Activities like off-roading require a lot of preparation, especially when it is done for recreational purposes. To rescue yourself from difficult situations, you should be equipped with a badland winch that offers reliability and assists in pulling heavy objects. In case you have an accident, it might happen that your winch’s remote is damaged. Therefore, one should know how to operate a badland winch without a remote.
How to use a badland winch without a remote?
When off-roading in harsh terrain, you will most likely find yourself in an unfavorable situation. Badlands winch will come in handy, but if your winch does not operate and the winch remote gets damaged, knowing how to operate a winch without the remote will come to your rescue. For operating a badland winch without the remote on would need the right tools and the knowledge about doing it correctly.
Tools you need
To operate your badland winch without the remote, you need to have the correct tools before starting the process. Following are some of the important tools that one wound needs prior to operation.
- Knowledge about winch wiring – Operating the badland winch without the remote would require you to open the solenoid box and look for those connectors, among many other connectors, which control the loading mechanism and then you will have to hot wire load1 and load2 connectors. Having the proper knowledge about the connectors and wiring is very important. If the suitable connectors are not identified, and some other wire is hotwired, it can cause damage to the winch and risk the operator’s safety.
- Winch Controller Switch – A winch controller switch is a device which helps to operate a winch. Once you have identified the connector wires that control the loading mechanism, you would need to connect the connectors to a small winch controller switch with seven connectors on the back. The wires are generally color coded; therefore, make sure to get a winch controller switch which has color-coded sockets. Once you have connected the connectors, they will use the battery’s power, and the solenoid will work.
- Tape – After you identify the wires and the locations where they are supposed to be put, you can use tape to code the wire before routing it from the bonnet to the dashboard. Make sure to use tape, which is safe for electrical appliances, to avoid any safety hazards.
- Protective Gloves and Clothing – When working with so many wires and other electrical appliances, it is important to have the appropriate protective gear to protect yourself. Wear gloves and clothing made of insulating material such as rubber, leather and cloth linings for shock protection. Other protective equipment, like face shields, masks, and safety glass with a shield on the side, should also be guaranteed to be used to protect oneself from wires and other moving parts. Having these things prepared will help to avoid any kind of safety hazard.
- Strap – A strap is a piece or strip of any flexible material, generally leather, which can be used for wrapping or holding things together. Keep the strap at your disposal as needed in the process. It is recommended to use a strap made of sturdy material as it will be used for wrapping the anchoring point. You can use a winch strap if you have one as it is quite strong and will be able to endure the stress caused.
- D-Shackle – A D-shackle[1], called a chain shackle, is shackled with a D-shaped body. They are much narrower in comparison to an O-shaped shackle. Most shackle types are a variant of the D shackle. The shape of the D shackle resembles a loop of chain, which has a threaded pin closure or clevis-type pin closure. They are a good and suitable option for pulling and lifting heavy loads. Therefore, you would need to keep a pair of D shackles handy. You need to attach the D shackle at the end of the strap wrapped around the anchoring point.
Step-by-Step Guide on How to Use a badland Winch Without Remote
A badland winch can assist you in rescuing yourself and your off-road vehicle, though you can only do this if you have a working winch remote. In case your winch’s remote is not working, you can follow this step-by-step guide to learn how to operate your winch without a remote when stuck in a troublesome situation.
Step 1: Find a firm position for anchoring
One of the first tasks you have to do is find a firm anchoring point[2]. An anchoring point is a point where the cable of the winch will be fastened. It is crucial to choose an anchoring point which is firm and sturdy enough to support the weight of your off-road vehicle because when you start winching, it will exert a tremendous force on the anchor position. If the anchor point is not sturdy, a significant accident can happen.
To make the process smoother and hassle-free choose an anchor point exactly in front of your vehicle. Choosing such a position will aid in a smoother unwinding of the cable. Some firm anchoring points which you will be able to find in the woodlands are trees which are firmly rooted, big boulders, etc.
Step 2: Pulling out the Winch Cable
The next step involves preparing the winch cable so you can pull it out. To do so, the first thing you need to do is disengage the winch lever. To disengage, you first need to find the labels generally present beside the lever, which says free spool or disengage. When you find the label, turn the lever in direction of the label which says disengage. Disengaging the lever will allow your winch rope to spool freely out of the winch.
Stretch out the winch cable to ensure it is smooth. By providing that the winch rope is smooth, you will be able to eliminate all weak points within the cable. Once the lever is disengaged, the winch cable can be pulled out of the winch freely. While pulling out the cable, ensure that you are not pulling out an excessive amount of the winch cable and only pulling out the length required. To avoid pulling out too much of the winch cable, you can leave five wraps of the winch rope on the horizontal rotating drum and then unwind the remaining part manually.
Step 3: Preparing for the pull
Once you are done with pulling the winch rope out of the winch, you can pull your off-road vehicle with a cable but make sure to pull it lightly without exerting high force and anchor the cable on the anchoring point. As mentioned before, it is imperative that you anchor the cable to a firm and solid position because as you start winching, the cable will exert a high amount of pressure on the anchor position.
To make sure that the cable unwinds in a smooth and hassle-free manner, choose an anchor position which is right in front of your off-road vehicle. This allows the winch rope to be in a straight line. While the cable is in a straight line, it assists in exerting maximum power on the vehicle. A maximum force is exerted on the off-road vehicle, which makes pulling out the vehicle from a tough spot easy.
However, it must be noted that too much stress on the cable can cause damage to it. To avoid any such situation, use a damper. A damper helps to change the kinetic energy to thermal energy, which protects the cable from damage. You can use a jacket, blanket etc., as a damper.
