This is too tempting, someone talk me out of it please

[jbcherokee]

So we all know the sad truth that no matter what mr. internet says.... you will always get what you pay for.

That being said I saw this on harborfreight and well I am being tempted by its elusive "too good to be true" price.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=91905

I mean I doubt I will even use the winch all that much but its more or less a grand less than the warn or other brands 10,000 lbs winch.


So please , knock some sense into me before I buy it because this is just too tempting

 

[tbburg]

DON'T DO IT MAN! IT'S A TRAP!


(did that work?)

 

[POLAR_JEEP_04]

My buddy has one that was passed down to him from another buddy and they both seemed to like it. It is very slow but will get you out sooner or later.

 

[Shred Bro Gnar Rad]

why dont u look into TMAXX winches?

 

[Coastie]

Or Smittybuilt?

 

[x2elite]

I have one of the HF winches, and have been using it (beating the crap out of it) for over 3 years without a single problem. It is slow, but you can't beat the price. HF also offers a free replacement warranty (1yr for $30, and 2yrs for $60) if you are worried about it. I bought the warranty, but I have had mine for over 3 years now, and never had to use it. Its just personal preference honestly. If I was going to buy another winch I wouldn't think twice about buying another HF one. I have actually been thinking about getting some synthetic line for the one I already have.

 

[jeeperjohn]

The harbor freight brands have been getting better since the early days when the tools were barely good for one use. My brother who is a professional welder has one of their tig welders and its a really good machine for $350. I have been using it to weld 1/4" plate and it is great. That winch is not gonna be fast but my guess is it will be worth the price.

 

[beraad44]

Quadratec has the smittybuilt xrc8 winch on sale right now for 289. You should look into that one i have heard lots of good things about them.

 

[stoneyva21]

there is a winch test floating around the net were the only winches left standing after some brutal testing was the HF and warn. they did a few straight pulls, a few near vertical pulls, and a few others right after each other. they were smoking t-maxx, smittybuilt, and superwinch winches, but the harbor freight kept on truckin. they did mention the stupid slow line speed.

as long as the winch can get me out of whatever i'm stuck on/in i could care less how fast it is.

when it comes time for a winch i'm gonna stick a HF one on my rig.

 

[jbcherokee]

well holy crap maybe that HF one might just make the christmas list.

I was like 97% sure I was going to get at least 4 horror stories of the HF winch imploding once it was plugged in.

 

[tbones88XJ]

I've heard alot about this winch and it was all pretty good. This is the one I'm going with, the only way I would pay for the higher priced stuff is if I did real hardcore offroading like rock krawling. This should get me out of any situation I'll be in. Good luck on your choice.

 

[X1994J]

My buddy runs that winch, it works great, but the pull is pretty slow. I picked up an XRC10 for the same price as this one on Amazon. It pulls faster and has always worked great for me.
http://www.amazon.com/Smittybilt-97..._1?ie=UTF8&s=automotive&qid=1260646554&sr=8-1

 

[spikeypuck]

I have been looking at that winch as well. At the moment i cant afford a warn, and was tossed between the smittybuilt and the hf one. Its kinda nice to see this thread. I use HF for alot of different things, but just wasn't sure about their winch...

 

[MONSTERxbla]

I have a running joke with guy I work with about harbor freight tools. we do controls work on boilers and my background is being an electrician. all of my tools are klein. he uses harbor freight stuff. he always say that he has never stripped a bolt because his wrench will strip first. so after months of me giving him a hard time about his crappy tools he comes by my house to check of my jeep and what does he see?? a harbor freight jack and jack stands. he say that I wouldn't trust one of their screwdrivers but would trust my life with one of their jackstands.

 

[ocean_jet]

You want to be talked out of it?

It will be slow.

It's made in China.

And, you can find "cheap" winches for less.

 

[ECKSJAY]

why dont u look into TMAXX winches?

Or Smittybuilt?

Same difference.

Get the cheapest Chinese winch you can find with the best 'warranty' if you're not going to put a ton of trust into it. If you're going to be hammering on it every weekend, get a Warn.

 

[DansGreyMj]

Harbor freight warranties are a joke, they are a one time replacement warranty, so if you have to get one I suggest you only go for the one year.

 

[Sean5294]

i would wait until it is on sale. the HB here in cincinnati always have them for 299.00

 

[Sean5294]

i have been thinking about that one and this one from Sams as well. Both are the same price
http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate.do?dest=5&item=408636

 

[themangeraaad]

I was looking at ones like the Sams one a while ago since it's for a 2" receiver, though I have always been a bit skeptical about doing alot of heavy pulling with a winch held on only by a 2" receiver.

I kinda feel like it wouldn't be as strong/good as a solid mounted winch... though then again I could move it front to rear and let my father or brother (or anyone for that matter) borrow it if they go camping or something.