onespiritbrain Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 So I finally have a winch on my vehicle! No more getting stuck and having to make that embarrassing phone call. So I started by removing the bumper and grill. Then I just propped the plate up where it made the most sense to me and offered the most bracing. The plate I bought was almost the exact right width to match up with the front pull points. I had to trim about .75" on each side to make way for the 5/8x2.5" flat bar. I tacked the flat bar in place and propped it up again to figure out how to bolt everything down. Placement looked good so I went ahead and welded everything. I used the front pull point brackets to place my center punch for drilling the bolt holes. I propped the plate and pressed everything tightly against the "frame". When I say frame I mean the black metal that spans the front between the two metal crush bumpers. While tightly pressed I used the front pull brackets to mark where on the flat bar to hold the bracket for center punching. Then I took everything to the bench for punching and drilling. Next I relocated the solenoid. Just mark everything carefully and it's easy. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/ffe481036f5d10f7be426a16783c256f.jpg Hard part is done! https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/1ad21710fd14e585bbcbba7332a0d126.jpg With everything buttoned back up https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/3525931b779e3ce763081ea28cf4ea38.jpg https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/482a5a1fbd538440242fec40ace824b5.jpg https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/bb1fbd8d14e163887154463bbf6e261a.jpg https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170313/74737cd4cd7314de9dee27328774dc21.jpg Now I don't have to turn around because there's a puddle in the road. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarekG Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 Wow this is awesome. I'm hoping to do something similar this summer! Thanks for posting with pics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbyyy Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 Inconvenient. Too low. Need lift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onespiritbrain Posted March 13, 2017 Author Share Posted March 13, 2017 I forgot to put the can at the road this morning... luckily my winch was there to save me from loading week old ripped trash bags full of funk(I have a 1.5yr old) on my roof or worse in my trunk! I love this thing already! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawairish Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 Is that a Harbor Freight winch channel? I was thinking about using that for something very similar. Looks good, kudos for making it work! To Bobbyyy's point, looks like you may have had a little real estate higher? I don't think it's too low for function, but it does appear to take away some departure angle, so be mindful of that. Also, the drum release handle...you should be able to clock that side of the winch so that the handle isn't hidden, and is facing forward for accessibility. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onespiritbrain Posted March 14, 2017 Author Share Posted March 14, 2017 I was going to mount it higher but after I get my hawse fairlead I won't have lost hardly any approach angle from the stock hang of the bumper. Of course I do scratch the bumper pretty hard about every time I go out... hmmm.. I'll have to be extra careful, probably will just plow ahead anyway haha. But If I had put it higher then there would've been a lot more stress on the bolts holding everything together during a pull. There really isn't much on the front with enough strength to mount a winch. If I had gone higher, straight pulls would probably be fine but I wouldn't be comfortable with anything off center. Also, I didn't go up in bolt size to mount the winch. M12 bolts would have been a different story but I kept the M10's and upgraded to grade 12.9 @ 250ftlbs. Really even with grade 12.9 M12 bolts I'm afraid a hard off center pull would cause trouble. Of course I am probably exaggerating the forces involved in my mind.. I am in desperate need of a lift. Once I have my lift installed, which will hopefully happen in June, I will look at bumper mounting options and relocating the winch to a higher position on the new bumper. I looked up the HF winch mount and it looks exactly like the one I bought of Amazon from Megabrands for $35. Strong points of contact for mounting anything heavy on the front are non existent. It looks like everything up there is designed to crush and absorb impact forces from a crash. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
03TroutFinder Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 That turned out really nice man! Been mulling over different ideas on how to mount one on mine too. Gonna try to make my own brush guard with winch mount. My primary concern is how to mount to the frame for proper support. Good thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatDes Posted March 15, 2017 Share Posted March 15, 2017 Holy that's some serious steel for those mounts. I've been working on my own custom low profile tube winch bumper. (Progress has been slow) I was worried if my design was strong enough but thanks to an altima that ran a red yesterday, I'm not longer worried lol 5000$ in damage to her and my pathy and bumper totally unharmed Sent from my SM-G870W using Tapatalk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgallant Posted March 15, 2017 Share Posted March 15, 2017 I personally like it I have put off a winch because there are not good bumpers available a a decent cost. That kinda of resolves the issue 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onespiritbrain Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 I should've welded the plate to the top of the flat bar.. the bottom would've been at the orange line and the top of the release, if I didn't rotate the gear housing, would've tucked nicely below the metal "bumper" at the green line... I may end up testing my skills with a glue bound cutting disk to slice the current welds and then move the plate up for rewelding.. I guess there was a reason I didn't paint the welds, I mean besides me being lazy. Or maybe there is a silver lining to my laziness. The philosophers will decide.. If I do I will post it up. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlabamaDan Posted September 18, 2018 Share Posted September 18, 2018 Nice job man. I like the way it retains the stock bumper. I have a 98 QX and like keeping things sorta low key. Did you weld the bars to the frame or bolt them? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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