My truck winch let go on a 40 foot oak, glad it happened when it did

Last Thursday I was pulling a split lead down in a tight backyard near Dayton and the synthetic line snapped at the drum, not the hook. I had the snatch block on the trunk and the rope rubbed against a small branch stub, that was enough to cut it after about 15 minutes of constant tension. The piece swung hard and smacked my chipper box, but nobody was in the path, just a lucky break honestly. I checked that line two days before and felt nothing wrong, so now I'm replacing it with a thicker amsteel and adding a wear sleeve at every contact point. My question is, how often do you guys swap out your winch line or do you just run it until it fails like I almost did?

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2 Comments

ivan_murphy801mo ago

Fifteen minutes of constant tension on one rubbed spot is a long time, but oak bark is nasty stuff. I'd say you got off easy and most guys run their line till it pops, then blame the rope instead of their own rigging.

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lily571mo ago

Fifteen minutes of constant rubbing on that oak stub is a long time for any line to hold up, @ivan_murphy80 is right about it being a lucky break. Most folks don't swap winch rope until it screams, and even then they patch it with tape and hope. I check mine every spring and after any heavy pull, but even that won't catch a hidden wear spot before it gives.

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