River Boat Winch sysytem

[Broomed Ram]

Any advice on a good set up for a winch system (light as possible) torquey enough to pull a 20' Jet boat off the gravel - if that ever happens
Thanks

[mark]

Why piss around with an electric winch? just pack a cable cum-along and rope, it usually doesnt take much to get em floating again!

[Mooseter]

I have carried a 2500 lb winch and 100 ft extension cable for years. Used it about 3 times that i can remember.

[North]

A friend of mine uses a Lewis Winch. Its a small winch that attaches to a chain saw. He pulls his boat right up out of the river onto the trailer using it. Also handy for pulling a moose around. Pretty cool little unit.

http://www.lewiswinch.com/

[bridger]

if you are concerned about being high and dry get a good power saw winch and keep it on board. a little heavy but worth its weight in gold when you are high and dry.

[Riverratz]

I have a Simpson rope winch - chain saw powered. Model CS-CW (not the Honda motor model). All the specs @ www.capstanropewinch.com/
Not too heavy, portable, takes up no room in the boat. 1000 ft. of rope, divided into 4 spools of 250' each.
You're carrying a chain saw anyway, (or at least should be), making this winch far more versatile than a fixed in place electric. With electric you're limited to what direction you can winch, unless you have all sorts of snatch blocks and lots of cable.
With this one your options are unlimited, not to mention lots of other uses besides tugging a boat.

[Iltasyuko]

May be worth considering a tirfor...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UzX3F4Oygw

[pathfinder55]

The first time I went up the Muskwa R, I ended up on a gravel bar. With my cable come-a-long and nylon rope I could just take all the stretch out of the 100 ft rope. Next year it was a tirfor jack and it worked great.....Peter

[Rock Doctor]

Jackall and a shovel. Might not be fashonable but it works in all situations, every time. Don't need electricity or gas or miles of rope and cable, no anchor points required. Even your stupidest friend knows how to work a shovel and can help you out.

RD

[2SHALLOW]

Check out TJ BULLDOG they come with a bow winch i believe its a 2500lbs, ive seen it demo it works well if there are trees around. http://www.thunderjet.com/boats/bull-dog. I think a turfer is the only way to go IMHO!! I have a rule gas powerd winch but its only good to 1500lbs i have to add pulleys to get more pull. Good luck.

[Fixit]

Even your stupidest friend knows how to work a shovel. RD


lol, so true.
what about a sea anchor to pull you off the sand bank?

[Rock Doctor]

lol, so true.
what about a sea anchor to pull you off the sand bank?

They do work, work very well in some conditions. We have used a parachute in the past. VERY light, and will pull incredible amounts of weight. The issue is WHERE we use them. Typically, we are getting stuck on gravel bars in smaller rivers, shallow water and tight turns. It's very hard to control and guide a parachute around a corner with a few tons of water in it. For a straight line pull, they will work fine.

RD

[MountainHigh]

Winches mounted on boats are good under ideal situations...For up North they are not ideal. For an all-around system to be totally reliable then go with a Tirfor...

Using a chainsaw winch style system is good but what if your saw won't start? Or what if you kill your batteries in your boat using a bow winch...you gonna idle your boat while its sitting on the sandbar?...nope! Go ahead and try those systems but make sure you have a reliable manual way of getting your boat off the bar as a back-up.

[jfreddy]

Simpson rope winch is the way to go pulled my 18 ft boat out no problem . Pulls about 3500 to 4000 lbs costs around 600 bucks plus the rope

[Geo.338]

We have a gas powered portable winch . We use it for pulling moose and logs and stuff.It would be perfect for tugging jetboats off the gravel.
www.portablewinch.com (http://www.portablewinch.com) Check it out.