Here is my question. I already bolted up my Superwinch 1500 to my Kodiak.
I wired in the the thumb toggle on the handle bars. Worked good.
Wiring is solidm but I only ran the positive lead back to the battery. I have decided that I do not want power to the winch all the time. I only want power to the winch when the key is on. can I buy a simple solenoid an wire it in?
I',m a little gray on how a solenoid works. I need something that will energize when I turn the key on and supply power to my lead to the winch...
Suggestions? Or can i get a simple relay an use it????????

help

 

A starter solenoid will work pretty good cause you need a solenoid/relay that will handle the high amperage of your winch. A solenoid usually has 4 terminals, 2 big ones and 2 little ones. You send power from the battery to the solenoid on one of the big terminals. Then you attach the wire going to your winch to the other big terminal on the solenoid. When power is passed thru the solenoid from the battery terminal to the winch, the winch will operate. The only way power can pass thru to the winch is if you send power to the smaller terminals on the solenoid. One of these terminals is a ground, so you can pick up ground from anywhere. The other small terminal will be your hot wire from whatever you want to push to operate the winch, say, from your toggle switch. So you have to send a +12 volt wire from a power source to the toggle switch, then out of the toggle switch to the solenoid. The +12 volt wire to the toggle switch could come from a wire that gets power when you turn on the key switch. A relay works exactly like a solenoid does. My suggestion would be to scratch the relay idea and get a heavy duty manual on/off switch and mount it near the battery and wire it in to the large wire going from the battery to the winch. That way, when you need the winch, just turn on that switch and hit the button on the handlebars. That will be easier, cheaper, and you will have less crap that can go bad.

 

Go to Autozone and get a 30 amp aux. light relay kit. It should be a 1-1/2" cube and has a mounting tab on it. Just follow the instructions and use the red wire off of the key switch instead of a external switch. They are low current draw and should handle the current draw to the winch.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: olyguy12

Go to Autozone and get a 30 amp aux. light relay kit.</end quote></div>

For a relay disconnect operating off the ignition key, etc., I really don't think that a 30 Amp relay is sufficient. A 1500-2000 lb winch is going to draw more current then that. After a while the contacts will burn and they will either fuse closed or no longer make contact. Lighting circuits are resistive loads whereas a winch is an inductive load where the current increases with increased load. I used a 70A relay on my Beartracker to cut power to a 2000 lb winch when the ignition key is off. That is the lowest current rating I would suggest.

Raptor450's suggestion to use a stater solenoid like those used in Fords will be far more durable. If space is a consideration use at least a 70A cube relay like a TYCO or similar. It measures 1" x 1" x 1" and is rated for 70A continuous @ 12VDC. If you can't find them locally I can sell you a brand new one cheap.

 

Thanks guys,, I think I will go with the 12v solenoid idea....

 

I guess I should of got out my calulator before I typed. Your right, it will take 40 Amps to run that winch according to the spec sheet on Superwinch's web sight. 0.71 HP motor. But I still can not figure why put such a small winch on a 600 lb wheeler? Also why not buy a winch the handle bar rocker switch that includes the proper relay setup?

 

The winch was free, all it needed was a new cable. The thumb switch was brand new still in the plastic in the box that was given to me in the box..no other switch was there. I guess I cannot be picky. besides, I'm not an avid 'lets see if I can winch my quad up that cliff'.. hahahha.. It is a just in case winch.. I have 26 in 589's on my Kodiak, I have been through some really tough stuff and wish I had a winch on it just in case. Just a precaution.

 

Try xtremewinch.com. They have the correct relay switch to do what you are asking for.

 

Thanks I will take a look.....