Do I need an altrnator?

For a couple of minutes.

 

"...has anyone watched what their ammeter or volt gauge does when using a winch, and if so what did they observe?"

Smoke?

 

If you are just winching yourself off of a rock I wouldn't worry about the battery. If you are winching a truck, trailer and boat up a hill, even 2 batteries and an alternator won't be enough.

 

Yes, and nope. Back when I ran an amp gauge, it was just pegged (80 amp). No smoke from alternator but one really doesn't want to run a skin test on one at full capacity. With a volt meter, it really doesn't show you much anything except that the system is functioning as it should. Unless one is perhaps running a Leece Neville, generator or alternator, neither is going to keep up with a 400 to 500 amp winch draw. But a 100 amp alternator is going to bring the battery back to capacity 3 times sooner than a generator assuming the wiring is properly sized. If it isn't, you can always cook your burritos on it-until it melts.

 

The same reason you don't find them on modern vehicles. Didn't want all that large, high amp wiring behind the dash. The alternator on my B is now the Premier Power Welder 160 amp version, which incidentally, works great with the winch.

 

Keep the genny and find a pto winch

 

:iagree:

 

Both of my Jeeps have V6s so both have alternators. One has a PTO winch, the other has an electric winch. Guess which one gets used the most.

 

Last summer I spent a whole day driving downstate and back to get a Ramsey PTO winch with what used to be a 67 CJ5 attached to it.

 

I can't say anything, I have an extra Konig PTO, winch and driveshaft stored under the Buick. I just never got the Jeep I had planned to put it on. I'll probably give the parts to my brother. We seem to trade Jeep parts and guns between ourselves.