We'd used our venerable Warn M8000 for about six years or so, and it had never let us down. We had rescued stuck trucks, righted rolled-over rigs, and extracted ourselves from rocky notches and waterfalls too steep to climb. Though our winch hadn't seen a lot of mud, it had been submerged underwater a number of times in creek and wash crossings. It had also seen years of fine desert dust that had surely worked its way into our trusty companion.
But in recent years, we'd noticed a little more noise coming from the drum assembly, so we decided it best to do a little inspection and maintenance as needed. You can find an exploded parts diagram in your original Warn manual, along with a parts list. If not, you can find them on Warn's Web site, in the "Replacement Parts" section. Once you identify any seals, gaskets, or other worn parts you want to replace, they can be ordered from your local Warn dealer for quite reasonable prices. Along with that, you'll want fresh grease for the internals.
We tore down our M8000, then cleaned, inspected, lubed, and reassembled it in a few hours. The job required only common handtools and was fairly straightforward. Many Warn models should be similar in this process. Follow along as we revitalize our winch.
 1. To start the disassembly,...  1. To start the disassembly, we removed the detent screw that secures the clutch engagement lever and removed the lever, metal retainer, and O-ring seal. |  2. Next, the 10 socket-head...  2. Next, the 10 socket-head cap screws were removed from the end housing, freeing it and the ring gear that houses several planetary gearsets. |  3. With the end housing and...  3. With the end housing and ring gear separated from the drum support, you can see the hex shaft that transfers drive from the motor on the opposite end of the winch to the small 12-tooth sun gear in the end housing. |
 4. Next we removed the splined...  4. Next we removed the splined drive gear from the end of the drum assembly. The two socket-head cap screws were removed and the drum support was separated from the two tie-rods. |  5. With the end of the drum...  5. With the end of the drum assembly exposed, we found the first drum bushing. These appear to be made from a nylon-type material and are used to support and locate the drum in the side plates. |  6. Here you can see the drum...  6. Here you can see the drum support on the motor end (left) and the drum assembly. Inside the drum is a brake assembly that mates to the coupler on the motor shaft. Do not remove the brake or apply any lubrication to the brake. |
 7. Next, we removed the second...  7. Next, we removed the second drum bushing from the motor-side drum support. Here is where we found a good bit of accumulated dust and aged grease. |  8. The last part removed was...  8. The last part removed was the motor coupler. We checked this piece for any signs of cracking or damage and made sure the spline fit was still snug to the splined motor shaft. |  9. Grasping the end of the...  9. Grasping the end of the motor shaft, we wiggled it to check for any play or looseness in the bearing. We found none, so we stopped disassembly at this point. |
 10. Inside the end housing...  10. Inside the end housing is a bronze bushing which supports the small sun gear. We checked for excessive play between the two and found they still fit close. On some Warn winches, this bushing can be replaced in the housing. |  11. Massive gear reduction...  11. Massive gear reduction is obtained through the use of three planetary gearsets that reside in the end housing. We cleaned ours in solvent and checked for loose or damaged gear pins and worn teeth. |  12. The end housing has the...  12. The end housing has the sliding ring gear that is actuated by the clutch lever. This gear moves to engage the drum for powered use or to disengage and allow it to spool free. |