Winch Mount

scenic760 said:

I appreciate everyone's experience on this!

What do you guys think about a front mount hitch/hitch mounted winch setup? Seems like that would increase the versatility of the winch a little?

Click to expand...

There are pluses and minuses to every idea. I also looked at this option for the versatility but not on my '87. I never considered a front hitch on either of my trucks because of pure cosmetic considerations.

I considered this option for my '19 2500HD but rejected it because:
1. Heavy to move
2. Where do I store it?
3. How much space to store it?
4. How much cargo space I lose when I have it in the truck.

What you use the winch to do also matters. My trucks rarely get stuck nowadays but they are often pulling something heavy from someplace it should not be. But I still don't want to be struggling with carrying a heavy winch and trying to stab it into a trailer hitch in deep mud...just in case.

One thing that we tend to overlook is that the conditions we drive in, the terrain, the obstacles are not the same everywhere. I live in South Lousiana and our mud is thick, deep and bottomless. By contrast I love watching Matt's Offroad Recovery based in southern Utah and he mostly deals with sand and snow. Their mud is usually about ankle deep but very, very slippery. You have to use what works for your area and your intended use.

I always liked this one from ORD but it is spendy. There is a story on their page where a guy ran his suburban through a heard of elk at 55MPH, it was damaged but saved the suburban.

Redfish said:

There are pluses and minuses to every idea.

Click to expand...

Ain't that the truth!

So after a Craigslist search I may have a line on a used winch bumper...the guy doesn't know what it came off of though..do were these made with vehicle specific bolt patterns to mount them up or did they have adapter brackets?? or ??

scenic760 said:

Ain't that the truth!

So after a Craigslist search I may have a line on a used winch bumper...the guy doesn't know what it came off of though..do were these made with vehicle specific bolt patterns to mount them up or did they have adapter brackets?? or ??

Click to expand...

Warn built them vehicle specific. That pic has it on the tailgate of a dentside Ford so one might assume it came off a Ford...

Ford frame rails are a different spread than GM rails. however its not impossible to adapt it, one of my old friends ran a Ford Warn bumper on his K5

Redfish said:

Warn built them vehicle specific. That pic has it on the tailgate of a dentside Ford so one might assume it came off a Ford...

Click to expand...

Got it!

Nice observation from a bad picture btw!

Ok…so the Craigslist bumper turned out to be a diamond plate backyard fab with no mounting brackets..

The more I look at what’s out there, the less impressed I am. The classic Warn bumper is probably the best thing I’ve seen so far.

I’m tempted to buy some 1/4” plate and fab one up, simple clean lines that flow with the front end and without some stupid a** logo branded on everything…I am so sick of everything being an advertisement

I went with RLC Fabrication. Great quality, but they are bare metal when you get them.

74Blaze said:

I went with RLC Fabrication. Great quality, but they are bare metal when you get them.

Custom Winch Bumper for Chevy GMC Trucks 1973-1987 FREE SHIPPING

Custom Winch Bumper for 1973- 1987 Chevy Trucks Also fits K5 Blazers and Suburbans to 1991 3/16" thick steel construction, except for the mounting brackets, which are 1/4" thick. Fully Welded Mounting: Mounts are made for width of frame. 28". Varying holes were used through the years by GM. I...

www.rlcweldfab.com

Click to expand...

That is a great looking bumper and I only rejected it because I was worried it might be a little too modern looking...but I should have included it in my original answer. Thanks for reminding me.

Don't pay good money for an ugly bumper.

Click to expand...

Love the slogan...and your right they are a good looking bumper and just a little modern...I think this might fit my project perfectly!

Thanks Gents!

Ok...I think I may have found a bumper within a decent drive but had a question on mounting the winch...it looks like it's either a Warn or knock of type bumper but I was wondering if/how the HF ZXR 12000 winch will mount to it? From the dimensions it apprears as though the diagonal pieces attached to the front winch plate would interfere with the sides of the winch?

Those angle braces look like they will be in the way to me.

Redfish said:

Those angle braces look like they will be in the way to me.

Click to expand...

That was my thought as well…would it frowned upon to cut them out and weld in some corner gussets with cutouts to clear the sides of the winch?

scenic760 said:

That was my thought as well…would it frowned upon to cut them out and weld in some corner gussets with cutouts to clear the sides of the winch?

You must be registered for see images attach

Click to expand...

It is YOUR Truck and it is YOUR bumper. Seems to me you can do whatever you like!

That front vertical plate isn't supporting the winch, it only holds the fairlead. There can be significant pressure on the fairlead if you have any side loading or the line is pointing up or down so that front plate has to be strong...but not nearly as strong as the base the winch is bolted to.

I am assuming you are going with that Badlands Apex? Synthetic or steel cable?

Redfish said:

It is YOUR Truck and it is YOUR bumper. Seems to me you can do whatever you like!

That front vertical plate isn't supporting the winch, it only holds the fairlead. There can be significant pressure on the fairlead if you have any side loading or the line is pointing up or down so that front plate has to be strong...but not nearly as strong as the base the winch is bolted to.

I am assuming you are going with that Badlands Apex? Synthetic or steel cable?

Click to expand...

Got it, makes sense!

Yes, I bought a Badlands Apex with the steel cable for it during the COVID years at what I thought was a rock bottom price but I think they have gotten even cheaper since...