venom winch??

[redrider022002]

what's everyone think about the venom 2500 lb winch? I have a Polaris winch on one of my quads, but I'm looking at purchasing a couple more and would like to go a cheaper route.

[Thor]

Remember you get what you pay for! I have had bad luck with cheap winches. When I needed it miles from help it did not work. It was a long walk back!

[MoVance]

i have a venom winch and love it. all the guys i ride with here also use venom winches both the 2500 and 3000lb winches. we have never a problem with any of them. i highly recommend them.

[01Z]

I bought the hard core package deal. 3500LB, wired remote, both 15/65" steel cable and synthetic rope, fairlead and hawse, model specific mount, handlebar switch and all the wiring - 8 & 10 heavy guage and hardware, contactor with rubber boots for the terminals. The kit even included small items like the cable stopper (winch guard) and grab strap for $230 shipped. All it lacks IMHO is a snatch block. The two sheets of instructions are minimal. Prior experience or better than average mechanical aptitude is required. I didn't use customer support so no word on that.

What really sold me though was the specs that the motor is reputedly sealed and is 1.4 hp. The gear ratio is 136:1 with a 3 stage planetary drive. In other words, it powers in and out as fast as the comparable Warn with a half horsepower advantage. It weighs much more than any other winch in that class @ 27LB. This makes it a handful to install. The whole kit is totally impressive because of its completeness and the fact that nothing looks cheap. It is heavy and big. It filled the winch pocket completely on my sportsman causing me to elongate mounting holes and file a small notch in the bumper cover to get it to fit.

If you do a google search on it you will run across numerous reviews in the form of forum posts. Some seem to dislike it because it is being sold by former MotoAlliance people who broke off and started another company. Without doubt this has impacted the sale of the Viper winch which is probably its equal sold by great folk. Others have complained of failure but a believable group tout it as spectacularly reliable even after being submerged numerous times. I hope they are right. If looks are any indication it should be more than adequate for my conservative use. I have only worked it enough to rewind and align things a few times. It takes about 2 minutes to fully retract the 40' of cable. No testing on the auto mechanical brake or full load retrieval.

I know you asked about the 2500LB Venom but you might consider going bigger.

[Berntboater]

I bought a 3klb venom winch for my 550. I just could not justify spending $400 on a winch, $170 shipped sounded alot better. So far all it has lifted is my snow plow. I guess time will tell if I made the right decision, but the specs looked good.