Roller fairlead for winch or not?

[Boondox]

What's the advantage of getting a roller fairlead for an ATV winch versus the non-rolling type?

Pete

 

[Farmwithjunk]

What's the advantage of getting a roller fairlead for an ATV winch versus the non-rolling type?

Pete

If you use the winch, your cable will last longer with the roller.

 

[rjgogo]

If you use the winch, your cable will last longer with the roller.

unless you use synthetic rope.

steel cable I would use the roller, synthetic, I would not.

 

[257NH]

I think they are worth the extra money.Your cable will last a lot longer,especially if you have to hook to something from a side angle.

 

[dknarnd]

unless you use synthetic rope.

steel cable I would use the roller, synthetic, I would not.

This statement sums it up correctly!!!!

 

[DieselPower]

Winch cable guides greatly increase the life of the winch cable. When they are not used the cable can roll up across itself in a X pattern. When you then load the cable the crossed section of the X tends to get crushed which shortens it's life. With a guide the cable is guided evenly across the spool so it winds up like a roll of sewing thread. Don't forget to lube your cable every once in a while to. It is a mechanical component that need's service just like your engine or transmission. A properly lubed cable can last many times longer than one that is not.

 

[ovrszd]

Winch cable guides greatly increase the life of the winch cable. When they are not used the cable can roll up across itself in a X pattern. When you then load the cable the crossed section of the X tends to get crushed which shortens it's life. With a guide the cable is guided evenly across the spool so it winds up like a roll of sewing thread. Don't forget to lube your cable every once in a while to. It is a mechanical component that need's service just like your engine or transmission. A properly lubed cable can last many times longer than one that is not.

Whooooppss, gotta counter this statement. All of my comments below are in regards to steel cable.

The Roller Fairlead will do nothing to guide the cable when spooling. That will be determined by the direction of pull. It's inevitable that the cable will spool tangled and crossed over when used. Don't worry about that too much while pulling unless it piles up on one end of the drum so much that it starts rubbing on the winch structure or fairlead. When you park the vehicle for the day it's very important that you unroll the cable and respool the cable manually, guiding the cable back and forth across the drum so that it is not crossed over itself and will be ready for use the next use without kinks. I do this by hooking the cable hook to a stationary object, put the winch in freespool and back the vehicle away from the hook until I have unrolled down to a good straight spool. Then I engage the winch and start spooling in cable while dragging the vehicle and guiding the cable back and forth across the spool. On my ATVs I do that while sitting on them and watching the cable spool. On my Jeeps I use my remote control and guide the cable by hand while spooling. When I'm done the cable is smoothly spooled without any kinks or crossovers.

As for oiling the cable. I do not oil my cables. I wash them if they get packed with dirt/mud, leaving them unspooled and stretched taut until dry, then respool, guiding the cable evenly on the drum. If you oil your cable it will attract dust, sand, dirt, etc., which will become embedded in the cable and then start grinding on the cable strands every time you use it, eventually weakening the cable.

As was stated above, use a Roller Fairlead for steel cable and a Hawse Fairlead for synthetic cable. If you try to use a Roller Fairlead on synthetic cable it will get pinched between the rollers and damage the cable. If you use a Hawse Fairlead on steel cable, the cable will wear grooves in the Fairlead and then those grooves will start cutting strands of the steel cable, weakening it until it fails. Properly use and care for your winch cable and it will give you years and years of service.

 

[DieselPower]

Whooooppss, gotta counter this statement. All of my comments below are in regards to steel cable.

The Roller Fairlead will do nothing to guide the cable when spooling. That will be determined by the direction of pull. It's inevitable that the cable will spool tangled and crossed over when used. Don't worry about that too much while pulling unless it piles up on one end of the drum so much that it starts rubbing on the winch structure or fairlead. When you park the vehicle for the day it's very important that you unroll the cable and respool the cable manually, guiding the cable back and forth across the drum so that it is not crossed over itself and will be ready for use the next use without kinks. I do this by hooking the cable hook to a stationary object, put the winch in freespool and back the vehicle away from the hook until I have unrolled down to a good straight spool. Then I engage the winch and start spooling in cable while dragging the vehicle and guiding the cable back and forth across the spool. On my ATVs I do that while sitting on them and watching the cable spool. On my Jeeps I use my remote control and guide the cable by hand while spooling. When I'm done the cable is smoothly spooled without any kinks or crossovers.

As for oiling the cable. I do not oil my cables. I wash them if they get packed with dirt/mud, leaving them unspooled and stretched taut until dry, then respool, guiding the cable evenly on the drum. If you oil your cable it will attract dust, sand, dirt, etc., which will become embedded in the cable and then start grinding on the cable strands every time you use it, eventually weakening the cable.

As was stated above, use a Roller Fairlead for steel cable and a Hawse Fairlead for synthetic cable. If you try to use a Roller Fairlead on synthetic cable it will get pinched between the rollers and damage the cable. If you use a Hawse Fairlead on steel cable, the cable will wear grooves in the Fairlead and then those grooves will start cutting strands of the steel cable, weakening it until it fails. Properly use and care for your winch cable and it will give you years and years of service.

True, you might have problems with roller fairlead's. Personally all my tow trucks and the tow trucks I work on have LevelWinder spool guides. Super simple design that works great.

As for lubrication of the cable you might want to check with ANY winch cable manufacturer. You will find that lubrication is a normal part of cable maintenance. That's why all major lubricant manufacturers make "cable lube". They are not as sticky as you might think though. Most use some form of solid film lubrication like Moly. Here are two excellent articles on wire rope and lubrication practices.

http://www.unols.org/publications/winch_wire_handbook__3rd_ed/06_wire_rope_em_cable_lub.PDF

Lubrication Basics for Wire Ropes

 

[ovrszd]

True, you might have problems with roller fairlead's. Personally all my tow trucks and the tow trucks I work on have LevelWinder spool guides. Super simple design that works great.

As for lubrication of the cable you might want to check with ANY winch cable manufacturer. You will find that lubrication is a normal part of cable maintenance. That's why all major lubricant manufacturers make "cable lube". They are not as sticky as you might think though. Most use some form of solid film lubrication like Moly. Here are two excellent articles on wire rope and lubrication practices.

http://www.unols.org/publications/winch_wire_handbook__3rd_ed/06_wire_rope_em_cable_lub.PDF

Lubrication Basics for Wire Ropes

Yep, definitely mixing apples and oranges here. A spool guide is a total different fruit from a fairlead. As for lube, in your business it's probably a good idea. For me, my winch cable use works better dry.

 

[EdK]

Personally all my tow trucks and the tow trucks I work on have LevelWinder spool guides. Super simple design that works great.

Can you please provide any more info on this? A web search just brought up a couple of references to huge offshore marine winches. I might like to get/make something like this for my home-brewed logging winch.

Thanks, Ed