Wench for Christmas??????

D&D Farm

D&D Farm

Gold Site Supporter
Ok.......It's time for this ol guy to start budgeting for Christmas time............The RTV is actually my wife's and she totally enjoys getting pieces and bits for it. Guess who has to do the install and maintenance though. She does hang right there next to me during these processes though helping as much as she can.............

Ok........so.......The question is to get a wench, yes, a good 4000 or so lb Warn with the kit to fit the 900..............OR..........One of those gasoline powered come along/wench/portable pulley................A friend has one and we moved a bunch of timber awhile back for firewood and it worked great........Got into places that would have been pretty hard for the RTV and pulled 36" X 10' hickory and oak right out..........

In doing my research, WARN, describes that their wenches are for pulling rolling type loads........Is this the same as a log?????........Can one use a wench for what I described above and not tear it up????.........yes, I understand one can double up on pulleys to change direction and pull heavier loads.........Is this REALLY ok?????????? Can one use a long rope connected to the wench to get LONG distances?????? Is this distance of pull limited to how much cable is on the "spool"....................

Thanks guys..........Dennis
 
Dennis, I think you mean 'winch' rather than 'wench'. I'd be really nervous in the presence of a 4000lb wench... :-)

I understand 'rolling type loads' as 'loads' mounted on wheels. Logs are dragging type loads and I expect Warn is suggesting that their winches are not made to cope with the stress and strain of dragging things. Are you looking primarily at dragging logs as per your example? If so, I would think the RTV mounted winch may not be the most appropriate solution for you. IMHO, anyway.

Onfoot

"If a hammer won't fix it, it's electrical."
 
10-4 to that, Onfoot. They are referring to something that will give a minimum resistance other than it's actual weight. Like a vehicle on wheels. Dragging logs which would be pulled "on end" is a whole 'nother story.

I don't know how you would calculate that. But you could use pulleys to cut the load substantially as long as they don't become a nuisance.

I can't remember my physics, but with each pulley you add that actually doubles the cable going to the load, you cut the weight in half. Very effective but can be a real pain to deal with.

Did you try contacting Warn directly ??? They should provide you with a Total Load rating, unless they don't do that anymore. RR
 
How large are the logs you intend to pull? Are you pulling full length of just small sections? Although rated for pulling rolling loads you can still pull large dead weight loads like a fallen tree with the winch it's just your capacity would be lower. I went with the Kubota Warn kit and it works great, I've used mine more for directing trees where I want them to fall and dragging 6' logs....it works great. The remote winch is very handy for tasks like that.

If you plan to move logs more than anything with your winch it might be worth getting an atv log arch to move them around. (possibly a heavier unit this one is just for an example)

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=atv+log+arch&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=9953979285744963990&ei=1W67TOTUMIKBlAf5ldyVDQ&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CCIQ8wIwAQ#

If you're planning to use it more for trail maintenance or moving an occasional tree the winch is the way to go and a 4K with a chainsaw to cut the log will be more than enough.
 
Thanks Guys.....KNEW I would get some valid information for this decision.......LOLOL about the 4000 lb wench....reminds me of a fraulein I picked up in Nurenburg back in the day.....

Anyway....My land is mostly on a slope of one kind or another. typical is 10 degree but LOTS of it is in the 20 to 25 degree range. The trees are being killed by this persistent drought that is going into it's 8th year. Hickory and Oak that are 36" and in the 100' length range with the distance to the first fork being easily 40 feet. It's really a shame but am using most for firewood between myself and a couple of guys that help for shares.......

Often the tree has been standing dead for a few years and has gone to rot. These, and often times sound trees are used for berm/terraces.....Again my land is on the side of a mountain and we raise goats. Needless to say erosion is a huge problem when the goats graze off the brush, leaves, and understory. For the last several years we have been moving logs and laying them across a lot of the forested slopes and make terraces. So dragging the logs into place is often a real problem and we need the logs as long as possible.

Some of the terraces are in the 50 yard long range. We construct these berms and erosion of the soil and goat poop fills up the up-slope side really well. We have salvaged perhaps 15 acres using this method. Yes, we put down fescue, turf type, in these areas and even though it is in the remaining trees/forest it really does well with the berms holding soil and rain............

Sooooooo..........Yes, I need to drag as long of logs as possible to create the berms. Most often it is perhaps a 10 to 15' log that is 24" to 30". Usually we move them perhaps 40 yards or so.............

I looked at the log arch, Dixiedog, and the problem with those is getting away from me on the hillside or turning over....................

So do you think the winch is just for pulling out stuck vehicles??????.......When possible, I have hooked up a chain to the RTV and had good luck pulling with it; but just as with using my tractor to do the job, the lay of the land often does not allow getting into where I need to be. I can run a substantial rope quite a distance though and pull a log to where I can work on it for firewood or put it in place for a berm...........

