What’s a Good Come Along Cable Puller?

[CloudsRest]

I’m looking for a good, strong come along for offroad vehicle recovery. I already have an electric winch, but sometimes you need to pull in two directions or use a come along to hold the vehicle on a long pull. Sometimes you need to pull from the side or behind. Anyway, I have a good older US made come along but it’s rated for either 1.2 or 2 tons, can’t remember. I’m looking to get something beefier, preferably 4+ ton rated. I don’t need the best, just something that’ll hold up to it’s rated load. Any suggestions?

 

[GeoBruin]

More Power Puller by the Wyeth Scott Company. There really is no comparison. You will see recommendations for tirfors but that's a whole other animal.

 

[jblnut]

Very loud 2nd on the More Power Puller. Incredibly well built and takes abuse. We have two and they get used weekly on the farm for random stuff and are both 25+ yrs old.

The only way we've found to break one was to use a solid shaft as a handle when the factory handle bent while winching. Apparently the factory handle is designed to bend to prevent you from destroying the puller. I know that now lol.

 

[GeoBruin]

Very loud 2nd on the More Power Puller. Incredibly well built and takes abuse. We have two and they get used weekly on the farm for random stuff and are both 25+ yrs old.

The only way we've found to break one was to use a solid shaft as a handle when the factory handle bent while winching. Apparently the factory handle is designed to bend to prevent you from destroying the puller. I know that now lol.

Correct. The handle will bend before you overload the puller.

 

[shawhite]

The best well that would be a tirfol. Seconded by the more power pulled with amsteel blue line. Question is why do you think you need a 4 ton hoist. I have pulled my class 7 truck out of the mud with a 3 ton.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08WTXZ8X4/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[PCustoms]

The best well that would be a tirfol. Seconded by the more power pulled with amsteel blue line. Question is why do you think you need a 4 ton hoist. I have pulled my class 7 truck out of the mud with a 3 ton.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08WTXZ8X4/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Holy hell, you could get another 2 power winch setups for that price!

 

[Xcursion88]

I’m looking for a good, strong come along for offroad vehicle recovery. I already have an electric winch, but sometimes you need to pull in two directions or use a come along to hold the vehicle on a long pull. Sometimes you need to pull from the side or behind. Anyway, I have a good older US made come along but it’s rated for either 1.2 or 2 tons, can’t remember. I’m looking to get something beefier, preferably 4+ ton rated. I don’t need the best, just something that’ll hold up to it’s rated load. Any suggestions?

Hi-lift jack

 

[shawhite]

Holy hell, you could get another 2 power winch setups for that price!

Yeah that price is ridiculous but you can pick them up at auction for cheap usually because most people don’t know about them.

 

[Firebrick43]

get a more power with amsteel rope. My 2nd cousin spent 12 years as a vegetable until he finally passed due to having a comealong cable break and caught him across the skull. He was pulling out his stuck medium duty truck.

 

[Desertskyy]

Hi-lift jack

This

Lots of uses with a Hi-Lift jack including being used as a come along plus you should be carrying one anyway

 

[Zewnten]

Had one of those power pullers, the biggest model. Very slow, as for pulling power honestly didn't do much better than the HF portable winch with a double line. Handle bent before moving any serious weight.

 

[GeoBruin]

Had one of those power pullers, the biggest model. Very slow, as for pulling power honestly didn't do much better than the HF portable winch with a double line. Handle bent before moving any serious weight.

So if the handle is calibrated to bend at the max capacity of the puller, and they're rated at multiple times the capacity of a harbor freight come along, were you using the HF come along at well beyond the rated capacity?

 

[fourjeepin]

I’m looking for a good, strong come along for offroad vehicle recovery. I already have an electric winch, but sometimes you need to pull in two directions or use a come along to hold the vehicle on a long pull. Sometimes you need to pull from the side or behind. Anyway, I have a good older US made come along but it’s rated for either 1.2 or 2 tons, can’t remember. I’m looking to get something beefier, preferably 4+ ton rated. I don’t need the best, just something that’ll hold up to it’s rated load. Any suggestions?

Having done some off-roading, I’d love to hear about your rig and the trails you run. And do you go solo or in a group?

 

[Xcursion88]

get a more power with amsteel rope. My 2nd cousin spent 12 years as a vegetable until he finally passed due to having a comealong cable break and caught him across the skull. He was pulling out his stuck medium duty truck.

This....

I said
Hi-lift Jack...

And honestly something seems off to me with a question like that from the OP.

They claim to have a winch and the more I thought about I'm thinking they don't have a winch.
If they spent the money on a good winch and truly go off roading they'd know how valuable a Hi-lift jack is as well and far more safer than 98 percent of come-alongs and more capable.

