Now that I'm finally in a house I'll be in for a while, I'd like to build myself a skinning machine. I'm a hobby trapper and focus mostly on water critters, but would use the skinning machine for the occasional coon and coyote and would like to be able to also use it for hanging deer. I have a few questions before I get started buying stuff and putting it together. I took a look at the skinning machine threads in the archives, but the questions remain.

The skinning machine will be in the garage, which has a 10' ceiling and drywall on the walls and ceiling, with open attic space above. The winch I'm looking to get (Link to Harbor Freight ATV Winch) is an ATV winch, so it will need to be hooked up to a battery. I was thinking of mounting the winch up in the attic and having the cable hang down through the ceiling, but that seems like a pain unless I also put the battery and a trickle charger up there. For that reason, I think I would be better off with a wall mounted winch so I can keep the battery in the garage for easy charging. Any concerns using that winch? I like that it has a wireless control for up/down and should be more than enough to pull the hide off a coyote or coon and hoist up a deer.

What are some options for mounting the base? I have a hammer drill so I could possibly drill something into the concrete floor, but would probably want to install some threaded inserts in the floor so I can remove the base when the wife wants her car in the garage. Maybe 2-4 threaded inserts that I could bolt the base to when I need it and take it out when I don't? How high up off the floor do you guys have your vice grips so the animal isn't too low/high when it comes time to make those last cuts?

Should I also get a block and tackle, or will a couple pulleys (one on the wall and one on the ceiling) be enough? Don't want to overwork the winch, but also want to keep this as cost-effective as possible.

If anyone wants to post pics of their skinning machine, specifically how you have your winch and base mounted, that would be great. Some of the pictures in the archives were lost in Photobucketgate.

Thanks!

I would buy a 120 volt. Northern tool should have them for $90 battery is good but a hassle. Bolt it to the floor like your thinking. I’ll answer more later

Remote controlled winches are not a good choice. Main reason is there is a delay from releasing the button to the winch reacting, if the winch bogs and you let go it will rip before it stops. Other issue is, you loose the remote your screwed.

Wall mounted up through a pulley and back down is going to give you more power and accessibility. A lot will be determined by how long your control wires are.

If you have available AC power, go with the Harbor Freight 1/2 hp winch. Handle any critter you trap and works great for deer too. I boxed an area above my garage ceiling so that I was able to mount the winch at 13' above floor. Perfect height to work on deer! I also wired in a foot pedal switch so I have the option of using that or my hand held switch that came with the unit.Contact Jayme here on t-man for a great skinning floor mount base. He is ADC on this site. Drive 4- 1/2" concrete drop in anchors flush with the floor and mount the skinning base with 1/2" threaded bolts. Remove for the off season. Works great!

Chris

Got a link to that winch, Chris? The cheapest one I found on HF that's AC powered is $155, twice the cost of the ATV winch they sell. Is an AC winch worth that much more than a DC winch for occasional use?

You said your winch is mounted up in the ceiling, any advantage to that other than more pulling height than mounting it to the wall and using pulleys?

If deer and coyotes are on the menu I would definitely recommend boxing in something in your attic. I got 14’ floor to ceiling and love it. I use a harbor freight ac hoist. What little more they cost is negligible compared to a decent battery and you never have to charge it.



I spent way more on an industrial foot switch then I did on the hoist. Worth every penny.

I built a base that fits into my receiver hitch to avoid drilling holes in my concrete. The added benefits to this outside of not drilling holes in your concrete are that you can use the tailgate as a work bench for opening cuts and you have a resting place for your knives. This also makes your skinning machine extremely mobile if you don't bolt your winch in. My winch is mounted to two 4'-5' 2x4s that I can slide easily slide in and out of the rafters and be taken with us on trapping trips. As stated, I would also go with the AC powered hoists. I feel like I paid $90 for mine.

https://www.harborfreight.com/440-lbs-electric-hoist-with-remote-control-60346.html

this one is mounted to the bottom of the trusses, works for everything here.
I was surprised how often I use it for loading/unloading heavy stuff from the bed of the truck.

J Brooks, how tall is the area you boxed into the ceiling. Looks to be about 4' or so? Do you want it that high just for pulling the hide off? Those back legs must be 8'+ off the floor in the first pic. So I guess the advantage with that setup is you can pull the hide off without having to reset the clamps. But if a guy didnt want to box in a section of attic, he could still pull a deer hide off with a 10' ceiling by lifting as high as he can the reattaching the vice grips and pulling again, right?

Thanks for the link Darren. When I search for winches, I get a mix of those lift hoists and actual winches. The winches are rated around 1,500 to 2,500 pounds, while the lift hoist you linked to is rated at 440 pounds. Would that be sufficient to pull the hide off a 200 pound deer? I know some of the winches have a warning that they're meant to pull horizontally, that's why I was thinking of mounting it to the wall and using the pulleys to direct the cable overhead.

It works fine but if you think you may need more they do make a 880 lbs model.

https://www.harborfreight.com/880-lbs-electric-hoist-with-remote-control-62854.html

Exactly the same one I got . Put a 2x4 across 2 trusses and got one of ADC chain anchor systems and used concrete screws to anchor it,. Plugged it into the plug for my overhead garage door opener.
During the rest of the year just back the screws out and put the clamping part in a cabinet. Use the hoist to remove blades on lawn mower. Hang deer from. unload electric bike from back of truck, LOTS of uses.

Got any pictures of how that hoist is mounted to the ceiling?

And how long are the power cord and remote cord on that 440 pound model?

That be the hoist and J. Brooks has the same set-up that I use. The 440 lb winch has worked for every deer I peeled even after hanging for a week with the hide on! Glad the hoist is mounted at 13' instead of 10' as there are no issues with running out of room before the hide is fully off!

Chris

If you mount that hoist at 13', you will need to lengthen the wires to the control unit. You can mount the winch on the wall and mount a pulley in the rafters to avoid having to to lengthen the control wires. Also, anchor the end of your cable to the ceiling and use a block with double cable for pulling. It will slow it down but will increase the pulling power. I do the double cable with mine and wish I had mounted the winch on the wall so it is easy access if necessary. So far, it has not been necessary.

My rig is made out of box tubing, 13' tall with a leg about 2 1/2' long coming off the top and bottom. Winch mounted on top and the clamp base on the bottom. The whole thing bolted to the wall. No holes in the floor, I use a big piece of cardboard under my setup to catch the drippins. Cardboard gets nasty, replace it. Floor stays clean.

I would use this type of anchor we use these all the time I’ve even hooked them with the loader on a 7930 Deere tractor and the 1/4 inch steel plate ripped before the bolts broke, we have removed and replaced the bolts in the same hole 3 times on a project never stripped the concrete.

https://www.hilti.com/c/CLS_FASTENER_7135/CLS_SCREW_ANCHORS_7135/r4800

My ceiling is 9’ I think so the box is about 5’ tall. I have header at the top of the box supported by the outside wall and 2x6’s coming off the trusses. The hoist is bolted to some heavy steel tubing which is then lag bolted into the header. Mine is that tall because I also handle wolves and elk. I use to skin with a 9’ ceiling but would have to skin partially and then wrap a chain around the coyotes flank, rehook, and finish pulling. It worked but was a PITA.

That deer isn’t nearly as high as the camera angle makes it look. Probably only about 6’ off the ground when done since I pull the tail and hinds by hand.