ok here is the thing i was out playing in the snow today blasting around admiring how much this thing can go through then it happens i got burried in about 3 feet of snow so luckily a telephone pole was right in front of me, so i wrapped my winch cable around it and once it started pulling me my motor died so i started it and it happened again. so i would have to rev the motor up and winch about 2 inches and stop winching and rev it up and i could barely keep the motor running and it just wanted to die on me wonder if anyone has had this problem and well yeah it is a short somewhere but if anyone has had this problem it would make finding it that much easier, and i could spool it in without any weight on it and it would spool in just fine

 

The winch will draw the power from the battery awful fast and if the engine isn't running fast enough to supply enough power (amps) to keep enough volts in the battery. The voltage will fall below the threshold for the ignition to operate and the motor shuts off. Stop the winch and the battery starts to recover, voltage goes back up, you start the engine (the starter pulls less amps than the winch for a shorter time) and you winch until the the voltage drops again. Keep the revs above 2000 or 2500 rpms and the system should charge enough not to drop the voltage so much.

 

Could a somewhat weak battery also contribute to the dying engine while under electrical load?

 

Only a good battery would recover fast enough to restart the engine. A sign of a weak battery is slow recovery or no recovery by itself when the load is removed. The instructions with my winch said not to operate the winch with out the engine running above idle. They however don't specify how far above idle, but a backround in electronics and having been a professional mechanic for over 20 years taught me alot about how batteries work. Weez's battery is ok, just that those winch's suck power faster than a big block sucks gas. Weez it works ok with no load on the winch just means no power draw. It's like your gas engine if you cruise easy down the flat road at 20 mph in high gear it doesn't take any gas hardly. But run the thing into a deep, long mud bog and crack that throttle wide open, it sucks gas like mad and moves a lot slower than 20 mph.

 

Yeah, a weak battery doesn't help the situation, make sure all your connections are tight as well. Were you stalling the winch? I'd look at getting a ****** block, it'll double your pulling ability, and it'll take less amperage from the battery.

 

I've always wondered about this winch/battery relationship. Looking back, I would not have bought the wireless remote for my winch if I'd given it any real thought. In order to use the wireless, you have to be off and away from the ATV. So, how do you rev it up if you're not on it? When we get one for my wife's ATV, it will not be a wireless. These dinky little ATV/motorcycle batteries are just not that 'strong'.

Or, maybe you just 'stand' next to the unit while winching, giving it a little gas to keep the recharge going? I've never had to use it.

Tap, tap. [That's me knocking on wood.]

 

I use my winch quite a bit, not for pulling myself out, but pulling logs though brush and onto the trail. I've never had my bike quit while doing so, not to say that it couldn't happen. I almost never use it when riding, but it's peace of mind when I ride alone. I would recommend getting a ****** block, and a nylon strap to save trees that you may be winching against. A bigger battery would be ideal, but ATV's a really limited on space. Dual batteries however.....

 

Hey weez, make sure your battery has enough water in it. I have to add more every 6 months... If you make sure they stay full of water, they should last a good 3+ years. My dad just replaced the battery in his 2000 Cat 500 for the first time.

 

after doing some serious trail riding my bike would not start up, i checked all the connections and could not find a problem, then my dad suggested filling the battery back up. After filling each one of the cells with distilled water, it was perfect again, that should be on your regular maintenance schedule bout once a year. One thing though i had never had to rev mine to winch myself out, i always let it idle and nothing ever happend.

 

I tried replying last night to bear but my net went kinda crazy on me and didn't go through and anyone who has gotten stuck in snow and mud will tell ya that it doesn't take as much power to pull out of snow as mud because of the suction, and the battery would spin it over like it was 80 degrees outside. I didn't do an over excess of winching i am talking the second i started winching it would just stall the engine i am talking bout the first inch so that tells me that i have a short somewhere that is drawing enough power to completely deprive my cdi of electricity. I have winched before where my battery gets weak and the lights will dim and the motor will idle down it wasn't like that it just plain stalled like in the snap of a finger. and thank you to everyone who replied