castor07jk

I see most everyone likes the WARN products. What about MILE MARKER?

Hip2u77

Lower end Mile Marker and Chicago (Harbor Freight) are the same winches.

IMO, the Warn M8000 and the Superwinch epi9000 are the best for the money.

Both have lifetime mechanical warranty and are under $600.

(I think the Superwinch has a 3 year electrical, vs Warn's 1 or 2 year.)


The Summit is a rebranded T-max with a 90 day warranty.

T-max has one year warranty.

I have a brand new, never used T-max ew9000w sitting in my garage. I sold it to my uncle for his car trailer and bought an M8000 as I just wasn't sure I trusted the Tmax.

Now I've been fighting mounting the remote solenoid on the M8000 on a Smittybilt SRC to where I can still use my Lightforce lights. The lights are too deep for the solenoid to be mounted over the motor, and with little room under the hood I'm actually considering selling the Warn and buying a Superwinch EPI9000. I know they'll work with that winch, and I figure the hit will be less if I sold a new Warn compared to a couple year old set of lights.

RescueGreenRubi

Someone else may have pointed this out and I didn't see it but another thing to think about is advertising. One of the major reasons that the big name winches cost more is because we as consumers are paying for Warn or Superwinch to sponsor competition rigs and put advertisements in magazines. Harbor Freight doesn't sponsor anyone nor do they advertise there products like some others do and that cuts down on the price. I am not saying that my Harbor Freight/Chicago electric winch is as good or dependable as Warn or Superwinch but it works for me and I haven't had any issues with it and I didn't pay for all of the advertising.

About the china made stuff. I garantee you that a lot of the pieces and parts used in the Warn and Superwinches are made in china but because it was "assembled" in the U.S., they put a little badge on their product that says "Made in the USA." I'm not saying that I agree at all with out sourcing, but its just a fact that we live with now if we want a cheaper product.

NE Wrangling

TEEJ most excellent writeup. I personnally bought the Smittybilt due to price and the thought that I would hardly need it for anything but to help in tough obstacles. Well I had to use it to help a fed ex truck out of a snow banking and yes you are right. 1 minutes and 3 minute cycles are painful but I had no choice as he was blocking me from my house. Funny thing is he showed up at my house 5 minutes later with my quick disconnect teraflex links so I guess I'm happy I pulled him out. doh

If I was willing to spend about 500 to 600 bucks The smittybilt was not even a contender and I would of been in the same delima that the rest of these posts are in. I guess Superwinch, Warn and ramsey are the 3 I'd look into at this price range.

One key point is plan that the stock battery is not powerful enough. It is only 600 cold cranking amps and most winches require 650 cold cranking amps.

kb7our

Keeping an eye out for a great price on a EW-9000W.

IMFletch

If you are going to be wheeling every weekend using the winch frequently, then IMO get a Warn or Ramsey. If not, get a 8000 lb. mile marker at Northridge 4x4 or Quadratec for $399. A friend of mile has used a 8000lb. mile marker for over 5 years without a single issue. The Warn is a better product but it should be at over 2x the price of a mile marker. Hope this helps.

Hip2u77

Keep an eye on 4wd.com. I bought one from them right before Christmas for $493 shipped. "$300 off sale." ($459.99 + shipping.)

Pete799

I just got a 4wd catalog in the mail and they have the mile marker mx8 for 399. This seems like a miss print because winch depot has them listed for well over 600. Does anybody have experience with this winch or a similar mile marker(pe or se or any of the ..x's)? This winch seems to be almost identical to the smittybuilt however is the mosfet control pack and automatic overheat shutdown etc worth the extra 100? It seems like it but have not herd and cannot find any reviews on the mosfet control packs.

ROKLIMO

$555 is not more than 2X $399...

Smiley88

Not sure if it has been posted yet or not - Costco has the Milemarker PE8000 Electric Winch listed on their website for $369.00 including shipping. I know Costco recently changed their return policy but I do not think that affected items like a winch (only electronics)......