Portable winch option

[gordonrands]

Since the subject of winches came up, I'll ask my question. (I've never used a power winch).

I'm interested in a portable (not permanently mounted) electric winch that I can use for one purpose: dragging logs up ramps and into the truck bed, or possibly up onto a big trailer if I ever get one. Why? (1)My municipal yard waste site has tons of big logs but won't allow the use of chain saws. (2) I am also a hobbyist woodworker and would occasionally like to take really nice logs to a sawmill.

Is this something I could even do with a Rivian given no outlets at the front of the bed behind the cab? If so, how, without permanently mounting something that I would use only occasionally?

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[HighVoltOverland]

Since the subject of winches came up, I'll ask my question. (I've never used a power winch).

I'm interested in a portable (not permanently mounted) electric winch that I can use for one purpose: dragging logs up ramps and into the truck bed, or possibly up onto a big trailer if I ever get one. Why? (1)My municipal yard waste site has tons of big logs but won't allow the use of chain saws. (2) I am also a hobbyist woodworker and would occasionally like to take really nice logs to a sawmill.

Is this something I could even do with a Rivian given no outlets at the front of the bed behind the cab? If so, how, without permanently mounting something that I would use only occasionally?

Something like this may be more your speed

 

[atebit]

s00n is before Friday... Probably

Which in Rivian parlance means that you’ll tell us on Friday that you’ll tell us again in January.

Probably.

 

[HighVoltOverland]

Pics are up.

 

[Zybane]

View of Departure Angle Change:

Yikes... ya problem with those receiver winch mounts... anything other than a light trail is going to end up smashing that thing. And it's a catch 22 because a light trail you don't even need a winch.

 

[Thedude]

Yikes... ya problem with those receiver winch mounts... anything other than a light trail is going to end up smashing that thing. And it's a catch 22 because a light trail you don't even need a winch.

You don’t leave it in all the time, just slide it in when you need it.

 

[HighVoltOverland]

You don’t leave it in all the time, just slide it in when you need it.

This is the way.

I have enough recovery gear so can dig out the tail end if need be
Not worth changing the dynamics off-road.

 

[R.I.P.]

I can’t see why, all 12v winches run directly off the vehicle battery. Keep me posted there ?

The problem you have is draw (amperage).

An EV has a much smaller 12v system than an ICE, because the typical loads are less (no engine starter). Most EVs have a battery that is 1/4 the size of an ICEs battery, and instead of being charged by an alternator, it charges via a DC/DC converter. This is important, because a DC/DC converter acts very differently from a mechanical alternator under the extreme loads a winch can exert on the system.

If you pull more amperage than an alternator can deliver, it simply plateaus at maximum output; giving as much as it can (until it overheats). It is well suited for these high stress loads, and heavy duty units are used in this way all of the time.

The DC/DC converter operates very differently. Instead of the mechanical (spinning) windings used in an alternator, it has static windings that step down the voltage (in this case from 400v to about 14v). These static windings will quickly burn up if overloaded, so they are typically fused or brakered for protection.

Of course testing is in order with the Rivian, but hooking high-draw winches to DC converted systems in the past has usually resulted in either smoking the converter or blowing the fuse.

 

[Dark-Fx]

The DC/DC converter operates very differently. Instead of the mechanical (spinning) windings used in an alternator, it has static windings that step down the voltage (in this case from 400v to about 14v). These static windings will quickly burn up if overloaded, so they are typically fused or brakered for protection.

This makes no sense. DC-DC doesn't use a transformer.

 

[R.I.P.]

This makes no sense. DC-DC doesn't use a transformer.

Larger, more robust ones do. I will build one for you if you like...?

However, you are correct when it comes to smaller, modern DC/DC converters. The one used in Rivian trucks is most likely a "voltage chopper"... chopping the voltage into appropriate AC chunks before converting it back to DC to match the target voltage.

That said, these small DC/DC converters are no less sensitive to being overloaded.

 

[Dark-Fx]

That said, these small DC/DC converters are no less sensitive to being overloaded.

You claim to be an EE. Are you honestly not aware of current limiting diodes?

 

[R.I.P.]

You claim to be an EE. Are you honestly not aware of current limiting diodes?

Ah, that did not take long lol.

I am an old man, and you will find it is not that easy to lead me down the rabbit holes. I am happy to sit in on a conversation about current limiting diodes, and I am sure as an old-timer I will learn plenty from the young guys and their up-to-date information.

This conversation, however, was about hooking a high-draw winch to an EV's 12v electrical system. Done it, and have helped design workarounds for those that needed it to work. happy to help in that regard, if needed.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Ah, that did not take long lol.

I am an old man, and you will find it is not that easy to lead me down the rabbit holes. I am happy to sit in on a conversation about current limiting diodes, and I am sure as an old-timer I will learn plenty from the young guys and their up-to-date information.

This conversation, however, was about hooking a high-draw winch to an EV's 12v electrical system. Done it, and have helped design workarounds for those that needed it to work. happy to help in that regard, if needed.

Rivian's issue is the batteries are just plain not big enough for a truly high amp draw. Potentially dropping the voltage to an unacceptable level that the DC-DC converter can't compensate enough for, which could cause a lot of other problems with the computer system that isn't on an isolated power bus.

 

[R.I.P.]

Rivian's issue is the batteries are just plain not big enough for a truly high amp draw. Potentially dropping the voltage to an unacceptable level that the DC-DC converter can't compensate enough for, which could cause a lot of other problems with the computer system that isn't on an isolated power bus.

Correct. Exactly.

 

[Tucker74]

Makes sense, thx @R.I.P. & @Dark-Fx. I’m more in the user of winches categorie, but glad others are plodding a pathway.

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