I have a 38zx and wanting to pick up a power winch for the trailer. Do I need a winch rated for the weight of the boat? I have never bought one before and curious how this works since most of the boat will be in the water when winching it up on the trailer? Thanks for the advice in advance.

No, as a rule you will be pulling the boat on with it still in the water. If you use a roller trailer you can pull the boat with it out of the water. But a bunk trailer will have to much restance to move it dry. Powerwinch is a very good brand with parts available almost anywhere.

Go to their website and they can give you recomendations on what will work best.

I've had a powerwinch before. Not as big of a boat as you have though. I prefer a manual winch.

I prefer a strap over a cable, not sure if the powerwinches are available with a strap. I was always having electrical issues with the winch too. If I position my trailer right, I don't have to crank anymore than a few inches.

Very true. They do make a power winch with a strap.

I had one once before, I certainly wouldn't pay for one! In fact, I dont miss it one bit... more hassle than it was worth.

Why complicate things? A manual winch isn't that hard to use. Every person I've seen at the boat ramp with an electric winch was either fiddling to get it to spool out or fiddling to get it to spool in.

Well, I absolutely love my Powerwinch RC-30. No problems here. The ramp is use is very steep. The only way I could get the boat all the way on the trailer with a manual winch was to get in the water for enough leverage. That's not an exciting prospect in Minnesota during the spring and fall. The Powerwinch pulls it on with ease. I'm much faster at the ramp, now.