Best Chainsaw Winch

How to Find the Best Chainsaw Winch

Looking to invest in the best chainsaw winch, but you aren’t sure which to get? We have a complete rundown of some of the best chainsaw winches you can buy including a complete list on how to use your winch and how to make your own if you wanted to go that route.

Either way, a chainsaw winch is meant to help you along with your chainsaw job, especially if you need to cut down your high-powered chainsaw’s RPMs to get a more delicate job done. We have all the information you need to know before purchasing your next chainsaw winch within this article.

What is a Chainsaw Winch?

Winch

A chainsaw winch is a device used to lower the RPMs of your chainsaw to help turn it into a low-speed torque instead of the usual high revolutions per minute machine that it is. This will help you cut more delicate items that don’t necessarily need the high power of a standard chainsaw.

This helps you transform your machine into a saw that can be used for many different kinds of jobs, instead of only high-powered or toughed jobs that would require higher RPMs.

Not just for chainsaws, a chainsaw winch can help you haul and pull things that need to be moved, such as hauling a car out of the ditch or dragging something heavy that needs excessive torque to move.

Are you looking for something more portable? Here are some of the Best Portable Winch Options Available.

How Do You Use a Chainsaw Winch?

Using your chainsaw winch is pretty simple. The cable spool simply rolls up and snakes around the cable to pull in the high torque load. These types of winches are incredibly strong and can easily pull in most of the torque to lower the RPMs.

They transform your chainsaw into a high-powered machine to a moderate or low-powered chainsaw. This is ideal for sawing smaller firewood pieces or smaller objects that would otherwise be obliterated by the high torque of a standard chainsaw.

What Can You Pull with a Chainsaw Winch?

Here are a few ways you can use your winch for:

  • Winching small pieces of wood
  • Pulling in wild game
  • Slash clearing
  • Pulling a car out of a ditch
  • Getting all types of vehicles unstuck

How to Make a Chainsaw Winch

Lewis Winch

If you would prefer to make your very own chainsaw winch, you’ve come to the right place! Making your own chainsaw winch is not difficult at all if you follow these simple steps.

Step One: Detaching

To start, you are going to need to detach your saw from the engine. In order to do this, you need to follow the directions on your initial user’s manual that you received with your respective chainsaw. Kind of like when you need to replace your machine’s saw, there should be a detailed process on how to achieve this safely.

Step Two: Check Your Chainsaw Engine

If your chainsaw engine is in good condition, then you will have a healthy chainsaw winch. If your chainsaw engine is in bad shape, then odds are your engine can’t make a great chainsaw winch.

This is why it is important to make sure your chainsaw is in good condition and have it maintained on a regular basis.

To prevent having a faulty chainsaw winch, you need to make sure our chainsaw clutch and throttle are in great working conditions.

Step Three: Make Sure You Have all the Necessary Parts

To make your chainsaw winch, you will need to have your chainsaw ready and have a winch, which is a strong durable steel cable to convert into a capstan. Steel is a great option for a winch as it is highly durable and strong.

You are also going to need a channel, angle to prepare the base of the winch, and a flat iron. If you check auto parts stores, you can more than likely find a pulley, a shaft, and any other extra parts you think you may need.

Step Four: Assembly

To assemble your chainsaw winch, take your steel cable and affix it to a capstan to make a basic capstan winch. Assemble all of your angles, your channel, and your flat iron to create a strong, sturdy base for your winch.

A good gearbox is necessary to create a good winch so you can find this from an old car, all you have to do is remove the tail shaft housing from the casing. Inside your gearbox is a rubber tube that you will need to cut and make holes in to connect to your main shaft.

Once this is done, you can weld together the main support brackets and cut pieces from the channel to create a U shape. Once your base of the winch is done, fix the transmission to the shaft of your gearbox and affix it with some drilled holed.

Use a drum bracket and crank to secure it in place. Then you can apply your winch handle to the framework and treat the crank to weld the joints. Your winch should be ready to use once all these steps are done.

Winch VS Hoist: Which is Better?

When it comes to having to decide between a winch or a hoist, there are a few main differences to consider. Winches are meant to horizontally pull a heavy load over a surface where a hoist lifts the load vertically over a sharp angle.

While both of these tools can make lifting a heavy load immensely easier, you have to decide if you need to drag something or lift it. They’re great for dragging something heavy, where a hoist is perfect for lifting something heavy.

How to Choose the Best Chainsaw Winch

Chainsaw Winches

To choose your best chainsaw winch, there are a few main specifications that you will have to look at before you make a final purchase. Here are just a few of the most common specifications you should look into.

Type

In order to find a chainsaw winch that is perfect for you, you must first determine the type. The Lewis Winch is the most common type of winch was it is perfect for dragging super heavy loads over uneven terrain.

