Winch Basics - Polaris MS4000 Service And Owner's Manual

ELECTRIC WINCH BASICS
So, you have your Warn winch and
you're ready to get out on the trails: climb
a few boulders, splash a little mud,
WARNING
!
traverse the occasional stream. Basically,
Never operate
you're ready to explore the backcountry
or install a
and otherwise have a great time.
winch without
Well, if you're smart enough to go
prepared with the best, you're probably
reading or
smart enough to know that to keep
understanding
having a great time, you need to fully
the operator's
understand your winch and the winching
manual
operation.
That's exactly what this guide intends
to do: provide you with a basic under-
standing of your winch and teach you the
basics of proper winching techniques.
But before we get started, we must
Structural
components of a
planetary gear
winch
1
WARN INDUSTRIES • THE BASIC GUIDE TO WINCHING TECHNIQUES
G O P R E P A R E D
emphasize that the information in this
guide is general in nature. Because no
two situations are alike, it would be
nearly impossible to review them all. We
can, however, provide you with the
general principles and techniques. Then
it is up to you to take the time to analyze
the situation and apply the proper
technique.
Along with a little common sense, the
guidelines laid out in this book can help
you keep off-roading fun. Just remember
to think through each situation before you
act and TREAD LIGHTLY!
2
3
8
5
4
™
6
Remote Control Switch
To start, you should familiarize
yourself with your Warn winch and each
of its components: Practice using your
winch before using it on the trail.
Motor Typically the winch motor is
1
powered by the vehicle's battery. The
motor provides power to the gear
6
mechanism, which turns the winch drum
and winds the rope.
2 Winch Drum The winch drum is the
cylinder onto which the rope feeds. The
drum is driven by the motor and drive
train. Its direction can be changed using
the winch switch.
Wire / Synthetic Rope The rope's
3
diameter and length are determined by
the winch's load capacity and design.
Wrapped around the winch drum and fed
through the fairlead, the rope is looped at
the end to accept the hook's clevis pin.
Fairlead When using the winch at
4
an angle, the fairlead (or wire lead) acts
to guide the rope onto the spooling drum.
It minimizes damage to the rope while it
goes through the winch mount or
bumper.
7
Handheld Wireless Remote Control
Gear Train The reduction gear
5
converts the winch motor power into a
large pulling force. The gear train design
makes it possible for the winch to be
lighter and more compact.
6 Braking System Braking action is
automatically applied to the winch drum
when the winch motor is stopped and
there is load on the rope. The braking
action is applied by the motor or a
separate mechanical brake, depending
on the winch construction.
Clutch The clutch allows the
7
operator to manually disengage the
spooling drum from the gear train,
enabling the drum to rotate freely (known
as "freespooling"). Engaging the clutch
"locks" the winch drum back onto the
gear train.
Tie Rods Ties the end housings
8
together as a structural unit.
WARN INDUSTRIES • THE BASIC GUIDE TO WINCHING TECHNIQUES
G O P R E P A R E D
™
7
Rocker Switch
Winch controls
come in many
forms. All enable
the operator to
start, stop and
change the
direction of the
winch drum
rotation.
! CAUTION
Never engage
or disengage
the clutch if
winch is under
load, rope is in
tension, or
rope drum is
moving.