Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a series of questions that have been asked over time. If you have any other questions, please send them to us using the form on the Contact Us page.
The Industrial Series by Portable Winch Co. is availalble online and upon request at your local Portable Winch dealer. Our distribution network is constantly growing and although dealers may not have them in stock, they all have the ability to order for you. To consult the list of Portable Winch dealers, follow this link to our Pro Series dealer locator.
Double braided polyester rope is actually one rope braided around another. This implies that the outer sheath may wear and be damaged, but the inner rope is always new. You can use it a long time before it is no longer useful. It is difficult to estimate the lifespan of a rope, but for occasional use, you can surely count several years of use.
The combination of a new rope and a new capstan drum is indeed more difficult to use at first. This is because the rope is very clean and the drum is not worn at all, the coefficient of friction is at its lowest.
Although the rope is made specifically for our winches and each drum is cleaned to remove any oil residue during machining, the drum may be so smooth it offers less grip.
During the first uses, it is normally advisable to start with small loads in order to both get used to the behavior of the winch but also to start the wear of the drum (by the rope) so that the coefficient of friction increases slightly.
It is also advisable to make your rope dirty by dragging it on the ground (without load) so that tiny particles of sand and earth get inserted between the strands, again, in order to increase the coefficient of friction. A dirty rope will work much better.
Another possibility is to start the motor to spin the drum and press sandpaper on the drum to scratch it.
All parts relating to Honda engines or Baldor motors are available at all Honda mechanical product retailers. Parts specific to our products are also available from our retailers or directly from us. We strive to ship all orders as quickly as possible. You can access the exploded views by clicking here.
Since the rope does not accumulate on the drum (it only enters the winch and then comes out), there is no maximum distance limit to be observed. That’s why we sell ropes of different lengths. That said, when possible, it is a good idea to pull on a distance enabling you to see the load to be pulled clearly and react if necessary.
Use gasoline without ethanol;
A filled tank means no condensation;
Air, and therefore space, in an unfilled tank will create condensation, especially in seasons with good temperature variations.
If the winch is not started for an extended period (more than 3 months), this can become problematic;
It's not a bad idea to put stabilizer in gasoline;
When stopping the winch, let the engine run, close the fuel valve and let it burn;
Once done, pull on the starter rope to close the valves (until you feel resistance);
If the exhaust valve is open, air from outside enters the engine, which can cause condensation and rusting of the pistons, which can prevent winch from restarting;
See the Honda engine manual for more details;
Tip: When you fill your tank at the pump, it is a good idea to run the first liter in your vehicle, which ensures to empty the gas of the previous customer...
The GXH-50 engine uses approximately 340 g / kW. At full throttle, under load, the engine develops 1.8 kW.
Gasoline has a specific gravity of about 0.74 (or 740 g / litre), so the engine will consume in one hour: (1.8 x 340) / 740 = 0.827 litre / hour.
The fuel tank, with 1.2 litre capacity will last approximately one hour at full throttle.
But in our experience, one hour of pull is more than a normal day in the woods. But some applications will have different intensities of use.
There is no CE Declaration of Conformity for the pulleys PCA-1273, PCA-1274, PCA-1275 and PCA-1283.
The reason is: Declaration of conformity can only be made for products that fall under one of the CE Directives.
Pulleys are not covered by any directive, so we cannot say that it is conforming to something that does not exist.
Some pulleys do have the CE mark: PCA-1271, PCA-1272 and PCA-1292. The reason they do is that they are designed for climbing or rescue operations, thus they qualify as Personal Protection Equipment and fall under the PPE Directive, which is not transiting into the PPE Regulation (EU) 2016/425.
Fort he sling included with the winches, as well as for our items PCA-1258, 59, 60, the slings are produced according to EN 1492-1:2000+A1:2008. They are labelled according to said standard.
Here are a few elements of information:
1 metric ton= 2200 lb
The safety factor for the hooks is 4:1.
This means that the WLL being 3/4 ton x 4 = 3 tons per hook x 2 hooks per winch = 6 tons.
Knowing that our winch will only give 1 ton of pulling, there is a 6:1 safety factor on the winch anchor.
Also, the sling we provide to anchor the winch has a WLL of 2 tons. When used basket-style (like we do to anchor the winch) the WLL goes up to 4 tons. These slings have a 7:1 safety factor, therefore, 28 tons.
Even if someone was to use the winch with a block and tackle system, the force applied directly to the winch will always be at maximum of 1 ton. Therefore, as you can see, the safety factors are respected.
We made a great video showing how. Click here to see it!