If you have a vehicle, you may want to make sure that you have a winch as well. While buying a winch you must know what parameters you should consider and how you can match your winch with the requirements of your vehicle. If you end up choosing the wrong winch, there are chances that you will find your winch to be less powerful than your vehicle and you will remain stuck in a messy situation.

• The first step to ensure the selection of the right winch is to match the winch’s gross pull capacity (GPC) with the gross weight of your vehicle. The GPC denotes the total weight that your winch can pull in a perfect situation where other factors, such as multiple cables or weak battery, do not cause interferences. The GPC of your winch should be at least 30 percent higher than your vehicle’s weight.
• Count the cable layers to determine the net pull capacity. The lowermost cable bears the maximum weight and if there are multiple layers of cables, the pull weight will be reduced by 10-20 percent.
• Winches are electricity-run devices and hence, it is very important to match your winch’s capacity to the battery. It goes without saying, a completely-new battery will provide greater power to the winch compared to the one that you have been using for quite some time.
• Check the design of the gear case and the pulley. Currently, the industry offers two models- worm-gear design and low-profile design. The worm-gear models, though bulky, provide greater power compared to their low-profile counterparts. However, low-profile winches come with a backup mechanism that stops the motor while allowing you to readjust the cable to promote a superior pull.
• Make sure that you are aware of the mounting location of the winch. While external winches bulge out on the outside of the grill, undercarriage winches may get easily coated under mud or snow or they may get broken by boulders. You may find external winches to be quite unpleasant.

Above everything, budget plays a critical role in decision making. Ask yourself if you really have the budget to fund a specific winch. The price of winches ranges from £200 to £1000 and so you may want to make sure that you buy the right type of winch that perfectly matches your requirements. You can choose to check out different offers provided by different retailers. Even a five percent discount may bring value to you.