Outer Limits 4x4 Board

Hi there,
How are we all this lovely winters week end.
Just purchased a second hand high mount and built myself a tube bar for my gq wagon.
Winch already has a 6hp motor and I also wired in a TG Thompson solinoid to control it.
I'm looking to reco the winch as it is weeping a little oil from around the drum.
I have no problem doing the reco myself and maybe even a few simple mods.
The bit I am unsure of is should I complete these mods myself or should I take it to a well known winch builder and have the mods and reco done there?
I'm thinking along the lines of tapping the brake shaft and machining a cap, bracing the drum and installing a fill and drain plug top and bottom. While completing all this I will be renewing any worn, damaged and or just because parts. Also considering machining a brass bush to support the drum as opposed to the plastic looking fibre one.
The winch will not be used as a comp winch but will see moderate use.
I am quite capable of completing these mods myself, however time constraints with work make me question whether or not it is worth just taking it to someone.
So what would a rough price be and who is a reputable builder in SE Victoria.
Thanks Cam

There a very simple design mate and I'm sure u will have no trouble doing it yourself.

Housing is alloy so bracing is best tigged on so maybe look into that

I have a fill n drain in mine but its just a thread tapped into the casing, but works well. Also the full has a push connect 6mm airline that i ran into engine bay and coiled up as a breather.

I personally can't see the bush/bearing being that bad as long as you keep it greased up.

Also I did my brake shaft modd with a collar to sit on the end incase circlip comes off, really you won't do this at home without a carbide drill bit. I did mine in the lathe at work using carbide milling cutters and the case hardening is friggn hard.

You can buy them carbide drills reasonable price from worldwide eBay but a high speed steel drill won't even scratch the surface.

Brad

Thanks brad that was the sort of feedback I was looking for.
I understand I could quite easily complete these mods myself but just wasn't sure if there was better value in having them completed by a reputable builder.
I would also like to have the free spool looked at, it won't free spool easy enough to pull by hand.
I'm not sure if this is due to miss alignment of the drum or whether it is something inside needing attention.
This is where I thought having brass bushes would be a better option than the standard fibre ones.
I have heard of similar problems with highmounts however I didn't see the value in machining housing for bearings or installing an air freespool for my application.

They are slow when you pull the free spool knob because your still turning over the gears.

Most people i know (myself included) dont do that, we power the rope out because especially with a 6hp its way faster.

Air free spool will be the only option thats gonna satisfy you in regards to freespool as it disengages and actually is free spool not as yours is now and only disengaging the motor.

A professional to rebuild it wouldn't be cheap, they arnt hard just time consuming so i would think u wouldn't be happy with the quote someone would give to do it.. Buy the rebuild kit and do it yourself.

Brad

Ummmm..... Having a 6hp in place of the standard 2.5 or 4.6 doesn't make it 'way faster'.
It will be modestly quicker. I doubt with no load you would really notice it.
But it will have a better duty cycle and handle long pulls better.

Yeh fair enough but i wasnt referring to the difference between motors but that its faster powering out over pulling against the gears with the motor dis engaged

showtime393 wrote: I would also like to have the free spool looked at, it won't free spool easy enough to pull by hand.
I'm not sure if this is due to miss alignment of the drum or whether it is something inside needing attention.

quite often if it wont freespool or is hard to freespool its just the brake grabbing or getting stuck. mines heaps quicker getting the rope off using the freespool compared to winching out (even on 24v)

some_guy wrote:

showtime393 wrote: I would also like to have the free spool looked at, it won't free spool easy enough to pull by hand.
I'm not sure if this is due to miss alignment of the drum or whether it is something inside needing attention.

quite often if it wont freespool or is hard to freespool its just the brake grabbing or getting stuck. mines heaps quicker getting the rope off using the freespool compared to winching out (even on 24v)

The brake drum may need a clean.... Occasionally they get badly scored, or full of mud dust and crud, either on the brake surface or even the bearings covered in crud.

Put a couple of Vise grips on the brake and remove it... On a flat bench or surface remove the grips, pop it apart and clean it. Rebuild parts are available. It's not a hard job, but fiddly in gettingt the bearings etc back in place and the vise grips back in place and alligned so you can slide the brake back on over the key way.