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cross-member/behind bumper winch mount

S

spikyhair87

NAXJA Forum User
Location
IL
ok i have searched and only found one thread that has some info and im
looking for more info on the way people have mounted their winches to the
front crossmember area/behind their bumper...

currently i have a jcr stage 3 front bumper and am thinking that i can cut out the front cross member and reinforce it with some 1/8-1/4 plate with gussets or something.. and mount the winch directly to the back of the bumper after i "poke"a hole through (have sort of a rectangle shape hole) for the winch cable and mount the fairlead directly to the front of the bumper...the fairlead "covers" up the hole... etc..

sort of hard to explain... its all up top here... (Mechanical Engineer by trade)... but im looking for pictures/ideas/possible problems...

btw its a xrc8 winch and i do have ample welding skills etc..

Thanks!
 
Last edited:
That was a very limited stock option at one time. Maybe you could see if your local dealer can print a schematic that shows how Jeep did it.
 
lapisxj said:
If you have any questions about what I did, just let me know.
Click to expand...

ok will do..

first question would be how do you use the "engage" lever... pop the hood etc or reach from under??

what did you find adequate for cross member reinforcement?? steel size and design? gussets? etc...

did you mount the winch directly to ur bumper??

how did you drill ur "hole" for the winch cable to go throught the bumper??

did you fab up some sort of plate for protection for the underside?

how has it held up to the mud and water??? (i wheel mainly at the cliffs (here in il) and its NEVER dry....

theft protection? (would think it would be pretty safe mounted there but u never know if there are extra precausions taken)

that is a few to start with.... lol


you might have addressed this ?'s in ur post forgive me that i didnt scan the whole thing....


THANKS!! :looney:
 
spikyhair87 said:
ok will do..

first question would be how do you use the "engage" lever... pop the hood etc or reach from under??

what did you find adequate for cross member reinforcement?? steel size and design? gussets? etc...

did you mount the winch directly to ur bumper??

how did you drill ur "hole" for the winch cable to go throught the bumper??

did you fab up some sort of plate for protection for the underside?

how has it held up to the mud and water??? (i wheel mainly at the cliffs (here in il) and its NEVER dry....

theft protection? (would think it would be pretty safe mounted there but u never know if there are extra precausions taken)

that is a few to start with.... lol


you might have addressed this ?'s in ur post forgive me that i didnt scan the whole thing....


THANKS!! :looney:
Click to expand...

I reach the engage lever from below. Make sure you keep your fingers out of other moving parts.

I think material is covered in my thread but the reinforcement plate is 3/16"

The winch is BEHIND the front crossmember. It doesn't require the bumper to be on at all and will stand alone. The reinforcement plate is tied to the side plates and the crossmember itself.

No protection for the underside. Trust me, it's so tucked that it doesnt' need it.

So far so good on mud and water but I haven't had it buried yet. For the most part I try to stay out of the mud and keep it in the rocks or trails.

No theft protection but there is about an hour's worth of work to get this guy out so if they want it they'll have to earn it. :doh:

I cut the oval holes in the bumper by first starting out with a holesaw and cutting the end holes, I then connected the holes by using a grinder cutting wheel. Since I'm using roap, I've smoothed out or ground off all potential edges.
 
There is no need to cut out the front cross member, an M8000 will fit behind it.
IMG_8764.jpg


spikyhair87 said:
ok will do..

first question would be how do you use the "engage" lever... pop the hood etc or reach from under??

what did you find adequate for cross member reinforcement?? steel size and design? gussets? etc...

did you mount the winch directly to ur bumper??

how did you drill ur "hole" for the winch cable to go throught the bumper??

did you fab up some sort of plate for protection for the underside?

how has it held up to the mud and water??? (i wheel mainly at the cliffs (here in il) and its NEVER dry....

theft protection? (would think it would be pretty safe mounted there but u never know if there are extra precausions taken)

that is a few to start with.... lol


you might have addressed this ?'s in ur post forgive me that i didnt scan the whole thing....


THANKS!! :looney:
Click to expand...

I rotated the free spool lever so that it can be reached underneath.

I used 6" C channel to reinforce the cross member and I ran a couple of vertical gussets near the winch mount bolts for more reinforcement.
IMG_8789.jpg


I created a winch plate that is separate from the bumper but completely surrounded by the bumper.

When I built the bumper I cut a hole through it for the winch line.
IMG_8836.jpg


I wrapped the bumper under the bottom of the front cross member. Not necessarily to protect the winch, but to protect the entire front of the Jeep when sliding up to rocks, etc.
IMG_8878.jpg


I don't seek out mud. If there is mud where I am wheeling, so be it. But, I don't search for huge mud holes or feel a need to go through one if it is near. I can't offer much insight here, but I don't see a need to worry about mud or water any more than a winch that is mounted a foot off the front. If anything it is less likely to get crap in it.

With the license plate on the fairlead most people wouldn't even know it was there. If they do realize a winch is there it won't be a quick four bolts and run removal. :laugh: If they do stick around long enough and have the tools to remove the entire bumper to get to the winch there is a pretty good chance that I have returned to show them my appreciation. :twak: Or they have moved on to a TJ with easy access.

IMG_9672.jpg


More pics here.

Willy
 
I realize this is an old thread, but I am tackling this myself now and can't find much detail anywhere else.

I have my 9k winch mocked up behind the cross member, but I haven't started cutting. My question is the fan. The blades are hitting the winch and won't let the fan spin. There is a cut in the blades, but are you guys bending the blades back a little for clearance or triming the blades? Mine looks like I will need to bend them backwards almost a full inch, but then I risk rubbing other things, and what about the fan flexing forward under high RPM and engine movement?
 
I have very little clearance between the winch motor housing and the fan blade. As in like 1/4" clearance close. That notch that's in each blade just clears the corner of the motor. I have MORE bombproof motor mounts to keep the engine from moving. It all depends on what winch you're using cause some are just a smidge bigger than others and that's all it takes to not work. You may be able to find some electric fans but I wouldn't modify the stock fan, especially bending the blades.
 
kleake said:
I realize this is an old thread, but I am tackling this myself now and can't find much detail anywhere else.

I have my 9k winch mocked up behind the cross member, but I haven't started cutting. My question is the fan. The blades are hitting the winch and won't let the fan spin. There is a cut in the blades, but are you guys bending the blades back a little for clearance or triming the blades? Mine looks like I will need to bend them backwards almost a full inch, but then I risk rubbing other things, and what about the fan flexing forward under high RPM and engine movement?
Click to expand...

I replaced my engine driven fan with an electric fan. I know some have been able to fit the winch without removing the engine fan.

I think lapisxj kept the engine driven fan. There are some details of what he did here.

Willy
 
kleake said:
I realize this is an old thread, but I am tackling this myself now and can't find much detail anywhere else.

I have my 9k winch mocked up behind the cross member, but I haven't started cutting. My question is the fan. The blades are hitting the winch and won't let the fan spin. There is a cut in the blades, but are you guys bending the blades back a little for clearance or triming the blades? Mine looks like I will need to bend them backwards almost a full inch, but then I risk rubbing other things, and what about the fan flexing forward under high RPM and engine movement?
Click to expand...

Brown dog makes 1" motor mount lifts. Might cause you other problems with you driveline, or maybe not
 
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