I have a winch that came with the Sears name on it. I have had it for decades, but use it infrequently. At the time, one of the big-name companies made one that looked just like it (probably Reese). It looks a lot like a current Reese product and came with the same collection of extra pieces for "portable" use. The current one:
Fit for your lifestyle whether you need to transport livestock, supplies to a job-site, or haul your RV to the campsite, REESE manufactures many classes of receiver hitches to meet your every towing need.
www.reesetowpower.com
I added an attaching point to my trailer hitch so I could hook the winch there, the same it goes onto the mounting plate that hooks over a trailer ball. When my gooseneck trailer was built, I had a similar mounting point added. But in the 20 years I have had the GN, I don't think I have used it yet. The winch came with a hunk of heavy wire (I think 8 gauge) that could be permanently strung from the truck battery to a plug at the bumper. I just connected it to the winch and put an alligator clip on the other end. I open the hood and connect directly to the truck battery when I use it. Made the move to a different truck easier!
Mine is rated a lot more than that one, 3,500# vs. 2,000#. I find mine adequate for everything I have asked of it. It really grunted pulling a car with all 4 brakes frozen. It came with a block for roughly doubling the pull force. With it they actually rated it 6,000#, not quite double. Maybe they assumed some loss due to imperfect alignment and something less than a straight pull. I have seen very similar looking winches at the retailers that mostly sell tools from overseas. I suspect (and have partly verified) that there are knock-off winches that look the same until you take the cover off. Then you may find bushings in place of bearings, or maybe even shafts running directly in holes punched in the steel housing. They may pull the load, but how many times? Buyer beware. Also be aware that pulling capacity is typically rated for the cable on the first wrap of the drum. As the cable wraps up to the second, third, or fourth layer, it will go faster but have less pull. I saw a graph in somebody's description (I think of the Reese I cited above) that showed rated pull at layer 4 is 1/2 that at layer 1. Also be aware that some descriptions like to list a rating of how much weight it can roll up a ramp. Note the 2,000# Reese above shows "6,000# rolling". Be sure to compare everything by the same standard. Mine predates and wireless remote. My control is on the end of a wire. I'm sure the wireless is a lot nicer to use. You can operate from anywhere around the operation, not just within 15 feet or whatever of the winch. However, as infrequently as I use mine, I imagine every time I use it I would have to start by going after a new battery for the remote.
