Red Winch...Does yours freespool easily?

[Lars]

OK everyone. Thank you for your comments and advice. The Moderator wanted me to post solutions, not just problems, and I'm totally on-board with that.

I may have fixed the problem by working the winch in and out. I did not follow scientific method and only change one variable at a time but this what I did do:
1.)First time pulled the line out with all my strength (yes the lever was in free spool or freespool whichever is correct)
2.) winched in under vehicle weight.
3.) Backed out in reverse with the winch powering out. (some of you are screaming)
4.) Repeated this several times
5.) Pulled the line out by hand and it felt better.
6.) repeated all the above several more times pulling in and out both manually and under power.

AT LAST I WOULD SAY IT PULLS OUT BY HAND WITH THE EXPECTED AMOUNT OF FORCE (compared to Warn, Smittybuilt, Badlands, superwinch that i've used). Problem solved I hope. I will continue to exercised it a few more times.

Comments:
a. Did I break it??
b. Only 10 meters of winch line is ridiculous, and yes, I bought an extension

 

[Lars]

One last post for those not sick of this thread already. Sorry Stu, no solutions or closure.
Today I used the winch and I have to say it's still bad. You can free spool it out, but it takes much more effort than I think it should. Without another winch to compare it to, I don't know if this is just how Red Winch works. I emailed Red Winch about this a week or so ago, but have not heard back from them. When I take it to the dealer, I'll ask if it works correctly and hopefully find a vehicle on their lot to compare it to.

 

[ADVAW8S]

One last post for those not sick of this thread already. Sorry Stu, no solutions or closure.
Today I used the winch and I have to say it's still bad. You can free spool it out, but it takes much more effort than I think it should. Without another winch to compare it to, I don't know if this is just how Red Winch works. I emailed Red Winch about this a week or so ago, but have not heard back from them. When I take it to the dealer, I'll ask if it works correctly and hopefully find a vehicle on their lot to compare it to.

Videos also help manufactures. I had an issue with a bicycle trainer. Made a video and sent it via email. Two days later got a email that they were sending me a new one and a return slip for the other one.

 

[Lars]

Videos also help manufactures. I had an issue with a bicycle trainer. Made a video and sent it via email. Two days later got a email that they were sending me a new one and a return slip for the other one.

Excellent idea! In fact I'm going to pull it out using a force gauge, just in case Red Winch has specifications for this.

 

[DrahthHunter]

My factory Red winch does not freespool easily. You cannot physically pull the rope out without incredible effort , The first time I used it it had to attach it to another vehicle and reverse the vehicle. Now I just reverse the motor to extend the rope. What's your experience? Is this normal for Red winch? Definitely not like my Warn.

Get your husband to pull it out

 

[RobS]

@Lars. It shpu

Excellent idea! In fact I'm going to pull it out using a force gauge, just in case Red Winch has specifications for this.

sorry to hear that you’re having such a difficult time with it. I have experience with Warn, Badland and Engo winches. The Red winch freespool tension on mine is similar to those. Clearly, you have experience with winches and you know what “normal” is. I hope you have some success in contacting and working out a solution with the manufacturer. Good luck.

 

[Michael Brindley]

Mine wont freespool easy either,manual says below.

Winch Will Not Free Spool
•
Warped mount plate, winch rope bound up on one
side of the drum, bent drum flange or gear damage
inside the winch.
•
Check freespool air solenoid if fitted.
•
Check Air solenoid or Air switch is working
•
Check freespool knob is free to move and can be

 

[Michael Brindley]

Also in problem solving.
Winch will not freespool (Pulling rope off the drum with no power)
1. Check freespool lever is in the free position. The lever should be in the horizontal position and
sitting forward on the high part of the cam shaped boss. The freespool operations still requires
the drum to move so you should see the drum moving as you pull the rope off.
2. Check nothing is jamming the drum or the rope is not bound tight against something on the
vehicle. If you think there is rope bunching making it difficult to pull out, winch out first for 1-2m,
before then putting it back into Freespool.
3. Check there is no signs of damage around the winch mounting,, that may cause the mounting of
the winch to become twisted. This will cause the drum to become very tight and not freespoo

 

[Michael Brindley]

Spoke to Red today they seem to think assembly problem at Ineos so it’s dealer fix

 

[Lars]

Spoke to Red today they seem to think assembly problem at Ineos so it’s dealer fix

Thanks for the information. I will see if I can get warranty service for it.

 

[Michael Brindley]

Reply from RED Winches.He did send me clip of winch being tested and him freespooling he can do it with one hand very easy.Mines like having a tug of war against a rugby team on my own.Will try to attach clip but struggling at moment.
Hi Michael,



Apologies for the delay in replying. We have been investigating this issue.

We check the freespool function of every winch as part of the 100% test process that our products go through prior to shipping. Please see attached video of a Grenadier winch on a test rig showing how “difficult” it should be to pull the rope from the drum. While we do not measure the force you can see in the video the freespool is very light requiring minimal effort. The winch drum is mounted in roller bearings on both sides, no bushings are used to give the best freespool and user experience possible.

The CMS that the winch is bolted to is dimensionally critical to ensure the winch is mounted without any twist across the body. If a twist is present this will result in a very stiff freespool and this is possibly issue you are experiencing.



At this time we do not have a specification for how much force is required and with or current test equipment we are unable to measure this load as it is too light for our equipment. I have ordered more sensitive test equipment and once it has arrived we will measure the all of the next weeks production to get an accurate figure that we can share.

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[Lars]

I was grateful for the response from Red Winch. I measured the force to pull my line out and it takes around 30kg/60 lbs of pull force over the entire length of the winch rope. My Warn XD9000 with steel cable pulls out with about 7kg/17lbs of force.
I spoke to the local Ineos mechanic and it sounds like the front bumper will have to be disassembled to investigate.