My Franken Jeep has a 7000lb Warn Winch. It has 'Forward' and 'Reverse' on the switch.
Can I, for instance, hook the cable to a big tree and lower Franken Jeep and me down a vertical cliff? Will the winch hold the weight when it runs in reverse? In other words will it act like a brake when I lower us down the cliff?
yup. it's rated to winch in, hold and winch out 7000lb.
Its worth noting that is 'line pull' and is the maximum load - ITS NOT a safe working load like a crane. at 7000lbs of load you are on the limit , go over it and it will fail.
the load on the line has nothing to do with the weight of the vehicle! (well, very little anyway)