I just picked up a brand new Smittybilt x20 8.  It's a step up from the XRC 8.  The only difference I can tell is that it is completely water proof.  It is brand new and hasn't been used, and I only paid $300.  It runs about $500 new I believe.  The only problem I have, is that it is pretty heavy, and seems big.  I don't want it took look to over kill on my Zuk.  your thoughts?  Here are some pics of my Sammi.  Also any thoughts about removable winch vs fixed?

Who cares what it looks like, especially for 3 bills. Just think how much fun you'll have pullin out stuck jeeps  my .02.

If your going wheeling I would recommend an 8k winch.  They are not much more then the 6k units and give you that extra bit of grunt if you need it.  The official recommendation is 1.5x your vehicle weight.  With a nice winch bumper it should looks just fine.

If your worried about weight you might want to look at switching over to synthetic rope.

I run a 9600 in front and a 12000 in the rear. I would never ever go below 8000, the 6000 winches I've seen in action always seems to be very anaemic.

I switched to synthetic line on both mine, that was almost 20lbs saved weight on each winch.

I run a 9K Milemarker on the front with a bumper that is built for extreme testing...  I bult it that way. I matched weighter the rear bumper to even out the weight.

I know some folks tend to want to keep their Sammi's light. But you can build everything into proportion and still have a great litltle off road machine.

It is all in what you want out of you Sammi....

                                                                             Tux...