Ihave an old 8274 that works normally under no load. When it is under load it slows down until it stops. The motor isn't hot or doesn't smoke. The selenoids are fairly new but they are starter selenoids from napa. Are the selenoids not letting enough current through or are the brushes in the motor wore out ? Any help would be appreciated :confused:

I'd suspect the solenoids, but pull the motor apart and take a peek at the brushes. Got a good ground and +, fat cables, with good connections? Dealing with the motor: finess, not brute strength.

I have fat cables on the winch, as big as on buddy's hs9500. the connections are good, and free of corrosion

I would suspect the solenoids. Starter solenoids are not intended for constant load. You need to go to a different type of solenoid that is rated for extended use.

First thing you need to do is ditch the Napa crap and put Warn solenoids (pn 2040 for old style and 28396 for new style) in. Clean all connections (including the solenoid bracket to the motor as this is the ground for the 2040 solenoids. Make sure you run the ground wire (there is one right?) from the motor case to the battery.

Second, check and make sure the winch freespools smoothly. If it does not, find the source of the bind (mounting, brake, gearset, ect) and correct it. You be suprised how much of a load the winch will see if things are bound up.

If you try all this and you still have problems you will need to have the motor checked out.

Definitely the solenoids, I had a similar problem with an old Superwinch OX that I bought used in the early 90's. Replaced the aftermarket (couldn't really tell *what* they were from) solenoids with OEM replacements and the problem went away, the winch was a trooper and was still pulling strong when I sold it in 1994.