[MontytheLab]

Hello all,
Haven't posted much since I finally picked up my 22 JLUR (soft top with almost all options - No Recon pkg) last year. I have added some LOD Signature rock sliders and will start looking at bumpers now as well. I also need to buy a winch since I want to do that when adding the front bumper. Eventually I plan to do a 1.5 or 2.5(if 37s) lift and perhaps move to 37's (need to research 35's vs 37s more)...I share all of this to outline my possible overall weight. From the little I have looked into, it sounds like I need to be in the 12k area ideally. Is that the case? I have also heard that Warn tend to be a premium like to go with.

Is this WARN EVO VR 103255 a great winch to consider? The reviews are like 5/5 on Quadratec...Should I just buy it and not look back or do you recommend something else? Thanks!!

 

[pismo61]

Warn is the best,but all the other winches have gotten much better.The VR series is Warns more budget friendly line or used to be.Although that one is a 1000 bucks.Looks like a good one.

 

[AustyPosty]

Hello all,
Haven't posted much since I finally picked up my 22 JLUR (soft top with almost all options - No Recon pkg) last year. I have added some LOD Signature rock sliders and will start looking at bumpers now as well. I also need to buy a winch since I want to do that when adding the front bumper. Eventually I plan to do a 1.5 or 2.5(if 37s) lift and perhaps move to 37's (need to research 35's vs 37s more)...I share all of this to outline my possible overall weight. From the little I have looked into, it sounds like I need to be in the 12k area ideally. Is that the case? I have also heard that Warn tend to be a premium like to go with.

Is this WARN EVO VR 103255 a great winch to consider? The reviews are like 5/5 on Quadratec...Should I just buy it and not look back or do you recommend something else? Thanks!!

I wouldn’t be unhappy at all with the Warn. It’s top tier. My smittybilt winch leaves a little bit to be desired in terms of build quality

 

[vooduchikn]

Warn is good. The VR series are made in China, the Zeon series is made in the USA. Both are reliable but as a "make it home" upgrade I am putting a Zeon on in the spring. You have probably already thought about it but go synthetic and make sure you follow the directions about preloading/winding prior to first use so when you really need it, it is ready.

 

[fourpointzero]

I just checked my winch yesterday after having it sit dormant for over 2 years. It's an older Warn. If I had to do it over again, Id absolutely consider a HF Badlands one. Heck, I was at Tractor Supply yesterday and saw they had their own brand too. No idea if they're any good but they did look nice and the price point wasn't bad.

for me it's one of those things that I rarely ever use so if I had to purchase one for over 500 bucks I would probably go with the cheap route second time around.

 

[aldo90731]

The expensive Warn winches are excellent; their more competitively priced models are not. You are just paying for the brand name.

In 2015 I got a Warn VR10 winch. I was very disappointed: the solenoid body is made to look cast steel on your computer screen but is actually plastic; the controller switchgear came straight out of a JC Whitney catalog. The final straw was when the bolts holding the solenoid in place started rusting after only two weeks. I got in touch with Warn and they agreed to credit my purchase towards a —much more expensive— Zeon 10.

This time around I skipped Warn altogether. I am simply not spending $1,700 on a winch when there are many others that have come up in features and reliability for a fraction of the price.

This time I settled on a Quadratec Stealth-10: it has a full cast steel body, comes with synthetic rope, standard wireless and plug-in controls, and even has a built-in LED light above the drum. Paid $600 for it two years ago. So far it’s been holding up well. I’d definitely do it all over again.

 

[MontytheLab]

The expensive Warn winches are excellent; their more competitively priced models are not. You are just paying for the brand name.

In 2015 I got a Warn VR10 winch. I was very disappointed: the solenoid body is made to look cast steel on your computer screen but is actually plastic; the controller switchgear came straight out of a JC Whitney catalog. The final straw was when the bolts holding the solenoid in place started rusting after only two weeks. I got in touch with Warn and they agreed to credit my purchase towards a —much more expensive— Zeon 10.

This time around I skipped Warn altogether. I am simply not spending $1,700 on a winch when there are many others that have come up in features and reliability for a fraction of the price.

This time I settled on a Quadratec Stealth-10: it has a full cast steel body, comes with synthetic rope, standard wireless and plug-in controls, and even has a built-in LED light above the drum. Paid $600 for it two years ago. So far it’s been holding up well. I’d definitely do it all over again.

View attachment 4573312

Thx for the thoughts on your Warn...will look at this one as well

 

[aldo90731]

Thx for the thoughts on your Warn...will look at this one as well

You bet.

Just saw Quadratec dropped the price of its Stealth-10 winch. It is under $500 right now.

 

[fourpointzero]

Perfect timing! JK Gear and Gadgets (Youtube) just posted a review for a HF Badlands. 🤘

 

[MontytheLab]

OK...one follow-up...10k or 12k in your opinions? Is a 12k really necessary? Trying to decide if I want to make the leap to a Zeon as well...ugh haha

 

[aldo90731]

OK...one follow-up...10k or 12k in your opinions? Is a 12k really necessary? Trying to decide if I want to make the leap to a Zeon as well...ugh haha

The rule of thumb is to get a winch that has twice the pulling power of your vehicle’s weight. Most modern Wranglers weigh 4,500 lbs; a 10,000 lb winch is plenty.

The exception of course are 4Xe, EcoDiesel and 392. Those Wranglers weight well in excess of 5,000 lbs. So perhaps a 12,000 lb winch would be more appropriate for those vehicles.

 

[MontytheLab]

Factor 55 FLATLINK or Flatlink e? Should I spend a little more to allow a larger opening on the E version?

 

[MontytheLab]

Factor 55 FLATLINK or Flatlink e? Should I spend a little more to allow a larger opening on the E version?

I really like the clean look and safety of these.

 

[Northridge4x4]

The Flatlink is designed to be more user friendly or should I say more user safe. The round hole only allows you to insert the screw pin of your bow shackle and it will hold the shackle in its intended use position.

Factor 55 Flatlink Grey

Upgrade to the FlatLink for closed-loop recovery and folds flat against the winch fairlead when not in use. Made in USA.

www.northridge4x4.com

The larger hole on the Flantlink E is designed so you can insert the the leg of a bow shackle if you wanted to run the bow portion against the Flatlink and the pin forward. Basically giving the user more versatility in hooking up recovery gear.

Factor 55 Flatlink E - Grey

Built for outdoor adventure. Upgrade to a closed-loop recovery system for enhanced safety and capability.

www.northridge4x4.com

The downside to that large pear-shaped hole in the Flatlink E is, if you're not careful, it would be easy for the shackle to turn sideways in the hole and when loaded sideways, the shackle is at its weakest (by a large margin) possibly creating a very dangerous recovery scenario.

 

[AustyPosty]

I’ve seen hookless designs for the synthetic ropes. Seems like a really great option and probably the safest option. Not cheap though, unless you buy your winch without a rope

 

[dmulk]

I've been pretty happy with my 12k Smittybilt synthetic XO2. I picked it up on a sale during covid back in 2020 for about $460. It's done some hard pulls and hasn't failed me yet and has been a work horse.

At some point I'll probably replace it with a USA made WARN but it may be a long time since it seems to be holding up.