Question about a winch (awesome bullet may post more pictures!)

Now that I replaced a 185 pound 48HP with a 320 pound ETEC 90 I up graded the powerwinch on the trailer. I had a 1500# winch which strained to pull the boat in. For Christmas I got a 2500#. The problem is that is pops the 30 fuse inline fuse. The wire is the stock "accessory" wire on a 1996 S10. I have a 40amp circuit breaker that I could replace the inline 30amp with. Would that be to much for the wiring? Is this a fire risk?

Thanks

That is going to start a fire...you need to run a heavy guage cable from the positive side of the battery to the back of the vehicle. Preferably like 2ga or 1/0......and put a 40amp breaker in that. http://www.bassboatcentral.com/smileys/wink.gif The accessory wire on that vehicle is more intended as a way to charge the batts on a travel trailer or something like that, no more than say 15 or 20 amps.... http://www.bassboatcentral.com/smileys/wink.gif

I could always put some pics up if you want.... http://www.bassboatcentral.com/smileys/Laugh.gif

What do you do, park the wheels out of the water?
Backfire http://www.bassboatcentral.com/smileys/wink.gif

When I launch at a concrete/asphalt ramp I don't let the hubs get in the water (even with the buddy bearings). I baught this trailer back in 1992 and it is still in good shape. The way I launch is the only way to keep them for any length of time in a salt water environment. Many times we will launch from a beach without a ramp. This may require the trailer to go in over the axle. In this case the power winch is till used to get the boat on the trailer while one person hold the stern with a boat hook.

OK, while this has a E-Tec on it I think this would be better answered in the trailer forum..... http://www.bassboatcentral.com/smileys/wink.gif

There should be info onthe winch to tell you how much current it will draw at max load. You should get a breaker that will handle that amperage. Copper cable has some resistance and will drop some voltage. The thinner the cable and the greater the distance, the more voltage it will drop. So, you go down to you local electrical supply store and the guy there should be able to pull out a book and look up the wire size you will need based on the distance you want to run (direct from battery to winch) and the max voltage drop you can afford to lose to the cable (1/2 volt max) and the amount of current the winch will draw.

I'm gonna bet you can use 4 or 6 gauge and 40 to 45 amp breaker. Basing this on trolling motor wiring...most use 6 gauge and 50A breakers. Make sure you get the proper terminals and crimping tool. Crappy connectors drop voltage and heat up making them drop more voltage and heat up...

If you continue to use the 10 or 12 gauge vehicle wiring get a good fire extinguisher.

6 ga wire is the norm for most winches, but you need more breaker capacity. I had a Power Winch which, if i remember coorectly, used two 40 or 50A breakers in parallel to yield an effective capacity of 80 or 100A. BTW, you need circuit breakers, not a fuse, and it's normal and not necessarily undesireable for the winch to'strain' when loading the boat. Mine did that for 20 years, and it was always fine (and the PowerWinch manual suggested that anything short of a hard stall was OK).