Acceptable 12V winch for my boat?

[Trips]

I have a 94 Sea Ray 220 that has a dry weight of 4,000Lbs. It has a 50 gallon fuel tank and an 8 gallon water tank. Fully loaded it weighs maybe 4,900lbs. I have found a Powerwinch 315 for a steal of $169 and it says it is rated up to a 4,000lb boat. Considering I pretty much have to dunk most of my trailer to load, do we think this is an acceptable power rating? I have a bunk trailer, not rollers. Obviously I'd like a bit stronger of a winch, but at $169, is it worth the shot? It has a manual crank to can attach in case of failure so I'd be able to pull her out in case of worst-case...

 

[JimS123]

The 315 is too small. You won't be happy. 712 would be a minimum.

Be sure you buy a new one. used electrics can be a problem. Whatever you buy, put glyde slicks or equivalent on the bunks or you will have issues with the longevity of the winch.

 

[NYBo]

I have a 94 Sea Ray 220 that has a dry weight of 4,000Lbs. It has a 50 gallon fuel tank and an 8 gallon water tank. Fully loaded it weighs maybe 4,100lbs.

I don't understand your math.

 

[GA_Boater]

I don't understand your math.

4000+350 (fuel)+72(water)+25 (anchor/chain) + 40 (cooler/drinks/ice) + 35 (safety equipment) + 150 (everything else) = 4100.

Go weigh the boat fully loaded and you'll see your guessimate is way short.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Plus 80-250 batt(s)
Boat 5k plus and if people will be in it while winching could easily be over 6k

 

[UncleWillie]

4000+350 (fuel)+72(water)+25 (anchor/chain) + 40 (cooler/drinks/ice) + 35 (safety equipment) + 150 (everything else) +100 (Batts) = 4772.
Let's call it 4800 to be safe.
A Bunk trailer will drag about 35% on the bunks during recovery up a typical 30% ramp. = 1680# ...
The PowerWinch 316 is rated for a 4000# pound because as the spec's state, it can pull 1650#.
They already have done the math we just did, and came up with close to the same numbers.
The 4000# rating assumes a Roller Trailer, Not Bunks. (They are sneaky like that!)

Floating the boat means nothing.
The winch is rated with One layer of cable on the reel or three turns of strap or only 3-5 feet of the 20 foot cable/strap in use.
As more Cable/Strap come on the reel, the pulling power goes DOWN as the Reel fills Up.
The winch has the hardest job pulling in the last 2 feet when all the weight is on the bunks and the reel is full.
A PowerWinch 712 has a 2400# Pulling Capacity and would be a better choice.

I just purchased a D-L Winch it is advertised for 9000# boats. (Also on Rollers!)
It is spec'd to pull 3000# with an empty reel and 1500# with a full reel at the end of the pull.
I intend on using it to recover a 3000# boat onto a bunk trailer. Very conservative!

The Hand crank is for the event of a power failure. A.K.A. a Dead Battery.
If the winch fails because it is overloaded, the hand crank is not going to work either.

Another spec to look closely at is the pulling speed.
If the winch has a smaller motor with a higher gear reduction, it will still pull like a mule, just much slower.
If the pulling speed is only 5 feet a minute; you could spend 4 minutes trying to recover the whole 20 foot boat.
That will seem like an eternity with 5 people waiting for you to get the boat on the trailer!

This is on situation where overdoing it is to be highly recommended.
Strap winches are also to be highly preferred over a cable winch.