Truck winches come in a variety of shapes and sizes, ranging from the humble car hauler winch to boat pulling winches and everything in between.

Whether you’re hauling cars for a living or simply taking precautions in the event that you find yourself in a sticky situation, a truck winch can be a vital piece of kit and the answer to your prayers.

However, not all truck winches are created equally and some are better and more fit for purpose than others.

To help you reel in the right truck winch for you, we’ve hauled together a truck-load of automotive winch info to get you started.

How Do Truck Winches Work?

A typical heavy-duty truck winch is made up of a motor, cable/rope, the gear train and the drum. Manual winches will naturally be without a motor and instead feature a manual crank.

The cylindrical shape of the winch body allows the cable to wrap around the drum, equipped with a spool for simple winding/unwinding when needed, as well as preventing entanglement.

The gear train transfers the motor power into pulling power, providing the winch with the strength needed to haul the required load.

Things to Consider When Buying a Truck Winch

When shopping for a winch, there are a number of things you might want to consider prior to parting with your cash. In terms of performance and usability, be sure to mull over the following points during your search.

Cable Quality

First things first, it’s well worth remembering that a rope winch is only as strong as its cable. Even if the winch itself is capable of hauling some serious weight, a poor rope quality can render that feature completely useless.

Think of it as having a Ferrari with a moped engine under the bonnet. While it might look the part and seem impressive on the surface, when push comes to shove, if the performance is lacking, its presence is virtually pointless as it serves little practical purpose.

Winch cables typically come in two varieties: steel and synthetic. The latter is usually the preferred option for most due to its superior flexibility, while it also boasts better safety in the event of a rope break.

Weatherproofing

Winches are, more often than not, fitted with intention of use in extreme conditions; e.g. rescue use in muddy terrain. As such, it’s important that the winch is capable of withstanding the demands of the task at hand.

Poor adaptability to harsh weather and wet conditions can be a huge issue and even cause the winch to fail during use. While this can obviously prevent you from completing the desired job, a weather-related fault can also pose a myriad of hazards to the user as well.

Ensure your winch features a sealed motor that is amply protected against elemental demands. From a longevity standpoint, moisture can also corrode the inner components, so it’s worth investing a little more for the sake of the product’s lifespan, if nothing else.

Pull Capacity

Pulling capacity is perhaps one of, if not the most important thing to consider when buying a winch, as it can determine if your winch is actually fit for purpose.

If you’re looking for 4x4 winches and trailer hauling is the aim of the game, a winch with a low MLL is not going to cut the mustard, particularly if your trailer is going to be full of heavy goods.

Similarly, boat pulling winches will also likely need to have a high capacity to complete the task at hand. While boat weights naturally vary depending on size, a typical boat pulling winch needs around 2000lbs pulling power at least to be on the safe side.

For rescue and recovery attempts, it’s particularly worth investing in a car hauler winch that’s capable of heavy weight capacity. The average midsize car is said to weigh around 1.5 tonnes, so any rescue attempt with a winch of less than that could result in disaster.

Unsurprisingly, one of the main causes of line breakage is when people attempt to haul weights heavier than the capacity. This can be extremely dangerous, so be sure you purchase a winch that’s capable of the weight you plan to pull.

Find Winches for Trucks at SLG

At SLG, we have a variety of truck winches on offer, ranging from the humble everyday automotive winch to boat pulling winches and the car hauler winch for the pros.

If you’re amid your own winch hunt, why not check out our variety of winches for trucks today? With electric winches capable of lifting everything from 400kg all the way up to 5000lbs, you’re sure to find the right winch for you, your budget and the task.

For more information on truck winches, call 0117 9381 600 now and speak with one of our customer service team today. Alternatively, feel free to drop us an enquiry online by using the button below.

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SafetyLiftinGear recently supplied one of our fork truck attachment to Bristol's award winning visitor attraction, Brunel's ss Great Britain. 

The LiftinGear 2 tonne fork truck attachment was used to allow a fork lift truck to operate like a crane by providing a central lifting point.

Being tested was a topsail yard that was 22mtrs long and 500kg in weight.

The yard was held at height with weights at each end for a period of time to ensure it was balanced and capable of holding its own weight once fixed aloft on the main mast as part of a project that will see the ss Great Britain's mast configuration as it was when she was launched in 1843.