Posted by chriscase on Saturday, August 26, 2006 at 11:51PM :
In Reply to: Winch Cable Condition Assessment posted by Dale on Saturday, August 26, 2006 at 10:29PM :
Test it by trying to pull a tree down? Just don't anchor the truck back too good. The shear pin should break first, but it ought to have no problem dragging the truck around first, even if you are standing on the brakes with both feet. Put a blanket or two over the cable- to act as a parachute if the cable breaks. And use a strap around the tree- no need to kill a good tree. Always keep spectators away a couple cable lengths.
Tires only have a coefficient of friction less than one- a 5,300# truck only has 5,000# of drag. Adding some chocks adds the weight of the truck that needs to be lifted up the chocks. Fresh 1/2 cable is good for about 10,000#. Your truck should stall first- if the pin don't shear. Be sure to check the gear oil in the winch first. I only ever broke some really rotten cable, obviously rusted down. But it sure had pulled a bunch of folks out of the rough. It doesn't usually take 10,000# of pull to unstick a 5,000# truck. But it takes way too much to pull stumps. It's the only way I know anydody broke a good PTO winch. If you must, run the cable (or a chain) over the top of the stump to a big root on the far side, so the stump gets rolled up out of the ground- you will be trying to pull one side at a time instead of pulling the whole stump sideways.
GI's had a canvas cover over the winch cable. "Pack Covers" are cheap on eBay. Might work well if you replaced the elastic with a couple strings.
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