You're using a roller fairlead with synthetic rope? You run the risk of getting the rope pinched in the corners of the rollers and being damaged. You should be using a hawse fairlead if you have synthetic and a roller fairlead if you have steel cable. And if you switch from steel to synthetic on the same winch and for some reason want to use a roller fairlead, you should buy a new one. Old scratched up rollers aren't good for synthetic rope. I spool my cable from the bottom, the way every winch I ever saw came from the factory. It goes straight down or close to it and I'm not having any kind of problems. I don't use it a lot but it's over 10 years old. If there was a problem it should have showed up by now. I hope it still works whenever I get around to plowing in the afternoon or evening. The weatherman said grab your shovels and snowblowers, we're getting 3-6" of snow.

 

Yeah Ken!! were getting snow! nana nana nana! lol! ha ha

Well at least Franks neck of the woods is getting, the blunt of most of it....I don't know if that's a good thing, or not? I'm ok with just our little bit, just under 3''....but no snow at all? You poor man! I'm glad now, that when my family decided to move north, during ww2, that they decided to go all the way, way up north, by passing all them warmer southern states lol
There's a ch 2 news crew up in UP filming the falls, snowmobile trails, rivers, Mac bridge, using their new drone for getting some terrific views/shots, where it would be nearly impossible on foot! Nearly 175'' of snow has fallen up there so far!
They even took a dog sled run out on trails. Looked mighty cold though. Looked more like Alaska, but still here in our state! Lets go!
Can I add a roller at the bottom of my wench where there's just a stationary steel plate? Is it just a matter of removing the plate and adding a roller lol....nothing is never that easy right? I'm not about to buy another wench, since I'm not really using the plow that much....so far lol.
There saying right now at 6am that most of our snow fall, will be moving south of us by 7:30, here....just kidding, but if E is close to you than they just moved Ohio, to Windsor ....like in CANADA! lol Well this will give me another excuse to pull the wheeler back out to play around with! Expecting to see you and your warm and comfortable, little red sled there, pulling up like Santa soon....lets do lunch, Santa lol

 

Hey buddy, if it makes you feel ant better, we got less than 2''! I just got back in from using my wide ***, 4' shovel, and even after doing walks, and drive, and half my neighbors lots, on ea side of me, it was still a piece of cake....white fluffy cake! Snowman's up to 2' right now!
Don't bother driving that snow tracker way up north here, you might get blinded by our blizzard white out....that never materialized lol That's funny, isn't it? how the cutoff for any snow was right at Ohio/Mi. boarder, like mom-ma nature was teasing you all lol I'm teasing Ken here, because we can hear him now, when he finally has his day, but that same boarder, will be in his court! Odds are you'll be getting dumped on next, like when that Nor'easter, slides west, burying Toledo w/ feet instead of inches! I'm doing a snow dance for you guys right now! lol
Haya! Haya
SNOW COME!! Now I've done it!

YOUR IN BIG TROUBLE , MISTER!

 

Yes, I do use a roller for my syn rope. Switched it right away so rollers never got scratched up. Talked to lots of folks that use winches and it was highly recomended to stay with the roller. In the real world the polished plates have not held up that well and as a toolmaker for more than 50 years I can understand why. My KFI winch came with cable over the top, not under. When I respooled with syn rope I tried both ways and over the top worked much better. According to some experienced winchers I know claim it depends on where the winch is mounted in relation to the angle of pull. Both KFI and QuadBoss the maker of the plow, recomend you do "not" have a straight drop down from the spool, as the sharp angle causes excess strain and wear. On my blade I have multiple connecting points so I have tried various positions and by far theforward most position works best, far less strain on rope and winch! With the straight down drop the rubber saver gets trapped like 4 trackers does, but when you mive the cable out front more the problem goes away. The cable saver mfgr also recomends a straighter pull to avoid damage to the cable saver.

 

Well the ball joints are truly, bald lol, They hoisted my van up and showed me the looseness/movement, but I don't understand why it didn't move for me, unless they might have been frozen from the cold? Anyways they quoted all 4 ball joints, all 4 shocks (yeah they look bad too) new fan belt total $1500. I've done shocks, belt (just 2 wks ago on gmc van) but watching you tube looks duable! Parts cost around $300, (after quick glance). and will give me something to do when weather improves!

 

Glad they were honest with you, but, quite the hefty price tag! Had ball joints done on my Blazer many times, having 4wd is hard on ball joints and the blazer unuts are not very heavy duty. There price on parts looks about right but man is there labor cost high! Probably charging you over 100 per hour for labor, to bad the guy actually doing the wirk will get less than 20 per hour! I have a private mechanic near me that has a very nice shop with 2 helpers and he only charges 60 per hour. He is always busy and I think I know why!

 

I just watch the whole ball joint replacement procedure, on 2 different you tube videos, and its not rocket science, the hardest part is knocking out the ball joints, where on one, they used air, and took a long time, but on second one, he beat it out with a mallet and popped right out! look's to be about 2 hr or less ea side. if you don't mind getting a little greasy, that is lol I'll wait until we get a nice comfortable day in May, with a tall glass of lemonade, under a shade tree....get it, shade tree....mechanic, here....and proud of it!

 

Many parts stores like auto zone will rent for free a ball joint removal tool. In my earlier years I did all that stuff but nowadays when I can find someone to do it at a reasonable cost, I just let them do it. It takes me to long to recover from all the aches and pains! I have a heated garage with a big compressor and all the air tools to do that kind of work but just to painfull to tackle much Keepin my SxS going and routine service on my car is plenty for me.

 

I didn't plow any snow today. I was hurting so bad I used a walking stick when I went out to get my mail. When I came back in I put my mittens on and traded the walking stick for a push broom. After I swept off my truck and quad I was in for the day. When I said my winch cable goes straight down or close to it, I goofed up. It's hanging straight down but only because of the slack in it. It's hooked on about a foot ahead of there, but when I park I have lots of slack in the cable before I put the cover on right over it. It's straight down every time I look at it before and after I plow, but when I'm plowing it's angled ahead.

 

Your winch should already have a hawse fairlead on it, a hunk of iron or aluminum with a slot in it. When you take it off a roller fairlead should bolt right on using the same holes. You may have to take all four rollers off to get the bolts in, but most likely just the side rollers. Pull your cable through before you install it, then after you have it bolted down, put the rollers back on. That's all there is to it. The one in this picture has pins with snap rings on it. All mine have had bolts with Nyloc nuts.