sluggish winch

[QuintinG]

last time i went out riding my winch decided to crap out on me. it makes a click sound when i push the in/out button but only moves the cable drum a very small amount and very slowly. it acts like its getting very little power to it. anyone know the problem? i having a PCV w/ autotune and heated hand grips and thought maybe theyre sucking up too much voltage.

 

[polarisdragon800]

Did it work fine before you added the heated grips? does it do it all the time? sometimes they do it after pulling in lots of cable withought stopping.

 

[the_real_wild1]

Might help if you post what kind of winch.

 

[QuintinG]

Yeah it worked fine with all the add on's before and after they were all put on. And yes it started doing this the last ride I was on and now it is always doing it. I've got a bunch of cable spooled out and I can't get the winch to pull it back in.

 

[polarisdragon800]

My dad had the same problem once. He had all the cable spooled out but then it began to power out half way through. Let it cool down and then It worked fine

 

[QuintinG]

No its not overheating. I've only got about 15 ft of line spooled and and I've left the machine for days so its plenty cooled off. Its a warn xt 30. The original winch that came with the quad brand new.

 

[TheMuffinMan]

Check the rubber caps that cover the electrical leads on the winch body. They can pack up with mud causing a loss of conductivity. Peel the cap back, remove the nut holding the electrical lead, clean up both the lead and the post, cover the post in dialectic grease and put the leads back on. That might fix it.

 

[polarisdragon800]

Yea that may be it. Or check your silonoid. You may need a new one.

 

[kbrunlees]

Check your brushes you will find that they are full of crud. You have to run the winch after you put it under water as warn winches are not waterproof. Always run out some cable and reel it in under pressure that will heat up the unit and dry it out.

 

[QuintinG]

thanks for the tips so far guys. i'll keep fiddlin with it tomorrow and see if anything helps. keep em coming... it could be anything

 

[the_real_wild1]

Do the basics first. Check your voltage at the battery. Compare it to the voltage at the contactor both going in and out. If it is the same there then check the voltage going into the winch. If you have the same 12v going into your winch while operating it then the winch is hooped and has to come apart for further inspection. If the voltage drops off at the contactor then it is faulty. If you dont have 12v and only have 8 or less volts at you battery then start looking there.

 

[QuintinG]

well i basically rebuilt the winch and and ended up cleaning tons of muddy water and sludge out from the electric motor. brake clean and an air gun. then i put a bead of silicone on it afterwards. thanks for all the tips guys.

 

[tex78]

my back winch did the same thing........ i found a rock between the drum and housing all jammed up.... it would go just forward and backwards like 1/2 inch....

broke the rock out and its all good..