I'm looking to put a good/reliable winch on my 03 chevy 1500 HD crew cab. Anyone have a Warn M15000? Or others similar for the big rigs?

Also, any recommendations on bumpers/mounting hardware as well?

Thanks in advance!

I'm looking to put a good/reliable winch on my 03 chevy 1500 HD crew cab. Anyone have a Warn M15000? Or others similar for the big rigs?

Also, any recommendations on bumpers/mounting hardware as well?

Thanks in advance!

a 15,000lbs winch for a little half ton... dont u think that is a little over kill? check out the warn 9500's or a 12,000... but it all depends on what u are going to use it for... my 2 cents

thanks for the reply juice...

true, it may not weigh as much as a 1 ton dually but at 153" wheelbase and 237" overall length, that's not exactly a "little" truck. but i digress.

the reason for my posting this question is for that very reason...i've got this question. i don't know winches. i don't know what's appropriate, so therefore i don't know what's overkill.

i would like to have the winch as needed (hopefully not too often) for the resuce of my truck (i usually wheel with just my truck, not in a group). so something that can be operated remotely (from inside truck) would be nice. the truck, if stuck, wouldn't be stuck on flat land, so hauling the 6,000 lbs (truck+~gear) up a hill would and over rocks/boulders i think would essentially make the load much higher depending on the situation. therefore, i was thinking something in the 9,000+lbs (minimum) rating would be needed.
i would venture to guess, and it is just a guess on my part, that the majority of off-road winches are geared toward much lighter, smaller rigs that seem to dominate the sceen (jeeps of all flavors, even bronco's, blazers, etc). i can imagine that the warn 9500 would be excellent for those situations.

anyone with an extended/cc fullsize truck have a warn 9500 or similar? what's your experience and recommendations?

oh yeah...b.t.w. what kind of situation would the warn 15000 be used for then? just currious.

to answer my own b.t.w.

"So who the heck would ever need a winch capable of pulling 15,000 pounds? If you wheel a fullsize truck wearing heavy equipment such as big axles and large tires, then you can exceed the capacity of a 12,000-pound winch. We like to have a winch that is capable of pulling around twice the weight of the vehicle; the Super Duty Crew Cab we installed our M15 on weighs in at 6,500 pounds. Slather that same vehicle in mud and add some cargo, then get it real stuck, and it would be easy to see a 12,000-pound winch being taxed. And that’s why M15 was built."

From:
This Site (http://www.fourwheeler.com/howto/16698/)

So that guy's scenario really isn't that way off from mine, except I would probably be swapping the mud for uphill angles over rocks/roots & other trail debris.

I guess my question now evolves into...Anyone with an offroad rig similar to mine with suggestions/experiences with winches rated at 12,000+ lbs??

thanks again.

your truck is ALOT lighter than a superduty. Not saying overkill is bad though. Im going to put a 16.5k warn on my half ton, but then again its not so much a half ton anymore.... weight about the same or more than a dually.

http://homepage.mac.com/darketernal/.Pictures/SASPics/DSCN8289.JPG

Serisouly though, look into a 12k warn and that should be more than enough.

your truck is ALOT lighter than a superduty

lol you guys, i guess someone would consider a 200 lb difference (5,841 - 5,615) an enourmous amount.

F250_F350 Super Duty CC Short Bed (http://auto.consumerguide.com/auto/new/reviews/full/index.cfm/id/23214)

HD CC Short Bed (http://auto.consumerguide.com/auto/new/reviews/full/index.cfm/id/23183)

i guess the bottom line for me is i want/need a little overkill, as apposed to underkill because as mentioned before, i usually wheel alone and not in a group. i've been stranded before (trucks w/o winches)...talk about a party foul and letting the wind out of one's sails. that will ruin a great weekend anytime in my book.

dark...wow, if your going with a 16.5, i don't feel so silly about asking about the M15. your recommendation for a 12k winch sounds reasonable. thanks for your suggestion!

b.t.w nice looking truck darketernal!

You can always use a snatch block. A 9000# can do an awful lot with double line. Just another option I guess.

az-k5...i never thought about using a snatch block. actually, i really didn't even know what one was till i just now googled it.

im wondering though:

1. How does it work (how to set it up). Do you need an additional line + coupler/hook, as in the middle picture? Or is that the one continuous line from the winch?

2. I'm assuming that if one wanted to be safe, the block rating should be equal to or higher than that of the winch capacity? Or should the block be double?

http://4x4connection.com/images/arb/snatchblockline.jpg

Most often it is set up like the middle pic above.

A snatch block is basically a pulley. You use the same anchor point as you would with single line. You wrap a strap around the anchor and attach a snatch block to the strap. Then run the cable out, thru the block, back to a hook on the truck. It doubles your pull power but it cuts your speed in half too. They are also helpful when the anchor is only a few feet from the winch and you would get 4000# pull due to the final wrap issue. Double the pull and maybe hit the next layer too.

Oh, check the tech stuff out. It is the best reason to be on this site. Read this it will answer a lot of questions.
BillaVista's Recovery Bible (http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/Recovery/index.html)

excellent info & resources az-k5!

thanks for the help. it's always good to know the best practices and safe way of doing things, especially on this topic!