front mount hitch and winch

i own a stock 2005 f-150 stx 4x4 and im wanting to add a front mount hitch so that i can add a winch later my question is what rated line pull should i use. ive read that u need a winch that is one and a half times the weight of the truck,im looking at a mile marker 9500 lb. thats in my price range will this be enough i dont plan on any hardcore offroading just general use and or emergencies.   thanks  

ok now im looking at the possibility of a hydrulic winch,does anybody know if i need an adapter kit to connect the lines to my 05 f150 power steering pump. come on this is an off road web sight can anyboby answer both of my questuions from both posts.  

I would suggest a electric winch that can run when engine will not in a pickle. Also, in vest in a nice double snatch block which will double line pull or any wench  so you can have twice the pull or same pull with half the winch load. Only real draw back of this is reduced effect line speed but such a setup can make even a 6 K wench out pull a 10 K winch without a doubler.Also while it will take longer to winch out with doubler, motor load is reduced and it will run cooler and electrical system will have a better chance of keeping up with load too because of decreased motor draw. A 10K winch on a hard single line pull can kill a battery quickly.  

thank you very much for the help,with the electric winch will i need to upgrade any of my electrical system any like the battery or alternator,ihave read that with out upgrades i could burn things up.i know an electric one is alot cheaper and easier to install but being on a budget i also want to be safe and not fry anything else.  

Personally though some do it, I would not use a electric winch without dual batteries. They are a must have in my book while bigger alternator is optional. Winches under load draw a lot of power (as much or more as your starter and you know how that can kill a battery) Dual batteries will give you about 3x the run times as one battery. The reason for that is that battery efficiency drops rapidly as load in increased and more energy is converted to gassing and internal battery heat under heavy loads. By splitting the loads between batteries in parallel you reduce peak draw on each battery 50% over a single battery and the result is better efficiency and power recovery and higher load voltage due to lower voltage drop in batteries. No alternator made can keep up with a big winch so not not try to and instead do dual batteries and they can recharge later driving. Dual batteries also extends battery life winching because they is less shock on batteries discharging and charging which extends life.  

thank you again that helps a lot i could probaly afford the dual battery setup. i just wanted to make sure i didnt fry anything,i wont be using it all the time anyway just in an emergency and things like that no hardcore offroad stuff. also do you know if the front mount trailer hitch will beable to handle the load and will the 9500lb winch if i doubled the line work for my truck. thanks again  

any more ideas anyone  

I would have reservations about using a front trailer hitch mount for a 9500lb winch. It would have to be a very sturdy mount on truck and the hitch insert would have to be solid and properly centered on winch for maximum strength.  I would suggest a strong permanent mount for a winch of that size.  

once again thank you very much snoman youve been a great help i owe you one. i have checked into some mounts but so far i havent found very many affordable mounts for my f-150 i thought maybe i could beef up the frount mount a little more especially arond the insert,but i dont know. if you know of any cheap but strong mounts pleas let me know. thank you again  

anyone know if its possible to strengthen a front mount hitch to be able to hold up to a bigger winch (9500lb to 12000lb)  

Anything is "possible" but is it feasible? The hitch receiver on frame would have to be beefed up a lot not only how it bolts to frame but also in receiver area for couple because of torque loads on it from a winch. ALso consider when winch is extended in front of frame with this mount this places more leverage torque on frame. IF you plan to pull that hard the winch needs to be closely coupled to and mounted on frame.  

I am not exactly sure but I would check out Warn.com and see what they have for your truck to mount it up behind the bumper. I have built a few mounts for guys that have used there Warn 9.5ti as a multi mount and are impressed with the way they are fast and reliable winches. my brother uses one on his rockcrawler also. I would recommend re-inforcing the frame and the mounting points like what SnoMan mentioned. The winch on my brother's crawler is between the frame rails underneath the crank pully on his S-10 truck. It can be accessed easily to be moved to the back or to another vehicle if needed. I hope this advise will help.  

thank you everyone,yes all the info has helped out a bunch. im still up in the air a bit on electric or hydraulic but im definatly going to check into a better mounting system. i have seen warns hidden winch system and one choice does come with a winch but it may be a little outa my price range,plus i didnt care for the winch itsself it seemed a little small and only 50ft of cable. thanks again snoman and yz250jv if i have more questions i hope you guys can answer them.  

In my opinion, the electric winch is better. I really don't see much of the hydraulic type anyway. I just know what has worked for me for years and continue to use it. I would definitely recommend a Warn 9.5ti or a xd9000i. Second picks on brand would be a Superwinch EPi9.0. As for the mounting system, Warn has probably got the best system that I know of. It may cost a bit but like most things, you get what you pay for. I have the Warn M12000 winch on my truck and love it. It might be a turtle but it can pull!  

thats what i may end up with is an elecric winch,but my biggest fear is that i might burn up something else on my truck. i use my truck as an emergency vehicle so i have a full size lightbar,brand new siren,and my mobile radio and any of the regular truck electronics. i read somewhere that the winch could burn something up under a heavy load. i know i will need a second battery to help offset the load but i just dont want to burn anything up.