Hickey Sidewinder Winch

[csb#356]

I just picked up a hickey Sidewinder winch today. Supposedley a 10,000#, but I really don't know. Does anyone have one of these and are they pretty easy to mount up and do they work pretty good. I figured I'd buy it because it looked brand new and my dad has an original owners manual to figure out all the wiring.

[BLAZERMAN]

I would Love to find one of the old Hickey winches! As far as mounting heres a thread on an install on a 73 up truck but should give you some ideas on yours...Good Luck and post some pics when you can.
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...ghlight=hickey

[special-K]

Dirty Larry's is the only one I know of on here. I think as far as winches go,there are better. But,as far as vintage/period equipment goes they are through the roof!! Desert Dynamics had one,too. I never looked into stuff that far back then,but I wonder if the weren't the same winch. I'm not saying anything bad about them. I'd use it if I had it.

[csb#356]

Yeah I've heard they're not the greatest winches, but I like how it will fit between my frame rails and I'm not going to do any extreme pulling, just my shortbed out of some snow or one of my buddies. My dad has had the same winch since the 70s and it's got his bronco out of some sticky situations in the rocks of california so it should work fine for my purposes.

[DirtyLarry]

They are a neat piece of nostalgia but there not that strong or durable. I believe they were actually rated at 8,000 lbs. They also have a very short tiny string like winch cable on them. I got mine from my dad’s buddy who had it dealer installed on his ’78 K20 way back when it was new. I paid $200 for it. I’ve used it a few times but get nervous each time as I am so scared to break it. I have a 10,000 lb winch on the rear bumper for bigger recoveries. Plan on moving my Sidewinder to my other ’78 K20 soon once I get a winch bumper for this blue ’78 K10.

Member Oilbrnr has a PDF Owner’s Manual and Installation instruction link in his signature.

It got us out of this jamb a few years ago pretty easy, which I was surprised.

[csb#356]

Hey nice truck you got there larry. If this sidewinder will get me out of something like that then I'm happy. The cable on this winch doesn't seem to tiny I think its like 3/8 inch thick. It's just as big as anything I've seen, but all of my friends have warns from the same era and I'm sure they are quite a bit better these days. When I get it all hooked up and running (hopefully) I'll Let you guys know how she works.

[baja1000]

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[baja1000]

1/2 hour later in the same post? See above ^^^^. Three day suspension.

[coyote72]

I was rescued from a nasty barb wire fence by one of those in the pismo sand dunes. Cleszkie's blazer was there to save me. I was at the top of a short dune, got high centered and got unstuck only to start sliding into that fence. Sure wish I had some pics of that!

[Oilbrnr]

The one I have my Dad bought new, and it was on our '73 Burb when I was a kid. It got us out of many a bad mud/snow situations when out deer or elk hunting around Flagstaff, AZ. We also used it a lot back in the '80's to help skid fallen trees for firewood.

In the '90's he removed it and had a guy weld up a receiver mount. Downside is that is heavy even when the spool is empty. So he didn't use it much. And the welder must have kept the original mounts and skid plate, as I could not find them.

I have it now, and with help from DirtyLarry and the install manual, it is mounted but not hooked up on my '77 K5 project truck. Which isn't moving very fast! I plan on putting synthetic rope back on it to save a few pounds. I also need to have the skid plate made. (Larry offered to have his duplicated when he moves his from the K10 to 20 )

Bottom line, they are slow but from what I've witnessed reliable. Other downside is that the spool doesn't hold that much. That said, with synthetic you can load more on the spool, and have extra rope that you stash with the rest of your gear as it is so lite weight.

Definitely a nostalgic, period piece that if maintained, should get you out of a rough situation if used wisely. Just like any winch.

[Oilbrnr]

Originally Posted by DirtyLarry

It got us out of this jamb a few years ago pretty easy, which I was surprised.

Wonder how it would do now with the camper in the back?

['63GENIII]

That's a great pic there Larry. It looks like that is one DEEP hole that the back wheel is in! I had just recently seen a Hickey on CL for pretty cheap. Right now I have an 8274 and a PTO Chealsea, but I like the look of the Hickey's. They are a cool piece of history.

[DirtyLarry]

Originally Posted by Oilbrnr

Wonder how it would do now with the camper in the back?

Yeah, that is a good question now that the truck weighs 7,500 lbs before gear and supplies are loaded. Fortunately, we haven’t been any positions in the last few years where a winch was needed. When the occasion arises I use the stronger rear winch as much as possible. More times than not you need help getting out of a jamb than further into one so a winch on the back is very handy. With growing up around tow trucks, using a rear mounted winch feels natural to me.

The snafu on Tin Cup pass in the picture above was an exception where going backwards was not an option. Another reason I don’t use it much is because I am scared to break it. Parts are hard to come by. Someday the K10 might get a bigger winch up front and the Sidewinder will end up on the Suburban. I thought about putting it on my dad’s K20 but I am pondering parting that truck as it is too far gone to try to resurrect. The axles in that truck would be great for the Suburban project.

That all said, when my Sidewinder was on my dad’s buddy’s ’78 K20 when I was a kid I saw it pull my dad’s ’78 K20 tow truck out of some hairy stuff up in the mountains. With snatch blocks and taking plenty of cool off breaks, the Sidewinder will probably do alright. It is not a strong winch but it is better than no winch.

Actually, come to think of it the last time I had to use a winch was when Zoomad75 barber poled the rear shaft on his K5 up in the mountains on a fishing trip a year or two ago. He had to drive home in front wheel drive that day The rear winch was handy that day too. I added a wireless remote to the rear winch before we left on the desert trip this year, which makes it much easier to use, as the cable would not reach the cab

Just hooked up before the cable weight was tossed over the line.

[snj8198]

Off topic, Larry what wheels and back spacing are you running? I think you told me in the past but I can't find the thread.

thanks

[DirtyLarry]

The aluminum wheels with the swampers are 16 x 7. Not sure of the back spacing but they are basically same as the stock steelies. The black steel wheels that I run in the summer are 16 x 8. Not sure of the back spacing on those either but do not stick out.

[csb#356]

Finally got my winch mounted. Had to get a new motor for it and I haven't put the bumper back on because I lost the handle that goes behind the grill so I can't use with a bumper.

[Zoomad75]

Actually, come to think of it the last time I had to use a winch was when Zoomad75 barber poled the rear shaft on his K5 up in the mountains on a fishing trip a year or two ago. He had to drive home in front wheel drive that day

Well, at least we were in the middle of one of the most beautiful valleys in the state when I pretzeled the rear shaft. The sidewinder pulled my K5 out of another predicament on the beginning of the Grizzly lake trail. One of us has a picture of that somewhere.