Which WINCH should I buy??

[the great him]

Your $200 savings will easily be eaten up with cost of good power cable and installation.

Also I have been wheeling most of the places you have including Iraq and Afghanistan in vehicles much much larger than our 4 Runners. I also have the ASI H8 (additional skills identifier for recovery)which I could go into formulas that blow your arguement of WLL and how a shackle system requires double the WLL on a winch line. While I do not discredit the advantages of having a winch as a RECOVERY tool a locker is a capability tool. Sure a locker can get you into situations that a Winch might be necessary for the recovery however it will get you over and through a lot of obstacles that an open open vehicle will get stuck on. I have been wheeling for as long as you have been alive and only needed a winch a few times, but my lockers have been used a lot more. Just remember two seperate purposes for the two items. If you are crazy enough to wheel alone then getting a Winch needs to be much higher priority than lockers.

Winch= Recovery tool
Lockers= Capability tool

what will lockers get you thought that a winch will not? and what will a winch do that lockers will not?

that is my point, and you can not argue that point

as far as the $200 being eatin up in the wire, there is no reason to have to spend that much on power cables, i have gone down to a local auto parts(napa) and bought 2awg wire that runs the length or my truck for well under $100. and then the connectors are only like another $5-10. but again we did not add in the cost of installing a locker into the equation either, each locker is going to run you right around $200-400 depending on the shop and how/what they replace when doing it, seals ect. nor did we factor in the cost of the air compressor, thats roughly another $180+.... the winch is a much cheaper option that will do anything and everything that lockers will and more.

 

[Pikeman]

what will lockers get you thought that a winch will not? and what will a winch do that lockers will not?

that is my point, and you can not argue that point
the winch is a much cheaper option that will do anything and everything that lockers will and more.

Depends on the locker and who is doing the install. I do not do electrical one of my many weak points. I can however install a locker and I did install my locker. Total cost= $325 Aussie locker installed with all fluids and gaskets. If you are saying ARB is the only locker option then yes it is more expensive than average Winch. Again difference between a Winch and a Locker

Winch= Recovery, get stuck it helps you out and over
Locker= Capability, Allows you to drive through and over most obstacles instead of spending time recovering.

As mentioned I have used my lockers on the trail far more than I have used a Winch, in fact none of my vehicles have ever had a winch. In fact I know that your average off-road enthusiast will only use their winch a few times in their lifetime. I will be adding a winch shortly though as it is a good tool. A winch will eventually get you through obstacles that if you had a locker you could just drive through and yes there will be times you cannot drive through/ over and obstacle. No a locker will not do some things a Winch can perform, again two different purposes. I just chose a locker first in order to spend more time inside the warmth of my vehicle driving over the terrain instead of outside in the elements spooling cable in and out.

 

[the great him]

Depends on the locker and who is doing the install. I do not do electrical one of my many weak points. I can however install a locker and I did install my locker. Total cost= $325 Aussie locker installed with all fluids and gaskets. If you are saying ARB is the only locker option then yes it is more expensive than average Winch. Again difference between a Winch and a Locker

Winch= Recovery, get stuck it helps you out and over
Locker= Capability, Allows you to drive through and over most obstacles instead of spending time recovering.

As mentioned I have used my lockers on the trail far more than I have used a Winch, in fact none of my vehicles have ever had a winch. In fact I know that your average off-road enthusiast will only use their winch a few times in their lifetime. I will be adding a winch shortly though as it is a good tool. A winch will eventually get you through obstacles that if you had a locker you could just drive through and yes there will be times you cannot drive through/ over and obstacle. No a locker will not do some things a Winch can perform, again two different purposes. I just chose a locker first in order to spend more time inside the warmth of my vehicle driving over the terrain instead of outside in the elements spooling cable in and out.

reread my post again, i was comparing and ARB air locker to a Warn m8000...
you can buy a winch for $2-300 brand new all day long if you want a budget winch.

not everybody has lockers infact here in the PNW more people have winches than lockers who wheel their rigs. a winch can go from vehicle to vehicle where as a locker can not, its stuck in that truck(unless you do a lot of work, a lot more than pulling one pin and unplugging something...) i had two winches before i ever had one locker. to me a locker was cost prohibitive compared to a winch as stated that a winch can go to multiple vehicles. a winch can be a one time investment that will last long beyond the currently owned vehicle. these are all the things i looked at and advise people to look at when debating over a winch vs locker(s).

yes lockers have advantages, but they have more limitations imo

 

[Pikeman]

Ok PNW lots of snow- lockers are not always your friend. It is very much regional as to priority. Also I cannot say this enough, they have two seperate purposes. Totally agree that once you invest in a Winch you can take the time to move to other vehicles. Personally I have issues with portable winch plates and feel they should be mounted in the bumper and not have to carry 100+ lbs from front to back whenever I need to use it, and several other reasons. So yes once you buy a winch you can theoretically have it forever. I personally have had the same stereo head unit in 4 vehicles now. The reason I used theoretically is most people will not take the time to remove or swap items like a high end stereo or quality winch even though those items do not increase resale that much if at all to your vehicle.