my warn solenoid finally gave out. any ideas on a replacement rather than Warn ???

 

Jeepers, if you're talking about the circuit-breaker SPST solenoid relay, hmmmmmmm, how can I put this?

Some, the big boys on the playground say, wire the switch directly to the battery positive terminal, bypassing the solenoid altogether. The winch then may be operated at all times, whether ignition switch is on or off; however, some risk arises regarding short-circuiting the wiring.

If one dares to wire direct, check ALL insulation thoroughly; look out for potential insulation abrasion points (e.g., between tank & frame, etc.).

A case was once reported on the old, old Forum of a guy who had a winch rear-mounted on his quad; his following posts lamented a terrible fire, where his quad burned up while sitting on a trailer in his garage; I asked whether the factory-trained service technicians who installed his winch used a solenoid or not; no response.

SuperWinch uses a "Shortstop" thermally-activated circuit breaker in-line instead of a solenoid as Warn does.

What would I do in your position? Hmmmmmm, lemme think about it . . .

Tree Farmer

 

If you want to replace what you have, go to your local NAPA store & ask for an Echlin part # ST80 {silver contacts} or ST85 {copper contacts}.By the way, they also have available some DPST solenoids that in pairs could be used for power in / power out.But I'm concerned that they're only rated @ 85 amps. Meanwhile i think I'm hot on the trail of locating one like they use for the Warn 2500 - hopefully for less $ than they get for the upgrade.

 

My selnoid lasted about 11 months before it went bad, what killed it was a loose connection were it was tied in to the ignition switch, it would energize and de-energize about a hundred times a minute!!!!!!

 

You can find solenoids at the local Auto Parts Store. Ask for a mid-seventies Ford or AMC solenoid. They can be had for about $5.00 either one of these two will be completely acceptable.

Wire it into the system with an on off switch to the solenoid. This will prevent burnout of the solenoid from constant use everytime the machine is running.

 

Be careful when using a regular automotive starter soleniod.While they will work,they are not typically rated for continous duty.Best if used with a switch, as Thor suggested. Also,the solenoids mentioned in the above post are wired slightly different than your original solenoid.The operating coil is internally grounded,the mounting bracket must be bolted {or wired} to ground. DO NOT connect a ground wire to either small terminal as you did with the Warn.Apply current to the "S" terminal to trip the solenoid.The "R" terminal {if used} is a resistor bypass used for some automotive ignition systems.

 

The concept of an "on-off" swtich to the in-line solenoid sounds terrifically redundant to me.

The purpose of the solenoid itself is a switch, removing current to the winch circuit when the ignition key is turned off.

Installing a replacement solenoid, with its own separate switch, seems redundant.

Why not, instead of a replacement solenoid, use an in-line manual switch near the battery postive terminal connection? Turn the switch off when the quad is unattended, turn it on when winch operation is desired; i.e., manipulate the in-line switch the same as the proposed solenoid switch.

Such an in-line switch must be rated for the full winch current of course.

If full-time (i.e., ignition key on or off) winch operation is acceptable, an in-line circuit breaker could protect against overload and short-circuits, instead of a solenoid or switch.

Tree Farmer

 

thanks for all the replies. I picked up a 1978 Ford pickup solenoid and it works just fine

 

ok - what the heck is going on here - I just wasted my latest solenoid - should I wire it dorect and check my insurance ??????

 

Jeepers-too late for this, but did you call Warn to see if they would replace it? I don't know how old the solenoid was, but they are pretty good to deal with.