I don't want to call soneone a liar but in my world...and I off road a lot....the ones who buy come-alongs are looking for the get unstuck cheap routine and are buying Chinese made garbage for 19.99 or 29.99.

They're extremely unsafe to the user and others bystanders.

Sonething just seems off with this post to me.

 

[fourjeepin]

I'm a big fan of the hi-lift, but it doesn't make a great winch. It works in a pinch and would be what I would also recommend to someone with or without a winch. It should be at the top of the list of recovery items for anyone that ventures off-road.

 

[Zewnten]

So if the handle is calibrated to bend at the max capacity of the puller, and they're rated at multiple times the capacity of a harbor freight come along, were you using the HF come along at well beyond the rated capacity?

Winch not come along

hardly overloaded, the portable winch is rated for for 2000lb stright line so I was pulling max 4000 with a double line. It pulled the load easy, the "power puller" hardly budged it. The power puller itself maybe rated for 6000lb single line pulling but a 24" long handle doesn't have enough leverage to move that kind of load was my point. The HF portable winch is a large DC motor geared down 3 times. Come alongs have their place but they won't compete with a winch. And

 

[CloudsRest]

This....

I said
Hi-lift Jack...

And honestly something seems off to me with a question like that from the OP.

They claim to have a winch and the more I thought about I'm thinking they don't have a winch.
If they spent the money on a good winch and truly go off roading they'd know how valuable a Hi-lift jack is as well and far more safer than 98 percent of come-alongs and more capable.

I don't want to call soneone a liar but in my world...and I off road a lot....the ones who buy come-alongs are looking for the get unstuck cheap routine and are buying Chinese made garbage for 19.99 or 29.99.

They're extremely unsafe to the user and others bystanders.

Sonething just seems off with this post to me.

LOL. I feel the same about people saying to just use a Hi Lift as a come along. Have you ever used one that way? JP magazine wrote an article about it maybe 10 years ago and tested the Hi Lift as a winch. It’s slow, inefficient, and incredibly dangerous. Professional off-road recovery guys don’t use them that way. They carry come alongs to complement their winches.

In the 20 years I’ve been building 4x4’s for both myself and others as a side gig, I’ve had several vehicles with winches. Currently I have Warn m8000’s on my Tacoma and XJ, and an 8274 on my CJ7, all with synthetic line. I carry a Hi Lift in all 3 as well, but I only use them as jacks. Even when just being used as jacks those things are still dangerous…

 

[CloudsRest]

Having done some off-roading, I’d love to hear about your rig and the trails you run. And do you go solo or in a group?

I have a few different rigs that I rotate through depending on what breaks and what type of trail I’m running (it’s an expensive addiction ). I drive my Tacoma the most though. It’s built up as an overlander with 33’s and 3” lift with Fox Factory RR shocks so it can go fast over the bumps and whoops. I did Top of the World in Moab with it, which was probably its limit for rock crawling. I do a lot of multi-day trail runs in it on milder stuff.

The other two are a CJ7 built for crawling and an XJ that’s still pretty mild (4” lift/31’s) but my plan is to make it an in-between rig for trails the Taco can’t handle but I still want A/C and cargo space for. I usually wheel solo but I’m always looking for trail buddies.

What kind of trails do you do?

 

[CloudsRest]

More Power Puller by the Wyeth Scott Company. There really is no comparison. You will see recommendations for tirfors but that's a whole other animal.

Thanks! That thing definitely looks sturdy.

 

[seber]

I said
Hi-lift Jack...

And honestly something seems off to me with a question like that from the OP.

They claim to have a winch and the more I thought about I'm thinking they don't have a winch.
If they spent the money on a good winch and truly go off roading they'd know how valuable a Hi-lift jack is as well and far more safer than 98 percent of come-alongs and more capable.

I don't want to call soneone a liar but in my world...and I off road a lot....the ones who buy come-alongs are looking for the get unstuck cheap routine and are buying Chinese made garbage for 19.99 or 29.99.

They're extremely unsafe to the user and others bystanders.

Sonething just seems off with this post to me

LOL. There is a reason Hi Lift jacks are called widow makers. They are dangerous to use in either direction. Also very limited in power. Don't get me wrong. I carry one off road, but I only use it in extreme dire straits. Winches and comalongs are the go to.

 

[bonneyman]

I'm thinking I saw Epstein's had some come along's in their last batch of buying.

