doink

what are the advantages of the synthetic winch lines (i think thats what they are called). im getting my winch and arb put on tomorrow and i am just wondering if there is any big advantage to them over the normal line supplied with the winch.

Darren

Safer, lighter, stronger. Enough said.

Corey

iTrader: (1)

Two good write-ups.

http://www.4wdandsportutility.com/te...94wd_stronger/
http://www.4x4wire.com/reviews/masterpull/

Most sanctioned rock crawling events have outlawed steel cable as it can become a deadly whip and kill.

When a synthetic line breaks, it falls to the ground.
Watch this "slowed down" 1.1 mb vid of a steel cable breaking.
http://www.orp.com.au/Mpegs/Winch%20Break.wmv

The two articles should convince you to put your new steel cable on Ebay.
I sold mine to a member on ODW the first day I advertised it in the classifed area a year ago.

jx94148

It won't rust, it won't cut you, it floats, it comes in several fashionable colors. Whoever has to hike up a loose steep hill to an attachment point will have a much easier time compared to trying to wrestle with steel cable.

I like using mine.

Many Sanctioned rock crawling events have banned steel cable for all of these reasons listed (except colors) from what I have read.

zedex

What did you guys pay for the rope if you dont mind me asking?

doink

when i choose to get one, probably later down the road, due to lacking of funds...is it easy to put in?.

Corey

iTrader: (1)

Zedex, I think mine came upto around $250.
They are not cheap, but you are paying for safety too.

There are cheaper places to get it from.
I got mine from www.masterpull.com
a shop in my state which is a big seller of this stuff.

Doink, I have more info on the line on page III of my mods section.
http://pnw4runners.net/tando/modtoc.htm

Super easy to put in.
Spool out steel cable all the way, and there is an end on it that looks like a fitting that goes over a stereo cable to hook to your battery.

Use allen wrench to take off bolt.
Put new line on with the end they supply just like the steel cable, and tighten up end, spool back in.

Forgive my site if the pics load slow.
My host has really screwed me over big time and they have my server all botched up.
Time to switch soon I guess.

zedex

Thanks Corey. Thats $425 Canadian. Wow. That is pricey but like you say. Good stuff.

Roadrunner

I have a new Warn winch and was thinking of replacing the existing metal winch cable for some of the reasons previously mentioned, lighter and safer. But I don't know if this makes any sense to replace a perfectly new cable for the synthetic line. Under "normal" conditions, how long would a steel winch cable last until it needs to be replaced?

jx94148

I paid $115 for my 5/16" x 80' line from Rockstomper.com.

I took the original cable off before I ever used the winch and sold it for $50 so it only set me back $65. Worth every penny. Puting it on is really easy once you get that nasty wire out and under control. It just connects to the winch drum with a hex head set screw IIRC. You can use your original hook or upgrade to a fancy Day Glow colored one like Corey did.

Oh yeah, another advantage... You don't have to pre-tension it like you do with a new steel cable.

I think Rockstomper is the best choice because it comes with a 10 foot nylon sleeve to protect the line from rocks and trees and crap. The sleeve is very slim and fits the line perfectly as it spools in through the fairlead. MasterPull stuff comes with a hook I think. It also has a sleeve but its only 3 feet long and pretty fat compared to the line. I think it would have a tendency to bunch up and not go in through the fairlead very easily.

Corey

iTrader: (1)

Yes, the Masterpull line came with the big yellow hook, now painted red

The 3' sleeve for the Masterpull line kept getting caught at the fairleed, so I put on two 5' sections from Rockstomper and that solved it.

By the way, these self closing yellow hooks come top rated.
Here is a cool site that goes into some heavy reading on winches and cable.
I have not had a chance to read it all, I just skimmed it today.
Not sure if it covers synthetic line or not.

http://www.rightcoastcrawler.com/bil...y/Recovery.htm

WATRD

According to Warn, your cable needs to be replaced every three pulls. I know, I know, but I got that right from Warn when I asked. Most folks consider the steel to be shot when it starts to fish-hook, stretch, kink or otherwise deform.

One point that has not been mentioned here, your winch warantee is *VOID* when you install the synthetic cable. According to Warn, it does not dissipate heat well and thus can contribute to burning the winch out.

With all of that said, I would not have ANYTHING but synthetic cable on my winch. I have seen, first hand, the carnage that steel can inflict and I have no desire to lose body parts to a recovery. Remember that winches should be thought of as an "experts" tool, that is, if you don't know what you are doing through hands on experience, you should not be using a winch. This is compounded by the wire rope which is an accident waiting to happen in my opinion.

One of the best tutorials I have ever seen on winches/recovery is at; http://www.rightcoastcrawler.com/bil...y/Recovery.htm

doink

if i installed this, would it take long?. seems simple...and that worries me because i will probably screw something up.

WATRD

You mean to install the rope? 15 minutes. Spool the old cable off the drum, pull the disconnect screw, feed the new stuff through the fairlead, hook up the allen screw to the eye in the end of the cable and spool it back on evenly.

Ta-Da! It's pretty much idiot proof unless you fail to connect the retainer screw, don't make the first wrap on the drum smooth or spool the cable in backward on the drum.

Darren

Holy crap! I am blind! Sorry about that. I thought I read everything.

Corey

iTrader: (1)

He he, that's the 3rd time that Bible link has been posted in this thread.

It's good reading.
I should add it to the Portal Page here for access to it also.

kyle_22r

wow...i thought cable was supposed to last a long time. that, and on top the price of a winch, makes me feel very good about having my ratchet come-a-long with me

Corey

iTrader: (1)

Darren, I do that all the time.
I often have a few windows open.
One for PMs, one for here, and another one for the main page.
It gets confusing sometimes.

I also have a hard time keeping up with the posts here.
This place is getting very active lately, especialy from 6 to 9 PM PST.

I try to juggle a good TV show and come in here and click on "View new posts" and my gosh, there are a tom in just 15 or 20 minutes.
Hardly have time to view them before the show is back on

WATRD

Nobody does that... it's just Warn's way of covering their butts when a cable snaps. They are selling an inherently dangerous product and need to cover as many liability holes as they can. In practice, a winch cable is often good for a full season or more before it's shot. With the synthetic, it's less suceptible to some types of damage and more to others, but at least you can splice it on the trail and when it fails (notice I said "when"), it's a lot less likely to slaughter innocent observers and mow down small trees.

I used to carry a come-a-long as a recovery tool, but it's a worst case tool and is no where near as versatile as a winch, not to mention that it's a lot of work to use and you can't really drive and crank on that thing at the same time.

jx94148

Holy crap!! That's less durable than Jeep U joints. Sometimes that last through 4 or 5 trail rides.

Sounds like just another way to boost profit margins. Shame on you Warn.