winch mount on a CRL Customs bumper

Well, i started the assembly of my winch mount today. Here are the pieces i'm using.

1/2" holes

And the almost finished product:

I'm going to stitch weld that 1/4" plate on the top of the 2 pieces of angle.

The bolt pattern of my winch is 10 by 4.5". I'm getting a Warn M8000. Pretty cheap winch, and it's good to get me through what i'll use it for.

Anyways, the bolts will bold through the diamond plate, 1/4" plate, and the 1/4" angle.

The whole assembly will fit right inside the bumper and will be covered by this diamond plate that is already on there.

Give me some suggestions here, am i headed in the right direction?

 

[TravisC]

Then the plate bolts to the inside of the bumper and the frame?

 

[JoshC]

Originally posted by JoshC
No, this bolts to the inside of the bumper with 6 1/2" bolts. The diamond plate will just sit on top like it does now, and the winch bolts through the diamond plate on to this plate and the 1/4" angle.

Geez son, have ya read any of my posts?!

 

[TravisC]

I guess not

 

[jasonb]

fight!

 

[NOTAJP]

Originally posted by JoshC
I had a friend of mine bring up a good point. He said that if i bolt the winch down through the aluminum diamond plate through this, that i will take a good chance of shearing the bolts since there is a weaker metal going between the 2, what do you all think of this?

Never heard of that or even thought of it. I've bolted all kinds of stuff through diamond plate. Have to talked to the sheet metal shop? They would know. Curious....

 

[zensius]

Looking good. Let's see the winch on. NOTAJP, you said you had a combo mount and bent the crap out of it. Was that the multimount? The one you can remove the winch or mount it in the back etc.? I was thinking of getting this.

 

[CoryL]

The diamond plate itself won't make a difference since the bolt is going through a hole in steel first. If you were bolting it to that piece of aluminum alone you would have a problem.

That said, I wouldn't bolt it through the diamond plate because it increases the distance from secure mounting surface to winch setup, thereby requiring a longer bolt, which in turn would be easier to bend or shear.

I use Grade 5 on winch setups because of its bend before break factor. There is a reason the manufacturer sends Grade 5 bolts with their kits.

So to sum up, I'd eliminate the diamond place altogether OR cut the center (a rectangle) out of the diamond plate where the winch will mount and bolt the diamond plate to another area of the steel winch plate. Then you have a better mounting surface and the BLING BLING factor.

 

[JoshC]

Originally posted by CoryL
and the BLING BLING factor.

Lol, well i wasn't really going for the BLING BLING, but i guess you could call it that! I actually like it best for stepping on to work under the hood.

I had thought about the rectangle idea and i think that will work best. If you look at this picture, i think i can cut out around the bolt pattern and have the winch just kind of set inside of this. So in other words, just cut a 10x4.5" rectangle out, actually bigger since those measurements are center to center on the holes. You won't be able to see much steel like that, and the rest of it should be sitting pretty close to the top of the diamond plate.

The guy that cut the steel for me and gave me the idea sent me this picture to show what i could do with the fairlead. Looks like he's using the same tubing that the bumper is made from. Would this work? Would the top prerunner bar hold up if i had to pull from the side?

 

[JoshC]

I'm assuming the remote hook up can be mounted anywhere?? I'd like to move it down, maybe beside the fairlead so it's not sticking up like that. What do you think?

 

[Michael]

I tried to get a picture for you Josh, but it doesn't show up good. I think what you have there should work fine. You can put the hook up anywhere you want. You might want to think about under the hood, it will be protected from the elements there.

 

[JoshC]

Originally posted by Michael
You might want to think about under the hood, it will be protected from the elements there.

I never thought about that. Do they come with plenty of wiring to move it around?

 

[NOTAJP]

Originally posted by JoshC
I never thought about that. Do they come with plenty of wiring to move it around?

You could add longer cable. Just get some 2/0 gage battery or welding cable. DanB has his 8000 mounted with Warn's hidden mount and has the remote box high on the grille on a 1st Gen.

 

[NOTAJP]

Originally posted by zensius
Looking good. Let's see the winch on. NOTAJP, you said you had a combo mount and bent the crap out of it. Was that the multimount? The one you can remove the winch or mount it in the back etc.? I was thinking of getting this.

I had the winch mount that looks like a brush guard/grill guard combo. I like the idea of the mulit-mount but I think it is a bad design. If you ever get a side pull, the sleeve in the hitch can get jammed inside and you wouldn't be able to remove the winch.

 

[Paul]

Josh -

For ideas on mounting the power box, try this link:

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=44479&highlight=winch+mount

The thread shows the Ramsey 8000 I mounted on my Explorer last year. In the first photo you can see the plug for the power box hiding behind the grill. It doesn't block the radiator and is pretty well protected from the elements.

Paul
'91 Sport

 

[JoshC]

Hey Paul, how are you? Haven't talked to you in a while. Back in the states yet?

I like that idea. I think i'll try that when i get it the winch in.

 

[JoshC]

The winch is scheduled to get to my parents house on the 3rd, so i'm hoping i'm able to get it and get it put on wednesday night. I'll need to get some tubing and get it pre cut for the install.

How will the fairlead attach to the tubing?

I installed 2 tow hooks on the front bumper today. Been meaning to since i've had it back, but just now getting around to it.

 

[JoshC]

One more thing. Cory, you mentioned using grade 5 bolts. Will grade 5 bolts bend before the grade 8 bolts break?

 

[CoryL]

Originally posted by JoshC


How will the fairlead attach to the tubing?

Personally, I would pick up two small pieces of small-dish c-channel angle iron and weld in vertical pieces between the main tube of the bumper and the hoop. Drill two holes and bolt the thing up. Possibly add some gussets for strength.

As for the grade 5 bolts. All winch manufacturers send grade 5 hardware with their winches. Same goes for body lift manufacturers. It isn't coincidence.

Now, some people will argue about tensile and shear numbers of grade 5 vs grade 8 bolts. Grade 8 bolts are harder and are less likely to break, however, when they do go, there is NO bending. They simply shear. A grade 5 bolt will bend before it shears. I'd use grade 5.

 

[JoshC]

The c channel, which way would you face the outter part of the C, the open part? Away from the truck? I guess that depends on where i put the fair lead, on the inside nearest the winch or the outside of the channel.

 

[CoryL]

Originally posted by JoshC
The c channel, which way would you face the outter part of the C, the open part? Away from the truck? I guess that depends on where i put the fair lead, on the inside nearest the winch or the outside of the channel.

The fairlead doesn't need to be close to the winch.

I'd have the "C" part facing the winch, welded behind the hoop, and bolt the fairlead to the flat part of the steel (opposite side of the "c").