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A Guide to Winches
If you're looking to buy a wich, ask yourself these questions:
Will I be pulling or lifting something?
While on the surface a winch and a hoist may look similar, but they're
not. The main difference is that a winch is a tool designed to pull
a load -- usually, horizontally; a hoist is designed to lift it, almost
always, vertically. Selecting the proper tool helps ensure you will
get the job done in the safest, most efficient manner.
A power source--what do I have to work with?
12 Volt DC battery power or 120 Volt AC.
How heavy will the load be and is it a rolling load or
non-rolling load?
Non-rolling loads must take into account the surface and grade
that they are on. This calls for more pulling capacity since the winch
will
have to overcome the friction of the surface as well as the load it self.
Usually, take the gross weight of the load and multiply it
by 1.5 times -- this gives the minimum capacity of the winch needed.
Rolling loads, however, require less mechanical effort to move the load
once the initial inertia has been overcome. For rolling loads where an
incline is involved, such as pulling equipment and vehicles onto trailers,
the percent of grade affects the "load" the winch can pull.

How will the load be anchored or mounted? That is, to a fixed location
such as a trailer or machinery or a more temporary use such that it
is moved from place to place?
A winch or hoist
must
have a point to pull against. It has to be able to handle the full
weight of the object being moved.
How does one attach a load?
Look at the list of tools on the left side of this page. Our vendor-partner
offers line of rigging and attachment accessories that are rated to meet
pulling or lifting capacities of our winches:
Clevis / Shackles
The shackle is a safe means for connecting the looped ends of cables,
straps and chains. It also provides a safe place to connect the winch
hook.
Load Strap / Sling
This is normally made of tough high-quality nylon and allows the operator
to secure the winch and/or the winch wire rope to a wide variety of
anchor points and objects. Snatch Block/Pulley
Used properly, the multi-purpose snatch block can double the pulling
power of any winch, or change your pulling direction without damaging
the wire rope. They also reduce heat build up and reduce amp (current)
draw.
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