Has Anyone Had Experience With a Gas Engine Powered Winch
I'm thinking about building a winch powered by a gasoline engine. I'd like to hear from anyone with experience using an engine-powered winch, good or bad.
I've seen one which used a loose v-belt between the engine and drum. Stepping on the pedal tightened the belt. I never saw it used, though. I built a small one that used a centrifugal clutch between the engine and drum. It worked OK, but the 32cc 2-stroke engine was only powerful enough for planes up to three pounds or so. Both of these designed suffered from "line creep" as the drag on the drum would slowly spool in the line while the engine idled.
The design I have in mind will solve the line creep problem and I plan to use at least a 5 horsepower engine. An electric clutch would be used to drive the drum. The drum and brake would be similar to what I used successfully on the Clutch Winch. Let me know if you have any suggestions or comments.