Was looking at the smittybuilt winches for my truck and I saw the ones with the synthetic lines which are alo rated to 10k. Has anyone had any experience with them? If so would you take them over the steel cable?
Thanks

 

in the jeep world the synthetic lines are preferred over steel because they're much safer when winching to objects to get yourself moving. for a utility aspect though they're not useful at all because you cant wrap them around an object. they fray easily when they're in contact with other objects. they require Fawse fairleads, which are expensive.

also that said, having a lot of experience with winches, smittybuilt is the last thing you want to buy. i could care less if backwoods Cleetus has had good luck with them. the point of a winch is to use it hard because you need to or for it to work to save your ***. either way you need to pony up and get a SuperWinch, Ramsey or Warn. you get what you pay for.

also, the general rule of thumb is to get a winch that has the capacity for twice your vehicles weight. id be looking at the 12K winches

me at the helm:

 

Marshal is dead on in every aspect. Dont go cheap on a winch.........Period.

 

Yes he is...........

 

Not to be an *** but my buddy bought a 10k winch from harbor freight belive it or not for 300 bucks. Thing has pulled him out of 3 foot of mud easily. Yeah its slower than a warn but it gets the job done. Get what you pay for? eh idk about that. Im not about to blow a grand for a winch. Im not rock crawling, I plan on goin the mud and if a $500 winch can do the job Ill go with that, im 18 and dont have that money lol. If I did have that money my truck would be lifted like 2 feet lol

 

two things i would like to add concerning the use of synthetic lines. first obviously is that they are lighter than their steel counterparts making them easier to pull out and handle. second is that if one were to break the synthetic line will fall down to the ground compared to the steel one which you should jump for cover and pray it doesnt hit you while it flys by your head like a rubber band.

 

Interesting.
The only things I buy from Harbor Freight are wrenches and sockets because those are just about the only things they sell that won't end up broken after a few uses.

 

wow you got some good luck i end up with half of them broken or striped out lol.

now on to the winch cheaper in this case where you don't have a lot of $ is not how you should think.
OK it works till you get stuck bad! and it Fry's then you need a tow truck more money plus you need to replace the winch = more money plus the time to remove it and install the new one? to me time = money so i do under stand no money i am married and have to teens with needs like the in fashion! save your money till you have the $ for a good winch and save the headache

 

Thats not my point lol. Im savin up for a fabtech lift for my truck which is a little more than 2k. Im just not going to spend a grand on a winch. Thats simply the answer. My friend has 35" mud tires on his truck, hes gotten stuck up to his bumper and his winch has pulled him out. Further more I have heard of the other winches even performing better than warns. Dont get me wrong they are allot slower than a warn but the get you out. Hes had his winch out countless times and it still works fine. personally if i had the money to spend on a winch like that, i still wouldnt spend that much on it lol. Thats just me though

 

Then by all means buy your smittybuilt.

 

You should never wrap a winch cable around something ! Thats one of the best ways to ruin a cable. Use straps and shackles. Winch safe and live to wheel another day.

 

Never skimp on something you need to rely on. Cheapness has a way of catching up to you in some form. Buy the right tool the first time and hopefully with good research the one you selected provides great and reliable service. A winch is the last thing I would skimp on if I was into going off roading.

 

save your breath i think his mind is made up and i respect that. don't agree with it but i respect it

 

Main answer still really wasnt answered though lmao. Synthetic or steel cable?

 

synthetic
all the way