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Another Winch Comparison

17K views 100 replies 31 participants last post by  GoldenSahara00 
#1 ·
Ok, I have seen posts about both of these winches. But I want to compare them side by side and get opinions. I've asked around a lot and made a list. I am getting completely mixed signals. I want to spend around $550 give or take. The two winches I'm looking at are the Quadratec Q11000s and the WARN VR10000.

Quadratec Q11000s
Quadratec Exclusive 92122 2031 - Quadratec Q11000s Self Recovery Winch with Dyneema® Synthetic Rope - Quadratec

WARN VR10000
WARN 86255 - WARN VR10000 Winch with 94' Wire Rope and Roller Fairlead - Quadratec

I especially like that I would have synthetic line with the Q series. But this is my first time getting a winch and I've only heard good things about Warn. Thanks for any help.
 
#49 ·
I love winch threads. Great entertainment, and worth every penny of the yearly forum upgrade.
We will have to wait another 15 to 20 years to see if an Engo, Qtec, or VR series can stand the test of time. I've already gone through a HF, and a Smitty. Each only lasting about 2 years. At $300 a pop, I just couldn't waste anymore money on another cheap Chinese made winch.

So for the choices asked about in the first post, why would you not buy from an American company with a proven record of performance, reliability, and customer service? Of the choices given, the VR is a no brainer....JMHO.
 
#51 ·
LOL

"I saw a picture and I think it looks like junk so it must be crap and what I think is right so I win."

Hundreds of great reviews out there for the Engo and it's still cheap Chinese stuff... well I guess the Chinese are good at making cheap stuff that works well! That's all folks. I love supporting USA companies but when the price difference doesn't equal a quality difference they need to step their game up. Engo is still based in the USA and I'll bet a good deal of the $ coming into that company is still coming back here, probably close that of Warn. Warn's smaller winches are made in Mexico or China, and with many of the same parts as everyone elses budget winches.

Honestly it's not a big deal, run what ya run, buy the BEST you can afford, and live your life.
 
#57 ·
Ive had a super winch thats been on my jeep for a while. I did a lot of research before i bought one. The only issue ive had is water getting inside the electrical compartment it didnt stop running though. i was winching myself out of a big hole and thought the gears sounded like they needed some grease. I popped the cap off to find water gush out after it pulled me out. I called super and they mailed me a new one with no hassle. I give those guys an A+++++++++ on customer service and standing behind their product. Ive checked the new one for the same issue with no problems.

But like one post said winches are like fords and chevy's. You could light my superwinch on fire and roll it down a hill and i still wouldnt trade it for an engo.
 
#59 ·
Honestly, after being subscribed to this for quite some time I think I'm going to go with 4wheel parts' Smittybilt XRC 8 package deal. $300 bucks vs $500-$600. On my budget, I can afford the nicer winch but I'd rather save what I don't spend for something like a super 35 kit. That's just my opinion, not trying to start anything lol
 
#60 ·
Just a heads up; out of the handful of Smitty XRC8 winches I've been around, they all have had issues free spooling (among other things, but that is the most prevalent issue I've seen). Either they won't do it at all, or it's extremely hard to do.

Personally I love my Warn, but I'd rather have someone wheeling with me who has any winch than none at all. Of course that's kind of worthless if it doesn't work.
 
#63 ·
Having owned both of those winches, and both failing, I support that statement. :redface:
I sure saved a ton of money before I bought a Warn.:doh:
 
#69 ·
Yes. At least mine was. Can't speak for anyone else.
 
#74 ·
I found this in a shootout article.Thought it was interesting

Stall Test
After the speed and efficiency test, we returned to our shop space to wrap up our objective testing. We borrowed a 20,000-pound analog load cell from our good friends at King Crane in Scotts Valley, California. The unit displays, in pounds, how much force is being applied to the device and featured shackle attachment points on each end. We fabricated a test platform that would allow us the ability to secure a winch in a multi-mount at one end, while the load cell was affixed to the other end. The system was massive and could only be moved using a forklift. We used a 10-foot section of ½-inch steel cable to ensure that cable stretch or breakage would not be an issue. The arrangement would allow each winch to reach its maximum pulling power or stall point, while the gauge recorded the maximum pound rating. As you might expect, many of the winches did not survive this torture test.

Results
Winch Max Pull (lb) Result
Bulldog 10,000 Broke internal parts, would not work after test
Engo 12,000 All functions still worked after test
Superwinch 15,900 Would not spool out after test
T-Max 16,000 All functions still worked after test
Warn 16,000 Broke internal parts, would not work after test
(Summit Racing, Harbor Freight, Kodiak units inoperative.)
 
#75 ·
Another good choice is Ramsey.They are def made in the USA. A guy from a local Jeep club was speaking highly of them a little while back.
 
#77 ·
Wow... I moved and didn't have internet for a while. Ha and this thread grew 2.5 pages since. Thanks for all of the responses! I keep telling myself I'm going to sleep on the decision and wake up thinking something else. I should just make an impulse buy and live with it ha. Ive spent a lot at Quadratec and trust them. But based on this thread I guess I'll rule them out. Now I have ENGO on the plate too.
 
#87 ·
Congratulations! :thumb: My opinion is that you made a very wise choice.

Another train wreck of a winch thread with a happy ending. From original post to the final result: A new winch for the OP's Jeep.




End of thread? Probably not. :popcorn:
 
#81 ·
My first jeep winch was a PTO winch. There has never been an electric winch that I have seen that could keep up with it. It was a beast. As long as the engine would run and had gas, it would pull, and pull and pull. But that is not an option on my TJ.
As other insightful forum members have pointed out, to a degree one's winch choice is a chevy/ford thing. I am not a Warn fan though they make good products. I don't like the way the sold off the overdrive division, nor how they "re-engineered" the locking hubs. If the tiny allen head bolts were not bad enough, they refused to stamp out bend tab washers for the old hubs that were made by the millions.

