In Brief: Driver Recovery Products LD17-PRO Winch Review
The LD17 Pro winch stands out because of its cutting edge design, superb quality, and reliable performance, all available at pocket-friendly pricing. The significant pulling power is not something that you will find in other products. It takes a certain ruggedness and quality to sustain such heavy loads, and LD17 Pro successfully maneuvers these tough waters with extreme ease!
Driver Recovery Products are known for manufacturing peak performance parts. They are exclusively focused on creating winches that are reliable, dependable, and easy to use.
Over the years, they have upgraded their gear systems, winch motors, and components that are made of the highest quality materials.
Expert engineering, combined with constant testing and improvement, leads to the development of the many Driver Recovery Products.
Apart from winches, the Driver Recovery Products also offers winch straps and winch hooks. The LD17 Pro, as the name suggests, is a heavy-duty recovery winch with a rated pull capacity of 17,000 lbs.
In the following sections of this article, we are going to take a look at the specifications and features of this winch.
We will also detail some related information like recommended usage and compatible products so that you can get the best out of the LD17 Pro winch.
Contents
- In Brief: Driver Recovery Products LD17-PRO Winch Review
- Key Specifications of LD17 Pro Electric Heavy-duty Recovery Winch
- Warranty / Repairs
- Customer Review Analysis for LD17 Pro Electric Heavy-duty Recovery Winch
- Pros and Cons
- When and Who Should Use
- Recommended Accessories with LD17 Pro Electric Heavy-duty Recovery Winch
- FAQs
- Our Recommendation
Key Specifications of LD17 Pro Electric Heavy-duty Recovery Winch
The 17,000 pounds of pull is generated by a 6.0 HP motor that is a series wound model. The model makes use of enameled copper wire for generating maximum torque while minimizing losses.
This helps the motor to maintain its duty cycle and keep the winch cooler for longer.
The winch has an automatic braking mechanism supported by a heavy-duty drum that locks the wire in place.
The cable itself is of premium, aircraft-quality, with thick zinc galvanization that provides the adequate abrasion-resistance needed. It is effortless to wind and stays unaffected by mud or sand.
The roller fairlead, which guides the motion of the cable is made of high-strength steel and boasts of an epoxy-grade finish.
This finishing significantly reduces chipping and rusting. The fairlead makes use of c-clips and wave washers instead of bolts and, therefore, lasts longer.
Winching at extreme angles is supported by composite bushings and machined dowel-pin bearings.
The critical components like electrical connections are protected from debris and water, as are the switches, solenoid, and sensitive moving parts.
Some of the other features of this winch are listed below –
| Parameters | Details |
|---|---|
| Working Load | 17,000 lbs. |
| Motor | 6.0 HP 4,300 Watts 12 V DC |
| Rope Material | Aircraft quality Steel Wire |
| Rope Dimensions | 85 ft. (Length) X 1/2 in. (Thickness) |
| Gearing Ratio | 358.4:1 |
| Gearing System | 3-Stage Planetary |
| Dimensions | 22 in. X 7 1/2 in. X 10 1/2 in. |
| Weight | 125 lbs. |
| Freespool Clutch | Yes |
| Drum Length | 8 11/16 inches |
| Drum Diameter | 3 ½ inches |
| Fairlead | Premium Roller |
| Braking Mechanism | Automatic |
Warranty / Repairs
For details regarding the warranty, Driver Recovery Products can be reached via their contact page at http://www.driverautomotive.com/sample-page/contact-us/
Customer Review Analysis for LD17 Pro Electric Heavy-duty Recovery Winch
The customers were happy with the LD17 Pro winch for many reasons. The first reason for the LD17 Pro’s popularity is the sturdy housing of the winch.
Instead of the standard plastic housing that easily cracks under pressure, the LD17 Pro is made of more durable material. The winch was easy to install. For some customers, it barely took 30 minutes to install the whole setup.
The winch’s performance was as expected. It held up under rugged conditions and was able to deliver as promised by the manufacturer.
The remote controller provided with the winch also worked well and allowed the users to operate the winch from a distance.
Pros and Cons
The pros and cons of the LD17 Pro Electric Heavy-duty Recovery winch are listed below.
Pros
- Longer duty cycle
- Reversible operations possible (powering cable in and out)
- Easy to install with pre-terminated wiring
- Better protection for critical connections (electrical wirings)
- Multi-directional pulling actions possible with rollers
- Premium, aircraft-quality, wire cable with abrasion-resistant galvanization
- Frictionless, free spooling possible
Cons
- Replacement parts for the winch are hard to find
When and Who Should Use
The winch should be used for applications where a significant load is expected to be pulled. The 17,000 pounds of towing capacity means that the winch is more suited for construction jobs where the weights are significantly heavier.
Some of the applications could be moving around heavy equipment, erecting big poles, demolishing buildings, recovering heavy rigs, etc. to name a few.
Recommended Accessories with LD17 Pro Electric Heavy-duty Recovery Winch
With loads as substantial as 17,000 pounds, the winch strap is probably going under a lot of strain with each winching operation. But Driver Recovery
Products has made the replacement process easier by providing a quality replacement strap, which is available at amazon here>
Some accessories like snatch blocks, shackles, and tree protectors are a must when dealing with heavy loads.
Instead of having to worry about the compatibility of accessories, you can simply buy these accessories that are made by Driver Recovery Products. These are perfectly compatible with the LD17 Pro winch.
FAQs
No, the LD17 Pro does not include any wiring harness.
Apart from the 17,000 pounds capacity winch, the kit also includes pre-wound steel cable, a wired controller with a plug, a roller fairlead, a safety pull strap, a heavy-duty ½ inch clevis hook, a 24 pc set of mounting hardware, a 72 inches long ground wire, a 72 inches long power wire and an owner’s manual.
At no load, the LD17 Pro winch can operate on a 68 amps current draw while at full capacity, the amperage is 520 amps.
At the maximum load of 17,000 pounds, the LD17 Pro winch can pull loads at a speed of 3 feet per minute while at no weight, the LD17 Pro winch can hit rates as high as 23.9 feet per minute.
Our Recommendation
The LD17 Pro winch is a good quality winch that stands up tall to the claims made by the manufacturers about its capacity. The winch has proved to be extremely useful for pulling loads as hefty as 17,000 pounds, which is a significant discomfort in many cases.
The winch has a rugged construction that lasts through difficult jobs with ease.
The finishing, along with the sealed electrical components, is suitable for operating the winch in a wide range of situations with ease.
The winch is also offering all these features at very affordable pricing and, therefore, should make a place for itself if you are looking for some heavy-duty applications in the future.