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I've had some issues with the isolater switch on my winch and would like to warn others of a potential fire risk. I wound out the rope to give it a wash last weekend. The winch worked fine on the way out, but after cleaning the rope the solenoid on the winch just went 'click click click' with a funny smell. I immediately stripped the solenoid down and looked for water. Turns out quite a bit had got in, but even after drying I still had the same issue. It was then that I realized that when I pressed the control a small wisp of smoke was coming out of the twist style isolater switch. After reorganizing the cables, I removed the bend in the positive cable before the switch and fixed the problem. Winch works fine.
For those with a twist switch, it might pay to make sure the angle of the cables are kept to a minimum to ensure that you don't get the smoke and shocking smell coming out of the switch. I gather that the contacts between the two sides of the switch were not fully engaged with the cable bent. As a side, make sure the rubber grommets at the back of your solenoid box are not split and letting water in as mine were. I used quite a bit of Vaseline on the rubber seals of the box and will probably go to town with a silicon gun this weekend.
Reidy
For those with a twist switch, it might pay to make sure the angle of the cables are kept to a minimum to ensure that you don't get the smoke and shocking smell coming out of the switch. I gather that the contacts between the two sides of the switch were not fully engaged with the cable bent. As a side, make sure the rubber grommets at the back of your solenoid box are not split and letting water in as mine were. I used quite a bit of Vaseline on the rubber seals of the box and will probably go to town with a silicon gun this weekend.
Reidy
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