Winch Capacity?

rich67

Caught the Bug
Hey all, I am in the market for a winch for my first-ever JK build. Being a Florida flatlander, I encounter a lot of mud and not much rock. I am currently running a stock setup, but plan on adding 33's and a 2.5 inch lift soon. What should I be shooting for in winch capacity? I am thinking anything over 10k is overkill, because I don't want to be throwing over 100 pounds of winch to my front end running my current setup. Have been looking at the 8k-9.5k winches. I make occasional trips out west, but don't run any hairy trails that would result in my getting hung up too bad on rocks.
 

cozdude

Guy with a Red 2-Door
being that you have a 4 door and im assuming aftermarket bumpers i would still look at a 10k winch. this will keep you on the safe side when winching in all situations.
 

KingCopperhead

New member
You mentioned that you encounter a lot of mud. If so consider how heavy your jeep will be when it's coated in thick sloppy mud. Then add armor... And when considering the weight of armor plan ahead. You might be rocking just an aftermarket bumper at first, but then later you might want sliders, skids, corner armor, etc. It all adds up and it adds up fast!

I'll echo coz's comment and even go so far as to say that you should be looking for at least a 10k lb winch. Better to have overkill when you or a friend is stuck in the middle of nowhere.
 

Mikead40

New member
being that you have a 4 door and im assuming aftermarket bumpers i would still look at a 10k winch. this will keep you on the safe side when winching in all situations.

This.

I wouldnt worry about the few extra lbs that a bigger winch adds...in the grand scheme of things it's really not that significant. But if you're up to your tub in mud with a 4 door, you'll want the extra capacity. Don't forget to get a tree saver, some d-rings and a snatch block
 
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rich67

Caught the Bug
Very good point. I plan on more mods, and that mud can definitely cause some major suction.
 

JK_Dave

Caught the Bug
Snatch blocks can easily make up for any capacity deficiency you have, but it's important to remember that they're going to reduce the amount of line feet you can winch and you'll need something to attach to and winch from as well. Hope that makes sense.
 

CanadianJK

New member
Having spent 99% of my JK offroad experience dealing with mud, go big. 11,000 on my 2 door is good. Snatch block is only useful if there's a good tree close by. If you're in the mud it's possible you're using 2 tow straps and your full winch line to drag the jeep through the mud... Ask me how I know
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Plain and simple, the rule of thumb is to get a winch that has a capacity that is roughly double what your vehicle weight is. The curb weight of a 4-door JK is about 4,000 lbs. so technically, a good 8000 lb. winch should suffice and, from what I have seen, it will get the job done just fine assuming you have the right gear. I personally have been running a 9500 WARN PowerPlant for the better part of 7 years on my now extremely heavy JK that weighs in at about 6,500 lbs. unloaded and over 7,000 lbs. fully loaded and whether it be on the rocks or super deep mud that will swallow a 40" tire, it has yet to let me down. There's no real downside to running a higher capacity winch per se but, it's really not necessary or at least, not from what I have seen. Of course, what would I know.

What I will say is that you get what you pay for. I ONLY run WARN winches now and only because they have proven themselves to be strong and reliable and always work when I need them to. On the last JKX, there was one person in our group who did not have a WARN and, you guessed it, he was the only one to not have a working winch when he needed it.
 

doubletapdaddy

Caught the Bug
There is a Warn 9.5 PP in my future, however still waiting on another Warn rebate to surface. Waiting...waiting...waiting...
 

JayKay

Caught the Bug
There is a Warn 9.5 PP in my future, however still waiting on another Warn rebate to surface. Waiting...waiting...waiting...

Me too...I'm still waiting for my 2 year old to graduate from college :cheesy: (kids make the Jeep budget very small)
 

David1tontj

New member
Plain and simple, the rule of thumb is to get a winch that has a capacity that is roughly double what your vehicle weight is. The curb weight of a 4-door JK is about 4,000 lbs. so technically, a good 8000 lb. winch should suffice and, from what I have seen, it will get the job done just fine assuming you have the right gear.

X2!, I've run an 8000 pound winch for over 10 years and probably 100+ recoveries without ever having needed more. The snatch block has always been there waiting though, just in case.




Most of the time, on the rocks that is, you only need a little bit of help..

The mud however, is an entirely different story!
 

David1tontj

New member
Hey all, I am in the market for a winch for my first-ever JK build. Being a Florida flatlander, I encounter a lot of mud and not much rock. I am currently running a stock setup, but plan on adding 33's and a 2.5 inch lift soon. What should I be shooting for in winch capacity? I am thinking anything over 10k is overkill, because I don't want to be throwing over 100 pounds of winch to my front end running my current setup. Have been looking at the 8k-9.5k winches. I make occasional trips out west, but don't run any hairy trails that would result in my getting hung up too bad on rocks.

From a winching standpoint, I think mud is harder on a winch than even big rocks. No need to travel west to test your winch!

Snatch blocks can easily make up for any capacity deficiency you have, but it's important to remember that they're going to reduce the amount of line feet you can winch and you'll need something to attach to and winch from as well. Hope that makes sense.

X2!! (Nice snatch block pun too!)
 

HILLZ

Member
Totally agree with Eddie, it always a good idea to go twice the weight of the vehicle when picking a winch, when really stuck in the mud the suction on the bottom of the vehicle will basically double the vehicle weight but another important thing to remember is for every 10 times you use your winch only 1 or 2 times will be to get your self out, so unless your the type of person who doesn't like to help those in need :cheesy: you need to think about their weight too.
I put a 9500lbs winch on mine but when and if it craps out i'll probably step up to a 12000lb just for the piece of mind.
Here in Australia I don't get much opportunity to wheel with other Jeeps so I'm normally helping heavy Nissans and Toyotas out of trouble.
 
Having spent 99% of my JK offroad experience dealing with mud, go big. 11,000 on my 2 door is good. Snatch block is only useful if there's a good tree close by. If you're in the mud it's possible you're using 2 tow straps and your full winch line to drag the jeep through the mud... Ask me how I know

Pics or it didn't happen haha, I am curious now
 

CanadianJK

New member
Pics or it didn't happen haha, I am curious now

Ill have a good look around, I was really frustrated with the way our day went, might not have many good pictures.

I managed to throttle through, then tried to go back to winch someone else out and managed to get myself buried to the doors.

I should have a pic somewhere... The tire ruts were up to my hips.
 

rich67

Caught the Bug
OK thanks for all the info. I am going with the 9.5k or 10k. Now I will throw this out there: SYNTHETIC LINE OR STEEL?
 
Sorry, Late to the party...

I live in an area that has some pretty sticky, sloppy mud. While I try to avoid it, this isn't always possible. I prefer a lighter 8k pound winch and am prepared to use snatch-blocks and extra line when needed. The rated capacity is only on the first wrap (or two with some winches) so you get much better pulling with more line out. This plays into the use of a snatch block well. I also prefer less weight on my nose... An out and back through a SB will yield enough pulling power to test the line's capability... What more do you need?

Oh, and synthetic all the way. Just make sure you cover it as the UV light is bad for the line.
 
I have a 9K on my JKU and it has held up fine for my needs though I haven't needed it for mud, just rocks. And as mentioned, snatch block if needed.

I'm old school, prefer the durability of cable over rope.
 
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