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Posted by: 95wolv
If you are going to do a lot of plowing, it may be worthwhile to invest in an electric lift system,it uses a small electric motor to lift the plow,very quiet and saves your winch. If you plan on using your winch,the best thing to do is remove your cable, and get a 5 or 6 foot piece in its place.That way, you save wear and tear on the long cable,and prevents it being snarled on the couple of feet it will use lifting the blade. The smaller diameter on the drum will also make it lift more efficiently,saving your motor on the winch.
Posted by: 95wolv
Now why didn't I think of that ????
Posted by: tomthetreeguy
I've been plowing by using my winch as a lift for eight years. I live in Minneapolis so I know about snow BR>
I put in a better switch though. The plastic bodied rocker switch with the yellow rocker is lame. Not weather proof and the contacts are too small for the electrical load.
I wnet to Radio Shack and bought a double pole double throw spring to center switch. A nice, heavy duty toggle switch. The also sell small plastic boxes with removable sides. Buy a rubber boot to go over the switch. The box is mounted within thumb's reach of my left hand. I wired the switch so that the cable goes out when I push the switch forward. Intuitive.
Using the winch for lifting the plow can't damage it. Think for a second before saying that a manual lift is needed How heavy is the plow? Tens of pounds. How often is the winch used? Seconds at a time. Can the winch overheat? Well, we're plowing snow so it must be cool if not COLD. The capacity of the winch is in the thousands of pounds. If it isn't up for the task of lifting a little sheet metal you're going to stay stuck when you're out in the boondocks.
Tom
Posted by: tomthetreeguy
I'd love to but the digi cam pooped out and is on its way in for warranty.
By using the Radio Shack box I have more places to mount the switch. I use a piece of aluminum strap. Bent it to line up with one of the bolts that clamp on the brake handle on the left. To get the bends right I first used a piece of coat hanger. Solder works good too, very flexible.
Be sure to use heavy strapping so that the switch doesn't move around. Add a dab of silicone around the wires to keep water out. Mount the box with the opening down to seal it a little better too.
Tom
Posted by: upnort
1. Remove the hook from the regular spool attach a 7-10 ' length with a chain or cable link, reattach hook to end of short piece.
2. You want to keep tension on your cable while re-spooling. You can pull machine up hill if handy, but i put the truck in N and with the atv brakes locked pull the truck to me while feeding the cable onto the spool. This packs the cable tighter than just holding with your hand
Posted by: Fango
If you want to save your cable....I would suggest buying a short piece (10 ft) of cable....take your good cable off for the winter and spool on the shorter one and add a small clevis.
This way you are not ruining your 50ft cable.
Posted by: Fango
I haven't seen the set up...but I can already tell ya it costs more then a 10 feet of throw away cable. But if you got the dough......
Posted by: swampdonkeykiller
The 10' of cable is fine if you are just going to push snow, but if you are going to be putting your plow on and off all the time and going into the bush, you may want to think about not using your winch at all and getting a manual lift setup. To respool your cable, do what upnort said but unspool your old cable all the way way out first to respool it all properly.
Posted by: swampdonkeykiller
If you are constantly up and down with the winch, you will probably wear out the switch, relay and the motor prematurely. Depending on how much forward and reverse moving you do, you may lift and lower that plow 100 times in one plow session. That is almost a season of quadding right there. I would say go manual or find some other sort of electrical winch setup that is cheaper than a warn. I made a manual setup for a plow that I have. It isn't pretty but has worked for 10 years.
Posted by: swampdonkeykiller
Mine is on my handlebar too and yes it is a little tricky to guide it in and hold the button but it can be done.
Posted by: 02Polaris700
If someone cld just give a respooling tip I wld appreciate it also. On a side note, I think the swapping of ur 50' spool for 10' of wire is a great idea BUT what the heck do you do with 10' of wire if you get stuck in the woods/swamp? Just a question, I just bought/mounted my brand new Superwinch to my quad but it wasnt just for plow use.
Posted by: 02Polaris700
swamp: can u tell me why u think the winch is not a good lifting mechanism? I ask cuz the new Glacier system doesnt have a manual set up, its either the winch or electric lift.
Posted by: 02Polaris700
Quad: I actually did what you suggested but using a tree in the backyard.
Maybe Im asking the wrong question, where do you guys have ur switch mounted?
I mounted mine on the l/s handlebar...... so when I was reeling in the quad to the tree I was in an awkward position try to feed the wire rope properly onto the reel as I leaned over the front end to reach for the switch. Not too crazy about that, me thinks that might lead to an incident sooner or later.
Should I keep the switch in a floating position? Any suggestions/advice or even better yet pics of how YOU guys mounted/set-up ur winch switch wld be some help.
TIA!
Posted by: 02Polaris700
Hey Tom!
Any chance on sending me a few pics of how you mounted ur switch box to the handlebar?
The hardware that came with my SuperWinch just isnt allowing me to place the switch in a good position where I can actually get to the switch w/ my thumb w/out having to leave the grip.
Anyone else who has a unique mount please do share ur pics!
TIA!
Posted by: Bears
Hello Guys,
I am fairly new here. I have an Arctic Cat 500i TBX that I will be using to plow snow. I have a warn winch that I will be using to lift the plow. I have read that ther cable can get damaged due to this repeating lifting and lowereing of the blade. What is the best way to re-spool the cable to ensure a tight and even wind? What other recautions should I take? Thanks!
Posted by: DKNARND
Or buy the Montana Jacks system, they have an attachment that goes into the front receiver that positions the winch up over the blade so there is no angle on the cable, just a straight pull in and out. I like their reciever multi-mount set up. Wish I would have put that set-up on my quad before I started buying other stuff. To put it on now I would have to modify allot of already added on components. Although I still may do it.
Posted by: DKNARND
Oh yea!! You could buy allot of cable for the price of one of the Montana Jacks receiver/multi mount systems. But what you are getting for that money is being able to move winch from front to back, gives a solid attachment point up front if someone needs to pull you, If you do allot of hauling they have different attachments that really expand your hauling capability.
Posted by: Quad4Fun
YOu don't need to do much to re-spool. The easiest way is to just attach your hook to something SOLID, and pull yourself in. I hook up to the receiver on the back of my truck. The weight of your quad is sufficient to tighten it up, just make sure you are not on any kind of downhill grade. A slight uphill grade is best if possible. After you do it a couple times it will become easier, but you just need to make sure you spool it back on straight. GOOD LUCK
Posted by: Quad4Fun
I have my switch mounted on the LEFT handlebar, I definately would not put it on the RIGHT side. You want to be able to use the switch and the throttle at the same time. I have a Honda Rincon. It is mounted hanging down below the handle bar itself. I haven't had any problems using it while respooling or doing any doing anything else. You'll just have to play with it's location until you find a spot that works good for you. You can always buy the kit that allows you to use a seperate remote on a cord that plugs in and is not connected to anything. A buddy of mine has both a handle bar mounted switch and remote on a cord. In some situations one is esier to use than the other. With the plow you surely want a mounted swith. Both may not be necessary, but seems to work great. Good Luck.................................
