Harbor freight winches

The good bad and ugly of their winches? Gonna need a
12000 lb.before too long

I bought HF 12000 # several years ago, easy to work, mine does not have the remote. I have had no problems with it and would buy one again

I bought a 12,000 lb. one several years ago. It came with the wired controls. A couple of years later the wiring in the controller shorted out. I went on line and discovered they had come out with the wireless with an adapter for the older winches. Works great.

Bought a 12000 5-6 years ago...flawless and has plenty of power.

If you do an internet search on reviews of those winches, you'll find they have a very, very good reputation. I have a similar Traveler brand (from Tractor Supply) that rumor says is made in one of the same factories as HF's. Mines 9K IIRC, been a great tool for me. I did have to tighten up some nuts and screws on it.

I bought the HF 12,000-pound winch and mounting plate to add to a new car trailer in 2015. It turned out to be way more power than I would have needed, but it works flawlessly. I did a lot of research before buying it and found, as others have said, that it has a very positive reputation.

More questions . . . How do they stand up to weather when left outside on the trailer and how much winch do you need to pull a 5000 lb tractor on a trailer with 30 degree ramps?

I have 5000 lb HF winch. It was plenty of power for most things,an added snatch block gives it all the power it needs.But a bigger one would be nice to have.I built a tin cover to protect it from the weather,added a small tool box beside it to store the cords and snatchblock.No complaints

I bought the cheapie 2500 with a 50 buck coupon a number of years ago. Still there sitting in the open in back of the pickup. Managed to pull apart the cable when it drug over a sharp angle iron corner trying to pull out a stuck trailer. Tied a knot, moved, and got the trailer out. It will pull the back end of the pickup down just like when I load a 1500# bale on my bale mover. Lately the little bluetooth button didn't always want to connect but put new batteries in it and works now. I may upgrade to a bigger one but don't need a 12K. Been pricing cable and it is just about as cheap to get a new unit than replace the cable.

My 12v electric over hydraulic bale mover came with either 2 or 4 gauge stranded wire to run from the battery underneath the truck and back over the top. I just tied into that since I bolted the winch to the bale mover mount. Just taped the connections so If I throw a shovel or wire in the back it won't short out. I really need to build a box for the bale mover hydraulic unit so I don't throw something back there and break it off.

With the use of my gin poles attached to my bale mover and a pulley, I brought home a 28 foot windmill about 5 miles in two pieces. Cable held up fine with the 2500.

Had a half inch forged eyebolt from tsc in the end of my gin poles for the pulley. Tried to pick up something heavy and it pulled the rear end of the f150 pickup down and finally the eyebolt pulled apart. Now I use 2 wraps of chain to hook the pulley to.

Be prepared to spend the extra bux for the heavy gauge cable from the battery. Something keeps running down my battery so I keep the breaker under the hood switched off when not using the bale mover or winch.

I bought a 9000 lb HF winch in March of 2007 and its still going strong....I use a snatch block to double the pulling power...On real hard pulls I go for 15-20 seconds and then stop and let the winch cool down for awhile....At several farm sales I've watched people melt down winches on real hard pulls and then blame the winch...One guy had the smoke rolling from it and kept on going..Several of us told him he needed to stop but he didnt listen..

What Dzc3 said times two.....gobble

agreed. I bought a 12,000 and have never regretted it.
Mine is on a sled that I chain to the deck of the trailer. When not in use, in a warm dry barn.
excellent quality.

Fr. Bob

On sale right now.
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I have a 12k one on my goose neck tractor hauler. Works like a champ. I bought the wireless adapter for it because the pendant was too short. HF makes two wireless adapters. Buy the cheaper one. I bought the expensive one first, but it would not fit on the winch. The 12k has a set of springs that help keep the cable winding correctly. They interfere with the plug just enough that it would not plug in. The cheaper one fits fine. The only thing you will need for a HF winch is a cover. I bought a really high quality vinyl cover on line. They last about five years out in the weather.

Winches in general are just like welders, they have a duty cycle. None of them are made to run 100% of the time. The heavier the load the shorter the duty cycle. Touching the motor during use should give you an idea of how hot its getting when in use.

OTJ

Mounted my HF 12K high on my gooseneck. Cut out a plastic 30 gallon barrel for a cover held down with tarp straps. Remote and hard wired. Marine battery in gooseneck toolbox. Snatchblock, short chains, and shackles and I can safely load most anything. I really like using the remote while I am seated on a dead tractor! Got the 2” receiver mount so it could be used on a different trailer or vehicle. Don

I have 2 of the 2500 winches from Harbor Freight, one on the front of a 4 wheeler and the other in the front of the bed on my pickup. Both seem to work great though I haven't used them a lot. One on back of pickup bed is to pull something into bed on ramps. Have used it to load 4 wheelers and appliances on hand truck. 4 wheeler one is most in the wet but seems to work fine. both are remote control which works great. Only problem I had was I had to put an on off switch on 4 wheeler and truck disconnect or I couldn't use one around the other or the wrong one would work, wireless remotes on same frequency.

I also have the 12,000 lb winch. Just bought the remote for it. I have it covered with a plastic box with a racket strap to hold the box down.
Never had any problems with it after 6-7 years, but I did put a better cable on the winch.

I've seen one Badland 12,000 pound winch crap out on the owner. He didn't pay attention and let the winch motor get too hot. What holds the pole magnets to the inside of the motor case? Well, our chinese friends use glue. Thats right-- GLUE. Too much heat and there went the pole magnets. Warrenty denied.

I'd chance one, but let it cool down if it's a long pull or a short heavy one.

Beagle

My 9,000 lb has been on my gooseneck since right after I bought the trailer. I sadly have no place inside to store the trailer so the winch also stays out in the weather and it's been that way for at least 15 years. I keep the control in the toolbox and had to put another switch on the control, other than that it's been a lifesaver for me. I carry 3 snatch blocks and do not hesitate to use them. Not having them or not using them is usually the cause of failure of any wench. I've loaded dead 350 John Deere dozers and I don't know how many tractors and equipment with it. I may someday buy a 12,000 lb one if this one ever dies. Keith

(quoted from post at 12:37:25 11/20/20) I bought a 9000 lb HF winch in March of 2007 and its still going strong....I use a snatch block to double the pulling power...On real hard pulls I go for 15-20 seconds and then stop and let the winch cool down for awhile....At several farm sales I've watched people melt down winches on real hard pulls and then blame the winch...One guy had the smoke rolling from it and kept on going..Several of us told him he needed to stop but he didnt listen..

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I agree. And you can toast your battery or charging system if you push them too hard too. Or at least it seems that way to me. I know I over did it one day with my winch pulling a log and I had some electrical issues right after that. It's all magic to me, but it seemed connected.

The one thing I did get with my winch that I wasn't sure about when I bought it was the synthetic rope winch line. Everyone seems to want the wire rope, so that's how I got a near $400.00 original priced winch for $175.00. Gotta say, the rope line is about a zillion times easier to use in my applications (wood gathering mostly) than a wire rope. IIRC, the rope is rated for almost twice what the winch is.