The statement, "You're usually safe assuming the winch will handle
whatever the wire rope rating is" seems kinda like rating a truck based
on whatever tires the last owner had lying around and decided to throw
on it. I guess that's why you said "if you have a reasonably new
winch," and "All this presumes that the winch came originally equipped
with the 1/4 inch wire rope." I can't find any references to a winch
company named S&S; probably long out of business. The thing's gotta be
50 years old.

Thanks for the torture test advice. I may try to lift my Suburban a
couple of inches off the ground with it.