The SuperTow Hydraulic Payout winch is familiar to many pilots in it's most basic form. It is a well proven design that has withstood the test of many years, and it has been updated with newer manufacturing techniques and components. Originally designed and sold by Ed Pittman, many of the original winches are still in use and going strong. With input from many sources, notably from such knowledgeable sources as Ed Pittman himself, and Enleau SAT O'Conner of Pro Tow fame, this winch has been redesigned and works even better than the original.

There are many styles of payout winches available on the market, but most are made in basements and garages, and are designed to be built as cheaply as possible without regard to longevity and optimum system performance. We have upgraded the design to support the needs of virtually any pilot or towing operation. The design of our winches has been optimized through the use of Computer aided design and drafting software. The CAD drawings are then run through a software program that optimizes toolpaths for our Computerized machining centers to produce the highest quality parts at the least cost. All of our winches are made in a manufacturing facility using state of the art equipment and all winches are tested and assembled in house. Construction of our winches starts by cutting many of the frame parts on a computerized plasma cutting table. Components are then machined as required in our CNC machining centers and CNC lathes. Finally, the components are assembled in a jig, and MIG welded by certified welders. What this means to you is that each of the winches is made to very high quality standards, and tolerances. Using CNC equipment allows us to produce components of the highest tolerances (typically within 0.0005 ") so that parts are interchangeable from one winch to the next. If you ever need a part or an upgrade part, you can be assured that the part you receive will fit, right out of the box, guaranteed. Winches are typically in stock, and we carry a full line of parts and accessories should they ever be required.

Take a look at the following photos, and we'll discuss how the winch is designed to function:

The rig above is owned by Brad and Maren from Paradventures in the SW corner of Washington State. You can find them at www.discover paragliding.com. They use towing extensively as an integral part of their school, and were so impressed with the winches potential and performance that they chose to mount it permanently in their truck. Permanently is a relative term, since it comes out by simply removing 4 bolts, although they did cut a hole in their canopy to run the tracking head / line guide up through. A very slick installation that works extremely well.

Here's all it takes to get into towing over the water. An older 16 foot boat with a 90 HP outboard motor that is capable of speeds around 34 M.P.H. You can find them all over for under $3000. Note the tracking head sticking up above the boat. There is a swivel mounted on the top that allows the line to freely swing 360 degrees around the head. It is high enough to make it unlikely to get tangled with the operator or passenger, and the free swiveling action prevents entanglements and makes circle towing in small lakes a breeze.

Here you can see a couple different views of our standard winch mounted in the boat. The 2" tubing framework is 22" wide by 50" long, and the corner that supports the tracking head extends up 34". The drum mounts on a hydraulic motor in the upper left corner of the frame and extends 3 1/2" out from the side of the frame and 8" off one end. The standard version shown is a complete system that easily mounts in the back of a pickup, on a boat, or other vehicle. It is held in place by 4 bolts, one on each corner. Provisions have been made in the design to allow for easy mounting by including slotted mounting locations as well as individual bolt holes on all corners. Note the picking eyes welded to the frame. The winch isn't particularly heavy, but at around 300 pounds it's a lot easier to use a hoist to lift it that your back.

Operation is simplicity itself, which is what makes this winch design so reliable. A 12 1/2 gallon tank contains hydraulic fluid. This fluid flows to a hydraulic motor with a drum directly attached to the output shaft. 5500' of 1100 # test Spectra line is wound on the drum, and the line routes through a pulley, up to the tracking head swivel, and then out to the pilot, who is attached to the line through a drogue parachute (held collapsed under line tension) a weak link, and a release system. When the pilot is ready to launch, the tow vehicle or vessel accelerates away from the pilot at a speed around 25 M.P.H. and the hydraulic fluid flows freely from the tank, through the motor and back to the tank through an oil cooler. There is no tension on the towline at this point. Once the pilot has their glider cleanly overhead, the tow technician rotates a knob on the winch control panel which causes a restriction in the fluid flow from the motor back to the tank. This in turn causes the hydraulic system pressure to rise, increasing the resistive torque on the motor and hence builds tension in the towline. As the tension rises, the pilot is gradually and smoothly pulled into the air. Once the pilot is safely airborne, the tow technician adjusts the hydraulic system pressure to a predetermined value, which will cause a constant tension on the towline. As the tow continues the pilot pulls line off the winch, while the vehicle moves forward, and consequently climbs smoothly away from the earth. Flying through a thermal or wind gradient has no effect on the tow tension because it is automatically controlled. Rather than getting big surges with every bump, or gust, the line simply spools off faster or slower, which affects the climb rate slightly, but allows nice smooth tows to altitude. Once the pilot has reached the altitude desired, the rewind motor is started up, the pilot releases, and the motor turns a hydraulic pump which rotates the drum in the opposite direction, causing the line to rewind. The parachute on the end of the line that was hooked to the pilot is no longer under tension, so it inflates causing tension on the towline to make a nice tidy rewind and preventing the line from landing in a less than opportune location. Simplicity itself, isn't it.

