When I first installed my winch, I used it to winch the landy across a level carpark as a quick trial. I also found that the cable didn't want to go on evenly so I used the head of a claw hammer to guide it onto the drum nice and neatly. The next time I used it to tow my boat up a stoney beach it tended to go on pretty evenly, but the trusted hammer came in useful to help make sure it went back on neatly.
Just a thought, the instructions for my winch suggest that the control lever shouldn't be left in the engaged position, so I leave it in the mid position between free and engaged. What concerns me is some eejjiit with a sense of humour deciding it would be a laugh to hook my winch hook onto the back of a car if I park in some carpark. Although I check it as I walk up to my vehicle there is a good chance another driver wouldn't notice if this had been done, so, I'm considering using a padlock to secure the end of my cable to my chassis to prevent any smart arse from doing anything like this.
