Brian mentioned fuses.

If you should decide to use one of those, check the specs on the fuse. A standard ANL 200A fuse will carry at least 200A indefinitely (I think its about 110% of rating). From the curves on the Bussman web page , it looks like it will carry over 300A for at least 100Sec before blowing, and takes 10Sec to blow at 400A. If you put in a 400A fuse thinking thats what you need because the winch draws that much, at around 700A it will take a couple of minutes to blow so the winch motor may go first. It takes over 1500A to blow a 400A fuse in 1 second. Just some fuse trivia for the day.