Confidence is everything when you know you can instantly pull yourself from the primordial ooze.

For many 4WDers, having a winch is one of those “should I/shouldn’t I” accessories.

For me it’s a necessity. I spend a lot of time offroad and winches have carried me out of more than a few tricky situations

While a snatch strap when you have another vehicle touring with you (or a set of MaxTrax when solo) will get you out of trouble 90% of the time, what happens when they don’t?

When a winch is needed you’re usually be in a position where you have tried all other options, or, in some cases, you know nothing else will work and head straight for the recovery qualities of a winch.

This is when you know the money spent was money spent well. To be able to pull yourself up that muddy incline with no traction under the wheels at the touch of a button can be the difference between making it back to camp for dinner or sleeping in the car hoping, praying that you’ll come up with something the next day to get you on your way again.

TJM recently fitted the 9500lb synthetic rope Torq Winch to my Prado 150. With an IP67 waterproof rating on the body and remote I know it’s going to be able to do its job in any environment.

Over the course of my recent trip to Central Australia and the Kimberley I didn’t need to use it but knowing I’d be able to get myself out of almost any situation made the decision to explore the more remote backtracks that much easier.

I enjoy exploring new tracks away from the crowds and on many occasions I wouldn’t see another vehicle for days. Having the winch on board meant that if I did run into trouble I’d be able to use it to recover the vehicle myself.

Confidence breeds true freedom, especially when its confidence in your rig. This is the freedom I crave from owning a 4WD – being able to explore this great country without the restriction of needing to be in a convoy or with others

Don’t get me wrong I love nothing more than traveling with mates and cracking open a cold can at the end of the day, however sometimes it’s just not possible and to be able to still experience extremely remote locations on your own is true freedom.

There are plenty of winches on the market with varying degrees of quality and price. For me it’s about reliability without paying the earth. The Torq Winch from TJM fits right into this category.

You also have the benefit from buying from a reputable company and having a nationwide dealership network means that if anything should go wrong they could get you on your way from almost anywhere in the country.

Now, the editor demanded that we go out and test the thing on deadline, of course it worked like clockwork, futuristic clockwork, but that was never in doubt to me. This being the third TJM winch I’ve had on one of my rigs. Scope them out over at www.tjm.com.au