These are great winches, but you can also benefit from rope winches which are ideal if you have to drag something that is not as heavy. These winches are easy to tie to something and drag using something like a car or a horse. It just depends on how heavy your item is.

Weight

Weight is a very important factor as you are going to need to find a winch that will work well with your chainsaw and one that will work well with whatever the load size is that you want to lift, drag, or carry.

If your winch is too heavy for the chainsaw you are using, it may put way too much pressure on your chainsaw and potentially damage your chainsaw or burn the motor out. The same idea goes for your winch being too light, as this could end up in a snapped winch that could cause severe bodily injury and harm.

Capacity

The winch’s capacity is important because the last thing you want is to lose your winch because your load is too heavy. A snapped winch could cause so much damage, both to you and whatever it is that you were trying to haul.

While many winches can tug thousands of pounds before ripping in half, you will want to make sure that you are using a capacity that is appropriate for the job.

Length

The longer your chainsaw winch, the better. The last thing you want to happen is to have a shorter chainsaw winch that will put so much strain on your chainsaw engine, causing it to burn out.

Another reason that you want a longer length is that if the winch is too short, this will put way more pressure on your winch than necessary and it could potentially snap if you are not careful.

Top 3 Best Chainsaw Winches

We have rounded up the top three best chainsaw winches you can buy online right now to help take the guessing game out of which winches are great. These products are backed by stellar customer reviews and come highly recommended in today’s markets.

Streamline Industrial WINCH

Streamline Industrial WINCH

The chainsaw-mounted streamline industrial winch can hold up to 4,000 pounds with ease. This winch comes complete to you with a 150-foot cable. In just three easy steps you can start to use your streamlined industrial winch with ease. All you have to do is remove the cutter bar from your chainsaw, bolt your Lewis winch to your chainsaw with provided adapter kit, and then you’re done, and your winch will be ready to go.

Key Features

  • Price range: Less than $400
  • Pull capacity: 4,000 pounds
  • Warranty: One year warranty

Powerhouse Lewis Chainsaw Winch (8,000 lb capacity) Kit

Powerhouse Lewis Chainsaw Winch

This Powerhouse Lewis Chainsaw Winch can hold up to 8,000 pounds worth of capacity with an extremely durable cast aluminum alloy housing that holds strong, oiled steel gears to help you get all sorts of jobs done.

The cable is extremely lightweight all while being able to pull up to 4,000 pounds in a straight line and up to 8,000 pounds using your winch snatch block. There is an adapter kit with this setup that can be anchored to the ground or a ground anchor. You can easily hook up this winch to a trailer hitch mount as well for extra flexibility.

Key Features

  • Price range: Less than $400
  • Pull capacity: 4,000 pounds straight or 8,000 pounds with kit
  • Warranty: One year warranty

Lewis Chainsaw Winch Model 400

Lewis Chainsaw Winch Model 400

This Lewis Chainsaw Winch can turn any chainsaw into a portable, easy-to-use winch. All you need to do is take your bar and chain off your chainsaw and attach your Lewis winch to help you pull and haul all sorts of otherwise too heavy objects.

You can have so much pulling power with this winch, whether you need to pull in heavy logs of wood, move some stones or rocks within your yard, or even help a friend out by pulling out their care from a ditch -the jobs are endless with this winch setup. This particular winch can pull up to 4,000 pounds and comes with a complete cable of 150 feet with a hook.

Key Features

  • Price range: Less than $400
  • Pull capacity: 4,000 pounds
  • Warranty: One year warranty

FAQs

Question: How many pounds can a chainsaw winch pull?

Answer: It really depends on the size of your chainsaw motor and the capacity of your winch, but typically a chainsaw winch can pull up to 4,000 pounds easily. A higher-powered chainsaw with a fuller capacity cord will haul a lot more than a lower-powered chainsaw and thinner cable, so keep that in mind going forward.

Question: What’s a chainsaw winch?

Answer: A chainsaw winch is a highly durable cord that is attached to your chainsaw motor to help haul or pull heavy loads across a space.

Question: Can I use any chainsaw with a chainsaw winch?

Answer: You typically can, but the higher-powered your chainsaw, the more weight you can haul with your chainsaw winch. You don’t want to use a high torque winch with a low-powered chainsaw as it probably can’t hold and won’t help you move anything.

The Verdict on Chainsaw Winches

So, there you have it, all you ever needed to know about chainsaw winches and how exactly you can use them. Whether you prefer to buy your own winch, or you’d want to try to make your own, the possibilities are endless when it comes to moving heavy loads with your chainsaw winch.

Did you find this article helpful? We hope you did! Do you have any experience using chainsaw winches? We would love to hear from you! Feel free to share your comments and insights in the section below. And check out more of our helpful tips and tools for forestry such as our guide to the best chainsaws to get for your winch.

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