also have the ideal mounting point under the bonnet, so it cannot be seen normally.
I would consider this one too...
5 ton heavy duty electric winch with 13 meter steel wire rope | eBay
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The rope diameter is 5.4 mm. That is far too weak for the job .... and when it snaps it will decapitate anyone standing too close.

I am an experienced Engineer and my advice is to forget about the whole idea. Instead, don't drive anywhere without a walkover first. Don't throw away your payload with a heavy winch that you may never use (or only use because you think you are now invincible and can go anywhere). You can pay Farmers for a hell of a lot of tows for £200.

If you still feel the need to carry something then carry a good long strop rated at least 3 Ton, a folding shovel to prepare your way out of trouble and something to put under the wheels so you can get traction. If you are determined to carry something, why not consider the old fashioned rope blocks with a ratio of 5:1 or 6:1, they weigh little and may just make a difference.
 
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