As I talked about in my first post, one of my friends has:

http://portablewinch.com/en/

They are high dollar especially when compared to a winch on the RTV; but they really do the job..........Actually though, I really would rather have the winch mounted on the RTV as it isnt such a pain in the tail to rig out; but the capstan winch really does the job................What to do??????.............Thanks guys.........Dennis
 
I've got a 4,000lb warn and it does pull! Trouble is that mine doesn't have a fairlead(sp) or cable guide to keep the cheap cable winding up straight on the spool. A few extra dollars will pay you dividends in the end but the Warn would probably do the job-- if you tie your RTV to something and use a couple GOOD pulleys (they break too).
 
D&D Farm said:
Sooooooo..........Yes, I need to drag as long of logs as possible to create the berms. Most often it is perhaps a 10 to 15' log that is 24" to 30". Usually we move them perhaps 40 yards or so.............

I looked at the log arch, Dixiedog, and the problem with those is getting away from me on the hillside or turning over....................

So do you think the winch is just for pulling out stuck vehicles??????.......When possible, I have hooked up a chain to the RTV and had good luck pulling with it; but just as with using my tractor to do the job, the lay of the land often does not allow getting into where I need to be. I can run a substantial rope quite a distance though and pull a log to where I can work on it for firewood or put it in place for a berm...........

As I talked about in my first post, one of my friends has:

http://portablewinch.com/en/

They are high dollar especially when compared to a winch on the RTV; but they really do the job..........Actually though, I really would rather have the winch mounted on the RTV as it isnt such a pain in the tail to rig out; but the capstan winch really does the job................What to do??????.............Thanks guys.........Dennis
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I don't believe a 4k pound winch will be capable of pulling nearly that much load, as far as the gas winch I don't believe that will help your rtv much either....once you get over that 4k pound winch's capability I think you're just going to drag your rtv along anyway. That is a very large and heavy piece of wood. The problem isn't the dead weight of the log, it's the but of the tree digging in that would concern me. You could always add a block and tackle to your mix to increase your pulling power but keeping the rtv planted is going to be your biggest chore.
 
You're at the bleeding edge of what a RTV mounted winch would do. I say bleeding edge instead of leading edge as one mess-up and someone could get hurt. If a 36"x10' starts rolling down hill and gets away from you, it's taking your RTV for a ride as well. If you do go with this sort of winch, I'd recommend one with a wireless remote control. This allows you to operate it off the RTV and in a safe area. I also like the wireless in that it allows me (with much smaller logs) to be at the log so I can use a cant hook to guide it so it doesn't snag.

Outside of a bulldozer, the only thing I'd recommend is something like a Farmi winch that mounts to your tractor.
http://www.northeastimplement.com/index.php?/Farmi-Winches/
 
bz is correct! My M6000 warn would hang my RTV from a tree (like in "Gods must be crazy" movie. Its tried to pull me over several cliffs so I am careful to tie off the rear tow hitch to a tree beforehand.
 
BCZoom makes some really good points. From my perspective, listening to you describe the size of the logs and the slopes, I have to wonder if the RTV is the right tool. Might not some of the dead weight of the logs be more than the RTV? And if one got away from you on a slope, as BCZoom notes, your RTV would likely be going with it. Not the answer you want, I know, but the scenario you describe makes me really nervous.
 
I've got a big hydraulic winch I mount on the three pt of my 1850 Oliver or whatever. If I'm moving any large logs (or stuck dozers), I chain the winch directly to another tree, using the tractor just to hold the winch- that might be harder on an RTV. Might be easier to pin the winch to the RTV then unpin it on site, chain it short to a "dead man" and use the RTV only for power.:tiphat:
 
Thanks for all of the thoughts and advice........Just got off the phone with Warn about their XT30 for the RTV..........They advise that it will do just what I want it to do with the warning about using it with common sense dragging logs and the log getting away from me on hills........BC....Good advice about getting a winch with a remote and standing back or by.........They advised if I am going to be pulling some HUGE stuff to invest in a couple of really good pullies..............

NOW..........Where is the best buy on an XT30 Warn Winch with the mounting system to mount it to the RTV.........Thanks guys......God bless........Dennis
 
D&D Farm said:
Thanks for all of the thoughts and advice........Just got off the phone with Warn about their XT30 for the RTV..........They advise that it will do just what I want it to do with the warning about using it with common sense dragging logs and the log getting away from me on hills........BC....Good advice about getting a winch with a remote and standing back or by.........They advised if I am going to be pulling some HUGE stuff to invest in a couple of really good pullies..............

NOW..........Where is the best buy on an XT30 Warn Winch with the mounting system to mount it to the RTV.........Thanks guys......God bless........Dennis
Click to expand...

I bought my Warn as a kit packaged as a Kubota product....it's nice getting the extra little brackets built specific for the RTV.
 
Yep, but I also wouldn't feel comfortable asking my wife to buy me a "wench" for Christmas. Sounds like the shortcut to divorce court.
 
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