OregonGuy

Hey guys, so lately have been focused on self recovery like if my 2018 F150 XL gets stuck in some mud in the middle of the forest all by myself. I was looking into electronic winches as they look like a great tool for recovering your vehicle by yourself. Do any of you have an electronic winch installed on your truck? What brand do you recommend? Did you install it yourself?

Also I heard that for recovery tow straps are not ideal.. I have nice new Rhino tow straps... but would you guys recommend any particular recovery straps?

Any other accessories or tips you guys have for self recovery of a half ton 2018 F150 XL with 8' bed would be hugely appreciated. Thanks guys!

77Ranger460

I have a Warn M8000 on my Jeep. It's 10+ years old and has given me no trouble. I carry short recovery straps, long recovery straps , chains, and shackles.

Steve Osborne

I have an 8500lb superwinch...works for what I use it for...mild stuck..or moving trailers or other items...
if you planning on sinking to the frame then 12000lb or more....

tow straps are that for towing
recovery straps can absorb the shock of a good solid tug...

items I have
12000lb tree saver strap , assorted shackles . 30ft recovery strap rated 30000lbs ...and other swivels and pulley block and straps for angled pulls...





always think to double the weight of the vehicle being recovered....vehicle plus stuck..

chimmike

Just remember if you have an ecoboost, you don't want to block that lower opening where the intercooler is.

Steve Osborne

been there since I put it on...8000 k ...no problems...still have air flow around

OregonGuy

Awesome thanks for the info. What exactly is a tree saver strap? Any you could recommend?

Looks like you have 2 winches 1 for back and front or just diff situations in photos?

My truck weighs roughly 4,500 lbs with myself and stuff inside.. maybe upward of 5,000. Sounds like I'll need to get a recovery strap. Plan on buying some Gator Jaw soft shackles. Don't plan on sinking to the frame but in the off chance something insane like that does happen would prefer a winch that could get my truck out. Looking at 12,000lb+ rated WARN winches with synthetic rope. So darn pricey though..

Steve Osborne

tree saver is just a strap to wrap/protect the tree from damage...no wrapping the winch cable around..

only the one winch up front... just added the hitch/reciver to the winch mount..

chimmike

you're just making for much quicker heatsoak. Intercooler is not something you should be blocking. It doesn't have fans like the radiator.

jp360cj

I have a Warn 8274 on my Jeep. 40 years old, 1 rebuild (motor, brake, seals) a couple years ago...A few weeks ago, I had to winch out a 2011 or 2012 F150 (5.0, CC, 4x4) that was sitting on the front frame and rear axle in mud. With the stuff in the toolbox/bed, my guess is it weighed at least 6500#. Long story short, I had to double the pull with a snatchblock (16K # pull) and was a struggle to get it out. I would recommend a 12K. Warns have a very good reputation and are among the best. The cheaper VR series is Warn's chinese line that likely comes form the same factory as off brand chinese winches. I have also had a Badlands 9K from Harbor Freight. It worked fine, but was much much slower.

A tree saver strap is just a short recovery strap, usually 8 to 10 ft long. I'm a big fan of synthetic rope; it's much lighter, easier to work with, and easily repaired if needed. I also really like the soft shackles. they are much lighter than steel shackles and very versatile. I would recommend a few soft shackles and at least 1 (I carry 2) steel shackle, just in case you need to connect to something with sharp edges. A ****** block is very useful and can be used to change direction or double the strength of the pull.

Caution with a 12K winch...Keep in mind that a lot of the common winch accessories are sized for 8-9K winches and may not be up to the task with a 12K winch. This includes mounts, straps, shackles, ****** blocks, etc. Just make sure to check the rating before you buy.

Steve83

Most new electric winches come from China - many brands come from the same chinese factory, just with different stickers. Even a few newer models by the big name-brands, like Warn & MileMarker. Their prices match their build quality, and that's not what I wanted, so I got an old-design Ramsey worm-drive (the kind that professional wreckers use). It's not cheap, and it's not a fast winch, but it's a LOT cheaper & quicker than paying a wrecker to come into the woods to drag me out.

But it's even-quicker & -cheaper to NOT get stuck, so even if you get a winch, you should put some effort into learning how to drive off-road, and how to self-recover. Read the Ford brochure "4-Wheeling with Ford" (probably part of your owner's manuals) & the Army manuals linked in this caption:


(phone app link)

Since my truck is so old, I had to design & build my own mount (which I integrated into a HD bumper).


(phone app link)

It's heavy, but not as heavy as you might think, and MUCH stronger than anything I could have bought. But you have to remember that adding weight to the truck INcreases its chances of getting stuck. So you have to balance what you bolt onto it against where & how you drive.

Straps have their uses in self-recovery; so do chains, ropes, cables, poles, cribbing, jacks, come-alongs, winches, gloves, boots, steel shackles, soft shackles, tire chains (at least as useful in mud as in snow), ... The more you carry, the more-prepared you'll be, but the more-likely you'll NEED it (not only because of the weight, but because you'll take more risks). Most of my recovery gear stays in my bumpers.


(phone app link)