In the pipeline industry it’s common for operators to work on steep slopes. Side booms, excavators, and support equipment is required to climb grades un-accessible without help. Sometimes dozers have to support equipment up and down hillsides by winch. This is where the term “Yo-Yo” comes from. For extreme hillsides, unstable slopes, and heavy loads a topline winch line is one of the only safe ways to work. On these sites operators are required to trust the winch line with their lives in some cases.

Choosing the right winch

When your life in on the line, literally, here are some things to consider when choosing the right winch. There are 2 main choices:

• PTO driven winches like the Allied/Hyster “W” series (W6G, W6F, W8L, W12E), and Carco/Paccar PTO line (50B, 70A, 120PS, CAT PA55, CAT PA56)
• Hydraulic winches like the Allied H6H, H8L, H12E, and the Carco/Paccar H90, H110B, H140, H200, and PA57VS, PA58VS

Both winch types can support huge loads within their weight class, but the hydraulic winches are variable speed, and the PTO winches have a FWD/REV gear ratio and can only be adjusted within a narrow range controlled by engine RPM.

Hydraulic winches are preferred by many operators because they hydraulic motor in the winch is simple to run for new operators. The simple controls allowing them to easily inch the winch line up and down just like many other hydraulic pieces of equipment. These winches allow high control, start/stop, variable line speed and inching control without damaging the winch. Familiar hydraulic controls is one safety bonus, but the big safety feature is that hydraulic winches are limited. Since the winches are limited by the bypass valve in the hydraulic motor, anytime an operator asks the winch to pull more than it can, it simply stops. The operator doesn’t have to worry about engine RPM’s when engaging the winch and has less risk of a line breaking from extreme pulling power. Control and Increased Safety is the biggest advantage of Hydraulic Winches.

PTO winches have been the anchor in the winch business for decades, and no hydraulic winch matches the available line pull and power offered by a PTO winch. They have a limited range of line speed because of the gear ratio, so picking the right ratio for your job is critical. For Yo-Yo work this normally means getting the slowest possible ratio (95:1 or new ratios around 150:1). In the past winches were equipped with a slow speed line-in, and a faster line-out speed. A fast line out speed is terrible when trying let someone down a hillside on a steep slope. Its critical to choose a winch with equal speed, and slow speed, gearing. This will allow you to safely bring equipment up and down extreme slopes at safe speeds. In the past, PTO winches were feared on steep slopes because of the potential for “RollBack”. Rollback was the term used when the operator disengaged the winch brake, but the drum hadn’t fully engaged the fwd/rev clutch yet and the winch would let out some cable until the fwd or rev clutch would engage. If you were on the end of the wire rope on a steep hillside this was not a good feeling. Current Production winches are equipped with electronic valves and a computer module to make sure that the brake is released and fwd clutch are engaged within milliseconds keeping the brake on until the fwd clutch is has taken the load. Operators using the Allied’s GENII controls, which have the latest PTO winch vale technology, should not have any rollback when operated properly. PTO winches with slow speed, equal speed, and electronic controls will nearly match their hydraulic counterparts for control at slow speeds. The PTO winch advantage come in the power available. Slow speed winches are often able to pull max loads bare drum and full drum, meaning they are only limited by the rated breaking strength of the line. The available HP to the winch through the PTO shaft is vastly greater than the HP available through most dozer hydraulic systems. Increased power and line pull with no risk in overheating dozer hydraulic systems is the biggest advantage of a PTO winch.

Recommendation:

Each contractor has their preference for winches they are comfortable with on steep slopes. These are some of the important things to know when considering which winch is right for you. For this Yo-Yo Category making a blanket recommendation is unwise because there are to many factors around the jobsite that impact what winch is right for you. If you are unsure or want more in depth information than listed here, feel free to contact us.