Deuer Mini-Mule double drive convertible cable puller, 1-2 ton, 6-12'cable (MM1212CDD)

Deuer Mini-Mule double drive convertible cable puller, 1-2 ton, 6-12'cable (MM1212CDD)

www.harryepstein.com

 

[PBCampbell]

Come alongs are not winches, they are positioning tools. The use of a Hi-lift style jack would be in this same type use.

Lugall is another industrial brand I don't see mentioned. A less expensive version of a tirfor is made by JET industrial.

 

[fourjeepin]

I have a few different rigs that I rotate through depending on what breaks and what type of trail I’m running (it’s an expensive addiction ). I drive my Tacoma the most though. It’s built up as an overlander with 33’s and 3” lift with Fox Factory RR shocks so it can go fast over the bumps and whoops. I did Top of the World in Moab with it, which was probably its limit for rock crawling. I do a lot of multi-day trail runs in it on milder stuff.

The other two are a CJ7 built for crawling and an XJ that’s still pretty mild (4” lift/31’s) but my plan is to make it an in-between rig for trails the Taco can’t handle but I still want A/C and cargo space for. I usually wheel solo but I’m always looking for trail buddies.

What kind of trails do you do?

I like rocks. Used to do tellico (NC) a lot and monteagle (TN). Trips out west every few years for Moab and a few spots in Colorado like Independence Trail, Montrose, and 21 Road.

I had to use the hi-lift as a winch during the Safari Triathlon. It did the job but was slow and very hard work.

 

[Firebrick43]

LOL. There is a reason Hi Lift jacks are called widow makers. They are dangerous to use in either direction. Also very limited in power. Don't get me wrong. I carry one off road, but I only use it in extreme dire straits. Winches and comalongs are the go to.

They call them farmer killers around here

 

[Xcursion88]

LOL. There is a reason Hi Lift jacks are called widow makers. They are dangerous to use in either direction. Also very limited in power. Don't get me wrong. I carry one off road, but I only use it in extreme dire straits. Winches and comalongs are the go to.

Huh...What you talking about?
Indeed winches are king... (been off roading for decades)
But most come-alongs (and probably the type the OP had in mind) are FAR more dangerous and less useful than a hi-lift. The hi lift can only lose about an inch if it breaks and no fatal shrapnel
The cables don't break on a come along but it's the garbage come along itself and the hardware used on most of them. Which are the 20 dollar specials.

I'd never expose anyone on the trail to a cheap come along.

Not ever once.

 

[GeoBruin]

Huh...What you talking about?
Indeed winches are king... (been off roading for decades)
But most come-alongs (and probably the type the OP had in mind) are FAR more dangerous and less useful than a hi-lift. The hi lift can only lose about an inch if it breaks and no fatal shrapnel
The cables don't break on a come along but it's the garbage come along itself and the hardware used on most of them. Which are the 20 dollar specials.

I'd never expose anyone on the trail to a cheap come along.

Not ever once.

The OP didn't ask about cheap come alongs, and that is not what has been suggested.

 

[jblnut]

Winch not come along

hardly overloaded, the portable winch is rated for for 2000lb straight line so I was pulling max 4000 with a double line. It pulled the load easy, the "power puller" hardly budged it. The power puller itself maybe rated for 6000lb single line pulling but a 24" long handle doesn't have enough leverage to move that kind of load was my point. The HF portable winch is a large DC motor geared down 3 times. Come alongs have their place but they won't compete with a winch.

You are comparing a portable DC winch against a hand powered come along ??

Kind of like comparing a shovel to a mini-excavator isn't it ??

The handle on the puller is rated to be the failure point so you can only do so many stupid things before it bends as an indicator that you maybe need a larger tool. That winch will keep pulling until a gear shears or the motor stalls out.

I'll take my puller over a DC winch for what I do and it doesn't sound like the OP is looking for another powered winch option so the comparison you are making seems null unless I'm reading it all wrong .....

 

[CloudsRest]

Huh...What you talking about?
Indeed winches are king... (been off roading for decades)
But most come-alongs (and probably the type the OP had in mind) are FAR more dangerous and less useful than a hi-lift. The hi lift can only lose about an inch if it breaks and no fatal shrapnel
The cables don't break on a come along but it's the garbage come along itself and the hardware used on most of them. Which are the 20 dollar specials.

I'd never expose anyone on the trail to a cheap come along.

Not ever once.

I don’t know why you would think that. You’ve called me a liar and now you’re accusing me of wanting to endanger people with the cheapest come along they make even though I posted on Garage Journal. This isn’t Reddit and you’re not being very respectful.

Also, a Hi Lift can slide more than an inch if it fails. I’ve seen them slide all the way from end to end when the mechanism slips or jams. That steel pipe of a handle moves darn fast when that happens…get whacked in the head with it and you might not wake up.

