Winch Contactor

[13BlkPowerWagon]

Anyone replaced the solenoid pack with a solid state contactor? My solenoids went after this past winters salt... Hate to replace that antiquated technology and have it fail again (covered with fluid film and the salt still ate it up).

Will replacing the solenoids with a standard contactor (probably just going to buy the Superwinch contactor since it's way cheaper than Warn, and basically the same thing) eliminate the LVI? I know how to get rid of the thermal safety, but I haven't dug deep enough to find out where the LVI comes from.

Hoping the solid state doesn't suffer the same salt issues the solenoids did!

[TwinStick]

I am interested in this as well. Not sure if you checked the "Members Builds" section but at the top is "Power Wagon Parts" & I think there is someone that got theirs way cheaper than WARN but were actually WARN parts-brand new, on Amazon. ????????????????

[13BlkPowerWagon]

Haven't looked there, no.

The SuperWinch version is about 1/2 the price, for basically the same parts. I can mount it right back in the WARN box, and you'll never know it's in there. It's on the list of "to-do's"... I'll try to document it when I get around to it.

[13BlkPowerWagon]

Well, took me about 2.5 hours last night, but got the contactor installed. Had to re-use the factory cables off the winch (my crimper is shot), so it isn't exactly where I'd like it (re-used the hose clamps that hold on the factory box, but now they grab the mount on the contactor directly), but it does work, and it eliminates all of the factory nanny's.

Haven't done any long loaded pulls with it, just enough to re-spool the cable, but its nice knowing there's no moving parts to the switching device anymore.

There are a few wiring diagrams on google that are correct, and plenty that aren't. Retrotek seems to be the best for the PW retrofit. I didn't take any pics while I was doing it (hands were filthy), but basically, I pulled the grille, puke bottle for the coolant, the old solenoid pack off, and wiring for the remote. From there, you're going to engineer your own harness to make the contactor work.

[Retired BLM Rig]

Can you provide a link or an image of the diagram you used for future reference?

[13BlkPowerWagon]

See if this works.

https://www.google.com/search?q=superwi ... pCSYH3JbM:

Not sure what the red circle is with the 3 dots (no electrical symbol I know of... but I'm an ME, not an EE). Just hook it to the positive battery terminal.

When you remove the old solenoid pack, there's the voltage interuptor, which is a nice weatherproof plug... get rid of the VI circuit and use that plug for your 12V switching power (gives you an easy, water tight connector, which already has a dedicated power and ground).

The wiring colors on the switch connector were NOT correct for my truck (they did not match the picture). The locations were correct, but the colors were wrong. I didn't use the switch for grounding, I just hooked them straight from the center terminal on the contactor to the negative (the connector for the switch handle corrodes quickly no matter how much grease I pack in it, so I chose to eliminate it as a failure mode, or at least decrease the odds of it causing problems down the road). In this configuration, you only need to use the 12V power in, and Winch In, and Winch Out, on the switch handle connector.

I also may throw a rocker switch in the cab that's wired to the contactor, so I could actuate the winch from inside... if you do this, make sure you have a second switch inline on the power side to prevent from hitting it on accident.