Home

Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch?

Posted By: mad_mike

Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/06/21 06:38 PM

Do any of you have experience using Amsteel rope on a chainsaw winch. The potential weight savings, floatation in wet environments, and the safety are very appealing.
I was thinking that at the end I could potentially ditch the hook and use a soft shackle through the loop at the end of the Amsteel for attaching to the work.

My initial apprehensions are:
Durability against working in abrasive silt.
Under wraps on the drum rendering the winch drum bound.

Any of you have positive or negative experiences with what I describe?
Posted By: rosscoak

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/07/21 07:28 AM

You can use some of mine...it's the hoonah zip line stuff..got a good deal on it.
I pull big heavy king pots made by you know who on my 5hp Honda capstan winch. Stuff is great, have to weigh it down with a halibut weight. It is so thin it will double over on me especially with a swell and it winds up til I shut er down...stuff is tough. Highly recommended, I wanna get a Simpson winch and try it out. My buddy has a stainless capstan and it doesn't bite..just slips and takes forever to get line in..my capstan is aluminum. HmU
Posted By: mad_mike

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/07/21 12:57 PM

I should have mentioned it is a Lewis. Not a capstan, but rather a drum.
Posted By: alaska viking

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/07/21 05:03 PM

Is this idea for your Stihl? As in loading the whole winch with it?
Posted By: mad_mike

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/07/21 05:08 PM

Originally Posted by alaska viking
Is this idea for your Stihl? As in loading the whole winch with it?

Yes. I am planning to replace the cable on the Lewis winch
The potential weight savings, neutral buoyancy, and safety in case of something parting under load is pretty appealing.
Posted By: AKHowler

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/07/21 05:24 PM

mad mike.... I thought your were talking about a capstan winch too. I don't have much experience with those but I do have quite a bit with the Lewis chainsaw winch. My only problem with synthetic rope is on the size of the diameter filling the drum and getting bound up. The diameter would really cut down on the length of rope you can have on the drum. I have had friends run my winch that have bound my wire rope up so bad I had to use a snow machine to yank it back out. One really has to watch the drum when doing long pulls as not to load up one side. That being said, I love the synthetic rope on my atv and truck winches but you really need to take care of it and keep it clean. The dirt and mud are very abrasive and sure cut down on the longevity of your rope. It sure is nice not to have those wires stuck in your hand, no kinks and the price has come way down over the years. Why not give it a try and tell us how it goes. I think I have a 150' of cable on my Lewis and you could probably put 100' of synthetic rope...
Posted By: mad_mike

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/07/21 08:05 PM

I am going to give it a lash. The cable is due for replacement anyways.
Howler, yes you do have to pay attention when loading the line on the drum. Under-wrapped cable often has to be pulled out with mechanical force, which gets dicey. That is one of the failure points I hope the rope will mitigate. I already run 3/16” cable on the drum to increase the pull length. I hope to match or possibly increase that length with the rope as it may lay on the spool better.
From my research the 3/16” rope has a working limit of 5400#.

https://rwrope.com/products/amsteel-blue-12-strand-dyneema-rope?variant=29561339674677
Posted By: alaska viking

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/10/21 02:15 AM

I just put new cable on that 2 years ago! laugh laugh
Posted By: mad_mike

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/10/21 04:20 AM

Originally Posted by alaska viking
I just put new cable on that 2 years ago! laugh laugh

Thank you.
Posted By: alaska viking

Re: Amsteel Rope On a Chainsaw Winch? - 02/10/21 05:47 AM

Well, it has pulled a few critters and boats since then. In fact, I think one of them was mine! blush (boat gone turtle).
© 2024 Trapperman Forums