Hand Winch Recommendation for a 5,500 Pound Capacity Single Car Hauler Trailer

Updated 01/15/2014 | Published 01/14/2014

Products Featured in This Question

Dutton-Lainson Hand Winch - TUFFPLATE Finish - 2 Speed - Direct Drive - 2,500 lbs

(463)

$120.48

Bulldog Winch Snatch Block - Silver Zinc Coated

(6)

$32.07

Dutton-Lainson Hand Winch w/ Automatic Brake - TUFFPLATE Finish - 2,500 lbs

(342)

$184.41

Hand Winch Cable with Safety Hook 5/16" Diameter x 25' Long - 2,500 lbs.

(14)

$57.11

Question:

Im looking into a winch for my 16ft 7k car trailer.ramps are 5ft plus 2ft dovetail and then 14ft flat deck.... trailer deck sits about average height, Id say 18-24inch high at most ,depending on terrain .... Only used for the occasional/emergency need to load a non running car or equipment. maybe 1-2 cars/small SUV a year, possible a few lawn tractors,etc Since I dont haul vehicles often, and only have a payload capacity of about 5, 500lbs, I dont want to mess around with maintaining/buying batteries, solenoids, or motors on an electric winch, so Im thinking of a hand crank boat trailer style winch. I had vertical receiver tube professionally welded to the trailer and a in tube with bracket fabricated to mount a winch about 18inch above the deck at the front. . Im planning to use 3/8inch grade 8 bolts to mount to my bracket Anyway, Im thinking of this 2500lb winch...DL14825. Also, Im thinking I want a steel cable, so I could double back the cable with a pulley block to double the capacity if neededif its possible ? would this winch be big enough to load a car or small SUV on my trailer both safely, fairly quickly, and without killing my arm too much in the process with 25ft single-line? Id like to do it as cheap as possible, if you could recommend another product or cable? also, since it looks like a quick release handle, would a socket or adapter be able to spin the winch with an electric/cordless drill ? Also, is the cable mounting bolts/hardware included with either the winch or cable,or is it a separate purchase? sorry for all the questions, and thanks in advance for your help

asked by: Steve

Expert Reply:

You can ask as many questions as you want, no problem! So, first, yes, you can use a pulley block to double the capacity of a winch at half the speed so you will not have to worry about that. With a rolling load though you may not have to.

A rolling load, using a 2500 pound winch up as steep a grade as 45 degrees the winch capacity is 3,225 pounds at the first layer or so of wire rope on the drum. At a 26 degree incline you are looking at a capacity of 4,650 pounds. I have included a link to our hand winch FAQ article that contains even more capacities so you can determine what it will be for your particular application.

For pulling vehicles onto a trailer, you are going to want a brake winch that engages automatically should you let go of the handle such as # DL15721. Both this winch and the one you referenced are not designed for use with an electric drill. For a wire rope you can use # DL24102 which is appropriate for the capacity of the winch. The winches and cables do not come with mounting hardware. The cable can be wound a certain way through the drum to where hardware is not needed for it.

For a pulley block you can use # BDW20023.

expert reply by: Michael H