This system doesn't use a level wind because it is simply not needed. The winch drum is only 1.9" wide and has a diameter of 28". It can hold up to 6500 feet of line, and because it is so skinny, and the line is rewound under tension, it stacks very neatly and tightly on the drum. Once the pilot is safely off the ground the system tension is set, and essentially will remain unchanged during the flight. O/K, the technically minded will note that the torque on the system has to change as the line spools off the drum, and the effective line diameter is reduced. In theory it would require the operator to reduce system pressure as the torque increases with a decreasing line diameter. After extensive testing and simulations, we determined the final drum size for a very specific reason. It is the same reason we use a very high quality towline, manufactured specifically to our specifications. As the line length increases, the drag imposed on the line by moving through the air also increases. By sizing the components to compensate for this effect, we were able to perfectly balance the flight loads, drag, and torque loads so that once set, the system pressure never needs to be changed. Simplicity of operation and reliability were high on our list of design criteria, and you will be very happy with the results.

Here's a couple photos of some customers who have made pretty slick installations in their boats. The blue Capri is owned my Midnight Sun Paragliding and operates out of Alaska. The other boat is operated by ProTow and the picture just happens to show our favorite winch operator, Ann O'Conner. This lady is one heck of a fine pilot, and when you get on the other end of the towline, it would be hard to find a more experienced Tow Tech. She gives some of the best, smoothest rides aloft with absolute precision.

Please note that these winches will ONLY be sold to qualified individuals or schools. Prior to purchase, the purchaser must fill out completely and sign a release of liability / hold harmless agreement. The purchaser must also be a USHGA certified Tow Administrator, Tow Technician, or have an equivalent amount of experience or qualifications.

To help in planning installation in your existing vehicle, here is a .pdf file of the TOP VIEW of the winch frame and clearance dimensions, as well as a SIDE VIEW of the winch. Please note that the standard tracking head is 60" tall, but can be made in a variety of sizes.

Costs

Our SuperTow winch is certainly not the cheapest winch, but quality and performance rarely is attainable for the lowest price. It is, however, one of the most reliable winches available. This is why operators who make their living towing pilots aloft choose to use our system. It can do back to back solo or tandem tows all day long without cavitating or overheating, and it will run for thousands of tows with minimal or no maintenance. Particularly important is the fact that operators find the SuperTow winch incredibly easy to operate and dial in properly for pilots of widely ranging skill or weight levels. This allows for stress free operation and maximizes the safety of the operation, especially at the end of a long towing day. Pilots love our winches because they provide one of the smoothest tows available with minimal surging on tow.

The Standard SuperTow Hydraulic Payout Winch includes the following:

6.5 HP manual start Honda motor with 11 GPM 2 stage rewind pump

12.5 gallon hydraulic oil tank with integral strainer

15 GPM hydraulic oil cooler

64" tall tracking head with 360 degree swivel. Note * Swivel components are made from 304 or 316L Stainless Steel designed for a lifetime of service. The integral bearings are easily replaceable and commonly available should you desire to replace them at some future date. The threaded components are CNC machined, so that you may easily replace parts if they are damaged, say by running into an underground parking garage (for the 3rd time...) a Mcdonald's drive through, or a low hanging tree branch. A replacement part is guaranteed to simply thread in place, first time, every time.

CNC machined, aluminum, ventilated line drum with taper lock hub mounting system

All required hydraulic components, hoses, gauge, main system relief valve, piloted relief valve, check valves, etc.