 

[Zewnten]

You are comparing a portable DC winch against a hand powered come along ??

Kind of like comparing a shovel to a mini-excavator isn't it ??

The handle on the puller is rated to be the failure point so you can only do so many stupid things before it bends as an indicator that you maybe need a larger tool. That winch will keep pulling until a gear shears or the motor stalls out.

I'll take my puller over a DC winch for what I do and it doesn't sound like the OP is looking for another powered winch option so the comparison you are making seems null unless I'm reading it all wrong .....

Right tool for the right job. My experience is moving something that is STUCK a come along isn't going to move it PERIOD. I had the device the OP asked about and wasn't impressed based on his needs I recommended what I thought was a better tool. I'd take standing 10 feet away pushing a button than standing over a cable under tension anytime.

A small truck in mud up to the axles can require 3x the pulling force of the weight of the vehicle to get it out, come along isn't going to do that. Read the army recovery manuals for specifics, don't have to take my word for it.

 

[jblnut]

Right tool for the right job. My experience is moving something that is STUCK a come along isn't going to move it PERIOD. I had the device the OP asked about and wasn't impressed based on his needs I recommended what I thought was a better tool. I'd take standing 10 feet away pushing a button than standing over a cable under tension anytime.

A small truck in mud up to the axles can require 3x the pulling force of the weight of the vehicle to get it out, come along isn't going to do that. Read the army recovery manuals for specifics, don't have to take my word for it.

Lots of experience with stuck stuff here on the farm

Yeah I don't think I'd ever grab a come along (or Hi-Lift) as my first tool to unstuck something but in a pinch you can get creative and get yourself out. I like having things that do not require batteries or power as a backup I guess.

A few years back we had some major nasty issues with mud during harvest so I purchased a 50' Champion Tow Rope rated at 200,000lbs to pull the combine out of the mud. We had to pull on it with a John Deere 750 dozer a couple times to get it loose .... I wonder how many Harbor Freight come alongs it'd take to do the same

Adding to the OP's comments about the safety of a Hi-Lift jack .... In a pinch it is a very useful tool as long as it's respected. I've had far less than a rated load on one and had it drop to the ground for no good reason. Lots of moving pieces in there to trust ..... still a tool I keep around because it gets a lot of use for the proper applications.

 

[Zewnten]

Lots of experience with stuck stuff here on the farm

Yeah I don't think I'd ever grab a come along (or Hi-Lift) as my first tool to unstuck something but in a pinch you can get creative and get yourself out. I like having things that do not require batteries or power as a backup I guess.

A few years back we had some major nasty issues with mud during harvest so I purchased a 50' Champion Tow Rope rated at 200,000lbs to pull the combine out of the mud. We had to pull on it with a John Deere 750 dozer a couple times to get it loose .... I wonder how many Harbor Freight come alongs it'd take to do the same

Adding to the OP's comments about the safety of a Hi-Lift jack .... In a pinch it is a very useful tool as long as it's respected. I've had far less than a rated load on one and had it drop to the ground for no good reason. Lots of moving pieces in there to trust ..... still a tool I keep around because it gets a lot of use for the proper applications.

I get wanting to have something that will always work when you need it, original reason I bought my power puller, just didn't work for me I guess.

I remeber seeing those tow ropes out on some coop in the middle of kansas and wondering why tug boat lines were being sold there. Guy behind the counter had a picture of a 9000 JD pulling another 9000 JD with a disk? out of some serious mud. After I went and worked for the local JD dealer they had us install 1-1/4 steel rope between the fron and back axles because people were ripping the tractors in half pulling them out of the mud, I would have liked a picture of that.

 

[jblnut]

I remember seeing those tow ropes out on some coop in the middle of kansas and wondering why tug boat lines were being sold there. Guy behind the counter had a picture of a 9000 JD pulling another 9000 JD with a disk? out of some serious mud. After I went and worked for the local JD dealer they had us install 1-1/4 steel rope between the fron and back axles because people were ripping the tractors in half pulling them out of the mud, I would have liked a picture of that.

We installed a set of 1" cables and some crazy heavy brackets from the front drive axle on the combine to the reaf of the machine to pull it out with. It was looking like it would be a soggy fall and that rope and those cables more than paid for themselves that year alone !!

I watched a QuadTrac get pulled in half when they had a D8 dozer and a pair of big 4wds on the front of it while the Quad was still hooked to the ripper it was pulling. Lots of dumb stuff going on that day and I was just an observer so no one cared about my opinions. The really stupid thing is that the tractor had a factory tow cable kit on it and they still hooked to the frame/axle up front. Dumb.