A jeep buddy's son was in the US Army in the pointless Iraq war and he said on their hummers they had all the major brands of winches (that were made at the time) The winches were severely used and abused. Milemarker's were superior in longevity. Above all others. Many winches failed within weeks. Especially the big overpriced names.

Being old school (I freely admit it) I am not impressed with synthetic lines. You have to watch them every second they are in use as when they rub on something abrasive, they are toast. More importantly, they would be seriously unsafe. When I see professional recovery workers/companies using synthetic line, I will be a convert. Until then I think its simply marketing.

IF I were to buy a winch today, it would likely be a Milemarker or Engo with cable line and a swivel thimble or eye braided on the end. There is not a chance I would believe a "test" in a magazine that features every month, full page adverts for the company of the models tested.

I don't have a winch now and when I wheel in the tough sections most of my companions have winches. Self recovery vs recovering someone else when I had my PTO winch jeep was about ten to one. Something to think about.
 
#83 ·
IF I were to buy a winch today, it would likely be a Milemarker or Engo with cable line and a swivel thimble or eye braided on the end. There is not a chance I would believe a "test" in a magazine that features every month, full page adverts for the company of the models tested.

I don't have a winch now and when I wheel in the tough sections most of my companions have winches. Self recovery vs recovering someone else when I had my PTO winch jeep was about ten to one. Something to think about.
Until you've had some extensive personal experience with a synthetic line you won't truly know how it performs. From your post, it's clear you're worrying about the myths associated with synthetic line and not any actual experience.

In my opinion, it's worth going synthetic for the safety factor alone. But that's just me.

As for relying on everyone else's winch, I don't mind using my winch for others at all, but I can say the day definitely goes much more smoothly if everyone has a winch. Particularly if we're wheeling somewhere that a winch is necessary. Most of those kinds of trails would make it extremely difficult for another Jeep to re-position in order to winch another vehicle.
 
#82 · (Edited by Moderator)
Synthetic lines aren't as delicate as you think they are, and the reason you don't see them all that often on tow trucks or industrial equipment is simply the higher cost of synthetic rope.

The maritime industry switched to synthetic lines many years ago, & I noticed the USCG is also running synthetic lines. I suspect the Navy is too but I haven't been on Navy ships like I have USCG ships.

And so long as you stick with a 3/8" synthetic line which typically has an 18-20k lb. capacity, you won't have to watch it. I would not go with a 5/16" simply because it doesn't have the margin the 3/8" does but in the 10+ years I've been using synthetics on the rocks, not once have I ever had to drag it over the rocks or anything sharp. So that you have to "watch them every second" simply isn't true.

Not to mention that for safety reasons, many sanctioned offroad events where a lot of winching is required (like King of the Hammers), they require competitors use synthetic lines. If synthetic wasn't widely accepted as being safer, that wouldn't be the case.

Not to mention in a straight pull, even a 5/16" synthetic rope is substantially stronger than a 5/16" wire rope that has a lower winching load limit than many of our Jeep size winches can exert.

Surprising to many is this:

-Breaking strength of the 5/16" galvanized 7x7 wire rope that comes on a Jeep size winch is 9,200 lbs., less than the winching capacity of many of our winches.

-Breaking strength of the 5/16" synthetic rope that comes on winches made for Jeeps is typically 12,300 lbs. or more. But it is synthetic rope so it is more vulnerable to abrasion damage so not many will recommend this size for offroad winching.

-Breaking strength of the 3/8" synthetic rope that comes on winches made for Jeeps is typically 17,600 lbs. or more. Even with some abrasion, this winch line still have enough of a safety margin that even if it has to be dragged over the rocks, it is not likely to abrade enough to be unsafe. Some 3/8" synthetic ropes have a breaking strength of over 20k lbs.

That said, the need to drag a winch line over a sharp edge is more than rare. I know I have never had the need to do so in since I first started using a winch offroad nearly 15 years ago.

Why did I switch to synthetic? Because within the first five years of winch ownership, my wire rope kinked up enough with hard use that it developed broken strands & needed to be replaced twice. Since switching to synthetic ten years ago, I've yet to need to replace a rope.

Very few would argue that wire rope is safer than synthetic rope, that is for sure. More expensive? Yep... but certainly safer from any reasonable point of view.
 
#89 ·
I'm not Jerry, but yes heat can be an issue though probably not one you need to worry about. Typically the only time you will see issues with heat is powering out under load for extended periods of time, which is when the drum brake is in use thus creating the heat. For 99% of the people on this forum, that will probably never be an issue.

You'll have to refer to the manufacturer of your specific rope to see what temperatures it can withstand.
 
#95 ·
After dealing with wire on winches years ago I can say it is much nicer to use the synthetic line. I have not had cause to really use mine yet but I have pulled up some small stumps and done some other stuff with it that would not have been much fun with wire. I also feel much better knowing that the synthetic line will not come flying back as a missile.
 
#97 ·
When it comes down to it I think a decent winch,Engo,Ramsey etc will be just fine. Im a bit scarred since my warn which is supposed to be sealed,ended up getting water in the supposed "sealed" gear box.Props to Andy for sending me 2 gaskets but now I have a rusted gear assy.Just my .02
 
#99 ·
Sorry to revive this, but I thought this would help NJO sleep at night. I just bought an Engo winch and put it on a hitch mount to winch out backwards or lend to a friend if need be. I'm very happy with the Warn. but we'll see how they compare.
 
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