Please Note: TowMeUp.com does not sell through a dealer or distributor network nor do we plan to do so in the near future. To do so would require us to mark up the winch prices to ALL our customers so that those who choose to distribute them will be able to make what they perceive is an adequate profit. This reduces our ability to provide the most affordable winch directly to the end user. TowMeUp.com sells directly to the end user only. Please do not waste our time and yours forwarding calls, and emails trying to get set up as a dealer or distributor in hopes of getting better pricing. Unfortunately it doesn't exist.

Winch Pricing Effective 15 February 2007 - TowMeUp.com reserves the right to alter these prices up or down without notice to accommodate market changes in the prices of components we use to manufacture our winches.

Standard SuperTow Hydraulic Payout Winch including the above items Retail Price is $8950.00

If purchased with the winch, the following additional items are also available for the following prices:

5500' of Stretched synthetic spectra towline, continuous 500' red - 4500' white - 500' red, $875.00

5 foot diameter ventilated, stabilized drogue chute, $75.00

The following optional items are also available to customize and improve on the rewind performance of the standard winch:

Upgrade to 30 GPM oil cooler, $285

Upgrade to 11 HP Honda w/ electric start and 16 GPM hydraulic pump. ( Note - TowMeUp.com does not provide either the electrical wiring, nor a storage battery with these systems, since we are unable to anticipate all possible installation configurations available for this system. We do provide detailed connection instructions upon request for those who need assistance for their specific application) add $672.00

Upgrade to 13 HP Honda w/ electric start and 16 GPM hydraulic pump. ( Note - TowMeUp.com does not provide either the electrical wiring, nor a storage battery with these systems, since we are unable to anticipate all possible installation configurations available for this system. We do provide detailed connection instructions upon request for those who need assistance for their specific application) add $707.00 - This system is typically recommended for those who want to use a bigger rewind pump to increase the rewind or Pay in pressures and velocities available, but are operating from density altitudes above 5,000 feet. An 11 HP motor may not have adequate power to generate the maximum capabilities of the pump, whereas the 13HP motor works great!

Upgrade to 13 HP Honda w/ electric start and 22 GPM hydraulic pump. ( Note - TowMeUp.com does not provide either the electrical wiring, nor a storage battery with these systems, since we are unable to anticipate all possible installation configurations available for this system. We do provide detailed connection instructions upon request for those who need assistance for their specific application) add $936.00

Console swivel $80 (used to place the control panel in a more convenient position for a driver/operator, or rear seat operator.

Clutch pump option with check valves and couplers $260

Winch Vibration Isolation Mounting Blocks set of 4 Water Jet cut from 9/16" thick urethane rubber $45.00

Clutch pump installed in tow vehicle - Please note that TowMeUp.com no longer supplies or installs clutch pumps systems with a winch purchase. These systems can be obtained through Muncie Power Products or their distributor. They have installation kits available for almost every motor available in common use. Please note though that for marine applications many of these kits will not fit properly, mostly due to the marinized exhaust manifolds conflicting with traditional bolt locations for mounting hardware. Most marine kits require custom modifications to support the pump adequately and prevent the belts from flexing or slipping. For ANY clutch pump installation TowMeUp.com STRONGLY RECOMMENDS THE USE OF A PRIORITY FLOW CONTROL. This is a device that limits the maximum pump flow to the winch drum motor. This flow control should be set to divert anything over 15 GPM back to the tank, via the oil cooler. FAILURE TO USE A PRIORITY FLOW CONTROL WILL LIKELY CAUSE THE ROTATIONAL SPEEDS OF THE WINCH DRUM MOTOR TO BE EXCEEDED WHICH WILL DAMAGE OR DESTROY THIS MOTOR! This damage will not be considered for a warranty repair, since it constitutes abuse. Please don't say we never told you!

SuperTow Winch Leases

TowMeUp.com used to offer winches for lease and upon approval boats with installed winches for customers use. Over the years we have had issues with customers not returning the systems in a timely fashion, removing our spectra line from the winch and winding on junk line, removing components and substituting unmodified components, and a host of other issues. Our boats have been driven like they were stolen and used to jump logs, stumps, run gravel bars, hurtle up river banks and over ice jams, and used to carry the results of fishing and hunting trips which we find when we remove the floorboards to try to determine the source of the odd odors. there are now over 280 TowMeUp.com hydraulic winches in use worldwide and it's fairly easy to hire one of the owners of these systems to provide towing services for your event if needed. If we know you really well, and you have leased from us in the past with no issues, we'll still probably work with you if we can. Otherwise, you're out of luck. Sorry.