Step 4: Attaching the strap, D shackle and the hook
After you are done with fixing a firm anchoring point in front of your vehicle and preparing the winch cable for pulling, there are some other necessary attachments that you must do before you start with winching for your and the vehicle’s safety. One of the first tasks you have to do is to wrap the anchor point with a strap. It is recommended to use a strap that is made of a firm material. Using a winch strap will be highly recommended as it is made of sturdy material which will be able to endure the pressure generated during winching.
When you are done wrapping the strap around the anchor point, ensure that the strap’s end is positioned in your direction. At the two ends of the straps, you have to attach the D shackle. A D shackle, also known as a chain shackle, is a narrow shackle shaped like a loop of chain that ends in a threaded pin closure or clevis-type pin closure. The D shackle is an efficient device for pulling heavy loads. Therefore it is used for winching. The winch hook can be attached once the D shackle is fastened.
All winches come with a built-in hook which can be found on the tip of the winch rope. When attaching the winch hook to the D shackle, make sure that the tip of the winch hook is in an upwards direction. To ensure that this set-up exerts the maximum force, place the winch hook at the lower point of your off-road vehicle.
Step 5: Installing a switch in the off-road vehicle
The next step involves installing a switch inside your off-road vehicle. After you have attached the D shackle and fastened the strap around the anchor position, you would need to connect a switch so that the solenoid can start operating. To install the switch, you first need to open the solenoid’s pack cover. There you will see several connector wires across the solenoid board.
Among the many connectors, you will have to identify the connectors that control your winch’s loading mechanism. One easy way you can follow to identify the load-controlling connectors is by routing the wires from already present controllers. You can also use them without any further wiring.
Now to install the switch, you will need to get a winch controller switch with seven connectors on its back. After you identify the connectors that control the loading mechanism and link to the solenoid, you can connect the connectors to the controller switch. Among the seven connectors, the furthest two connectors assist in winch-out and winch-in.
Then connectors located in the middle help draw power from the vehicle battery and activate the solenoid for working. Generally, the wires are color coded. Wires which are red in color, indicate that they are responsible for loading and those which are black in color indicate that they are responsible for grounding.
Step 6: Get the winch running
Getting the winch started without a remote can be difficult, but it is not impossible. One of the most straightforward ways that you can possibly resort to get the winch running is by hot wiring the winch. Once you locate and identify the connector wires and the switch installation is done, you can start hot wiring the winch. When you start with this process, make sure to take all necessary precautions and wear protective gloves to prevent any kind of injury and accident.
Before you start this process, you will need to engage your off-road vehicle winch. You can engage the winch by turning the lever in the direction of the label, which says “engage”. By engaging the winch, you will be able to stop the winch rope from spooling freely. Once the winch is engaged, you start with hot wiring. The winch can suddenly start working as you hot wire it. Therefore you need to be very careful. There are two leads on the battery, a positive lead and a ground lead.
Disconnecting the positive lead of the battery is one of the first things you need to do as you start hot wiring. You can leave the grouch attached to the battery. You will find three cables running from the solenoid control pack to the three posts on the motor. Label these three cables with the help of tape and disconnect the cables once the labeling is done. Next, you will find “A”, “F1”, and “F2” engraved next to the three posts on the winch motor. After you have located the imprints, take a five- or six-inch jumper wire, run it from A to F1, and allow power from the battery to F2.
The winch motor will start working in one direction only if the wiring is done correctly. Now, to get the winch running in the opposite direction, run the jumper wire from A to F2 and allow power from the battery to F1.
Step 7: Starting the operation
The final step involves starting with the recovery process. Begin the process by checking the solenoid and whether the solenoid is properly activating the winch motor. When you are checking the solenoid and winch motor, make sure that there is no object or person on the path between the winch and your off-road vehicle, which is being recovered. Make sure to maintain a slow and steady pace while you slack up the cable wire.
Step 8: Terminating the operation after the recovery is made
The winching operation can be put to a stop once the off-road vehicle has been recovered successfully. Keep driving till you find a safe spot where your car will not get swamped. Park your vehicle in a safe spot and terminate the winching operation slowly by switching off the motor. Once the motor has been switched off, detach the wires attached to the anchor.
Make sure that the cable does not get tangled. In the end, wrap the winch rope around the horizontal drum neatly. While you wrap the winch cable, wrap the entire length of the winch rope around the drum and try to avoid any overlaps and do it precisely. With this, you will be done with the process
Tip for emergency situation
When going off-roading, keep an extra wireless remote with you in case you encounter any troublesome situation on your journey. The harbor freight wireless remote control for the badland winch is a good option. This wireless remote mounts on winches with a load capacity of 9000-12000 pounds and can work over a range of 50 feet which allows you to maintain a safe distance. It includes power-in and power-out control and receiver plugs which are weather-resistant into the jack for control lead.
Summary
Badland winches are great devices that can come in handy when you are stuck in any kind of unfavorable situation involving pulling heavy objects. If you often go off-roading, encountering problems on such harsh terrain is very likely to happen. In case your winch stops working, and the remote is damaged as well, you can follow the steps mentioned above to operate your badland winch without a remote. Make sure to take all necessary precautions to prevent any safety hazards, as you will be handling everything manually.
References
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Bradley, A. (2023). Shackles explained. Ranger. https://www.ranger.com.au/shackles-explained/#:~:text=D%2Dshackles%20also%20referred%20to,are%20being%20lifted%20in%20line.
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Tours, E. T. a. T. (2021). HOW TO use the 4×4 vehicle effectively, for safe driving. OFF ROAD Greece. https://www.offroadgreece.com/de/4×4-fahren/124-winching-techniques