Warn Industries

Warn Industries and recreational off-roading share a heritage that began with a fleet of Jeeps, both the new models and those WWII veterans assimilated into civilian life. Jeeps grew into the premier off-road rig with an uncanny ability to stay on the trail. Meanwhile, Warn grew to be synonymous with the winch, one of the tools that retrieved the Jeep when it occasionally slipped off that trail.
It all started in 1948, when Arthur Warn"s family owned a Willys dealership in the northwest. GIs had returned from the war with affection and respect for the sturdy military vehicles and an appreciation for the Jeep"s obvious potential for a new life on peaceful soil. Warn"s first step toward a company that would eventually settle on the banks of Oregon"s Clackamus River was two-wheel conversions for those Jeeps, giving them polite highway manners. He went into production on locking hubs, an indispensable component in that conversion.
From hubs to axles to winches and on to a line of heavy-duty bumpers and accessories for light trucks, Warn kept growing. Today, Warn"s premium hubs require a full 9/10th turn for position engagement and feature a thick internal wave spring and heavy dial indents to guarantee the axle stays engaged.
In addition, the company"s high-strength alloy axles are capable of surviving U-joint failure. The front axles allow owners of early Dana 30 front axles with 260x U-joints to upgrade to the sturdier 297x U-joint.
Then, there"s their winches. Warn"s line-up covers everything from ATV applications with line pull rates from 2,500 pounds to heavy-duty industrial uses.
Given this range of poundage-pulling, how do you figure out what"s right for your rig and the type of work you expect from a winch? A knowledge of the maximum gross weight (multiplied by 1.5 for extra insurance) you intend to pull-usually that"s your rig-is key. Match that to the line pull rate-the amount of dead weight the winch can pull with the wire rope on the bottom, or first, layer of the drum.
Another consideration is the line speed. First, you don"t want to grow old waiting to pull your rig out; second, the longer the winch works, the hotter it gets. There are a thousand considerations when it comes to actually using a winch. For that, just take a look at Warn"s Winch Guide.
Now with all that in mind, you"re ready to cruise through the winch model series. Warn"s best combination of durability and performance has been dubbed the Ultimate Series, five winches with line pull rates of 9,500 pounds. The basic 9.5xp winch has the longest duty cycle and fastest line speed (from 16.8 feet per minute under 2,000 pounds of load to 7.6 feet per minute at 9,500 pounds) of the full Warn winch line. Its features include a high-output parallel Series-Wound 6 hp motor, three-stage planetary gear train, full-face contact drum seals, water-resistant housing gaskets and a continuous-duty control pack.
The next winch up the high-tech ladder, the 9.5ti (thermometric indicator). Upgrades include a second-generation Series Wound high-torque motor and that little "ti" for operator feedback. During the winching process, the operator is fed motor temperature information for more control of the rescue. The 9.5ti is also available in a portable multi-mount version with a 12.5-pound aluminum die-cast body.
The most ultimate of the series is the 9.5si with Metal-Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistor (MOSFET), solid-state control. The MOSFET control module replaces the solenoid pack and its electro-mechanical functions with no moving parts to control Power In, Power Out or Stop functions. The winch can handle temperatures ranges from - 40¡ F to +180¡ F. The MOSFET control pack is also available to retrofit any low-profile Warn winch with Series Wound motors.
Warn"s Premium winch series includes some of the most visible winches in the backcountry. The XD 9000 features a low current draw for long duty cycles, 9000 pound rated line pull and 12 volt, 4.6 horsepower Series Wound motor. The XD 9000i offers an integrated control pack and all-metal housing to protect the electrical components and is also available in a portable multi-mount.
For those who have graduated to bigger rigs, the three winch models in Warn"s Heavyweight Series pull from 12,000 pounds to 16,500. The 16.5ti can recover full-sized trucks and SUVS, loaded to the gills, and includes thermometric technology for operator feedback. Last but not least, the popular PowerPlant series that integrates a heavy-duty winch with a powerful air compressor; as well as their new, entry level, Tabor winches. And with one key thing in common with their predecessors: Over the past 60 years, Warn has been getting off-roaders into and out of the backcountry without a hitch.