ATV TIPS AND HOW TO'S

[scooter]

Seeing as how there are more people getting into the quadding thing, I thought that it may be a great idea to post up some tips for Winching, Riding, and Safety on here.

There are a lot of folks who have just bought quads and have never used a quad or any of the accessories on it and it's up to us old guys to make sure that they are using the equipment properly. (When I say old, I mean old to the sport of 4 wheelin'...not Grandpawrichard old :lol: )

[scooter]

Winch Well
Using the Screwdriver of ATV Accessories

Glenn Hansen
ATV News
Wednesday January 29, 2003


We could argue that a winch is the most important accessory available to ATV owners. At the same time, many ATV owners are misusing this vital product, and with potentially dangerous consequences.

We recently went riding with the winching experts at Warn Industries. They showed us a new line of winches, and reminded us about safe winching practices. Plus, we got to drive some really cool vehicles — all winch equipped, of course — for the sole reason of getting stuck, and un-stuck.

Smart Winching

Even if all you do with your winch is lift and lower a plow blade a few inches, you can do it wrong, damaging your winch, or worse.

Smart winching begins with the right equipment installed correctly. First, if your winch doesn’t have a roller fairlead to smoothly guide the cable back onto the winch drum, know that you’ll need to pay close attention to spooling in your winch cable to help maintain it.

Taking care of the winch cable is one of the most important elements of smart and safe winching. To do it properly, it’s best to “winch in” the cable with a helper to operate the switch while you carefully draw tension to the cable as you watch it spool onto the drum. You won’t get it on there perfectly like when it came from the factory, but you can keep the cable taut and prevent kinks from fraying the cable. Any sign of frayed or damaged wire means you’re replacing that cable.

If you use the winch to lift a plow blade, the weight of that blade is not enough to ensure the cable stays taut. The repetitive winch-in and winch-out operation will cause that cable to loosen on the drum, and that can mean trouble. If you need to use that winch to rescue a stuck friend, a strong pull on that loosely spooled cable can damage the winch or break a cable. Occasionally spool the cable out to the end to inspect it for kinks and re-spool it tightly.

If the winch is used strictly for plow lifting, consider shortening the cable to make it specific for that use. Replace the 50-foot cable with a 3- to 5-foot “snow plowing” cable. It stays in place on the spool and winds in and out more quickly, too.

Smart Reminders

Disengage the winch's clutch and use the manual "freespool" mode to extend the cable quickly. This also saves your ATV's battery.
Stretch a new winch cable to extend its life. Spool almost all the cable out, then wind it back in under a heavy load, at least 500 pounds. This will ensure the inner cable wraps are tight on the drum, and prevent the outer wraps from binding inside the inner ones.
Drape a coat over the winch cable before beginning the winch operation. In case the cable snaps or the winch hook breaks, weight on the cable will deaden it.
Wear your helmet and gloves while operating the winch.


Winching: 1, 2, 3

Whether winching yourself out of a hole in a “self-recovery” mode, winching your friend’s ATV with your quad-mounted winch or pulling another object — big log or other — to your ATV, it’s easy to do it right. Here’s how.

The base unit must be secure and stable. If you’re pulling a riding buddy out of a mud hole with your winch, park your ATV in a stable location as far from the stuck quad as possible and set the parking brake. If you’re getting yourself out of a jam, you’ll need a solid tree or even another ATV parked and steady.

Click the winch’s clutch into its freespool mode, and pull the hook and cable to your helpless pal. You may need to release some tension in the cable before disengaging the winch clutch to freespool.

Attach the hook to a solid frame member on the ATV, not the front bumper or the quad’s cargo rack. Even better, use a non-stretch tow strap attached to the quad’s trailer hitch or a well-mounted D-ring. All winch manufacturers sell accessory kits that contain the appropriate straps and rings.

If you’re pulling with the aid of a tree, wrap a similar strap or tree protector around the tree first. To double the winch’s pulling power, use a strap and shackle pulley that allows you to run twice as much cable, pulling the winch hook back to the winching ATV.

Engage the clutch, and winch in to get the cable tight. Now drape a jacket or other object over the tight cable in case it should break while under tension. Keep the winching machine’s brake set when you begin the operation. With the ATV running, begin pulling in the cable. Put the ATV in neutral and rev the engine slightly to keep the battery cranking. Let the winch do the work. Don’t pull or tow the object with the winching ATV; that stresses the cable and drum. When pulling out a stuck ATV, that machine’s driver can assist with engine power and steering guidance.

Use short bursts of winching power, instead of one continuous line pull. This helps keep the winch motor cool and maintains some battery power.

With a successful winching operation complete, take care to re-spool the winch cable correctly. If you’ve pulled through some mud, you may need to run even more cable out to clean it a bit first. With tension on the hook, pull in the winch cable to get it on the drum evenly and tightly.

Safe Reminders

Don't use your winch to lift the deer you shot into your truck. An ATV winch is not a hoist.
Don't wrap the winch cable around a tree or ATV bumper. You'll damage the cable, the tree and bumper. Use a tree-trunk protector or other non-stretching tow strap.
Don't hook one winch to another. This pull will stress the gears inside both winches.
Don't overheat your winch. Use it in short pulls instead of one continuous "winch in" operation. Keep the air-cooled winch motor clean, too.


Safe Winching

For a lot of people, a winch is like a screwdriver. You use a screwdriver to turn screws, of course. But you also use it — incorrectly — as a pry bar and a hammer and a scraper and a torque arm and more, even though you know you shouldn’t.

Similarly, don’t use your winch as a tie down for securing your ATV to your trailer. Don’t use your winch to tow a broken-down ATV to the trailhead. Those are some of the obvious “don’t” rules. Read our “Safe Reminders” and always winch safely.



Article courtesy of http://www.atvnews.com

[BlueNorther]

That's some good info Warden.

We also carry heavy straps with loops on both ends.Alot of times that is all that's neccasary to unstick a quad,and alot of times is faster than using the winch.

I also use a shackle on my towbar along with a ball.