Custom hidden winch mount

[Adrian D]

Moving the discussion here

Inspiration came from the large number of winch mounts that hide between the framerails, like this:



Mine will be mounted upside-down though, to have a place to mount the hood latch braces, the front grille brace and my extra transmission cooler.

Since the winch was cheap and in need of taking apart, I decided to cut the drum (from 225mm to 150mm). Mocked up in place:






Drum cut and ready for welding:


Still 2 more holes to drill, for the hawse. I will drill them after welding the hawse back since that has to be narrowed too:


Tie-in plates to strengthen the connection to the framerails (worth it?):


Backing plates for inside the framerails. I plan to mount it with 3 12mm bolts (2 on top, 1 on the side), still undecided whether to use 8.8 or A2-70.


Narrowed winch with 15 meters of rope:


After a good pull under weight it will be wrapped tighter. Now I have 13 meters of spare rope, enough to make a soft shackle and a winch rope extension, woohoo

[5oclock]

Looking good mate, you have made great progress !!!
I have seen a few interesting bar and winch set ups on WJs in the US via the web, but none have inspired me to copy them exactly. Your project looks much more promising!!
I have had a winch on most 4x4s I have owned but have resisted the idea on the jeep because of all the extra weight, the extra front overhang, the extra battery, the high price of a front bar, all the reduction in approach angle, extra wind drag from it all....and for what? I hardly ever used the winch on either of the two 80 series Toyotas I have owned, and the WG is better in the bush than the 80s where BUT having been stuck big time twice by myself in the past few months and spent all night digging and jacking on 1 occasion and almost as long the 2nd time, funny how pain and frustration can change a blokes attitude on things!!! So now the Jeep is getting a winch!!!
The hydraulic winch is similar to electric, but the hydraulic motor only does 200 to 245 rpm max, the gearing is only 6:1 reduction in low and hydraulic motors are much smaller and lighter than electric for the same power. Its not going to be heaps lighter but it wont be heavier.
So now I am getting inspired by the Adrian D winch and bar build !!!

[Adrian D]

I'm flattered that my work is good for inspiration
I got pushed into the winch idea by the missus mostly, because of the pandemic we started going on trails alone and began to tackle harder and harder trails, so a winch is a good peace of mind.

I've managed to get the hawse welded up and decided to put the solenoid box right next to the winch, this will simplify wire routing. The TG Thompson relay is apparently waterproof and it will get a coating of wax after installation.

Pictures to follow later, today is another day of fabricobbling.

[5oclock]

Having a winch definitely gives a huge piece of mind especially when 4wheeling solo.
Here is some of my rough maths ;
warn zeon8/8000lb 94lb/43kg
warn zeon8-s (synthetic) 8000lb 75lb/34kg
extra battery and box 55lb/25kg
Uneek winch bar 99lb/45kg lightest option=229lb/104kg
here is the worst bit,the weight in Au$$$$
Bar arb $1830, uneek $2780 , warn $2000+ , Battery and box
$300++ around $5000..
Been there and done that, want to keep it LIGHT ,cheap and simple with the Jeep. So its a timely and very relevant project!!

[nudibranches]

I always find attaching pics to this site baffling, so not sure if it's worked. But looks good Adrian. I have a similar set up, just a plate extending below the nudge bar with the winch attached and some recover points. Low profile and doesn't impact approach angle at all. In four years I've only ever had to use it twice, both to help someone else. But as point out it's good insurance, particularly when travelling solo is more remote areas. Eg Vic High Country etc.

[5oclock]

Do you think the winch has any effect on the cooling system, just it looks like it may reduce air flow but not easy to tell just from pics.
Definitely tucked away, very helpful to see how other WG owners have solved the winch install dilemma. Also, did you sneak another battery in some where??
Some of the winch/bar jobs I see on late model twin cabs appear to have that much front overhang it must be a real PIA.

[Adrian D]

Originally Posted by 5oclock

Having a winch definitely gives a huge piece of mind especially when 4wheeling solo.
Here is some of my rough maths ;
warn zeon8/8000lb 94lb/43kg
warn zeon8-s (synthetic) 8000lb 75lb/34kg
extra battery and box 55lb/25kg
Uneek winch bar 99lb/45kg lightest option=229lb/104kg
here is the worst bit,the weight in Au$$$$
Bar arb $1830, uneek $2780 , warn $2000+ , Battery and box
$300++ around $5000..
Been there and done that, want to keep it LIGHT ,cheap and simple with the Jeep. So its a timely and very relevant project!!

Sounds like a lot of weight on the wallet. My main theme is to be as cheap as possible without cutting corners (hence why I searched for almost a year for a rear ARB and for the winch)

Currently I'm not planning on a second battery, hopefully I won't get myself into such deep troubles to need to winch a lot on battery power.

Originally Posted by nudibranches

I always find attaching pics to this site baffling, so not sure if it's worked. But looks good Adrian. I have a similar set up, just a plate extending below the nudge bar with the winch attached and some recover points. Low profile and doesn't impact approach angle at all. In four years I've only ever had to use it twice, both to help someone else. But as point out it's good insurance, particularly when travelling solo is more remote areas. Eg Vic High Country etc.

Pics worked and it looks like a nice and solid install
Thank you!

Originally Posted by 5oclock

Do you think the winch has any effect on the cooling system, just it looks like it may reduce air flow but not easy to tell just from pics.
Definitely tucked away, very helpful to see how other WG owners have solved the winch install dilemma. Also, did you sneak another battery in some where??
Some of the winch/bar jobs I see on late model twin cabs appear to have that much front overhang it must be a real PIA.

A friend used to have an ARB-like front bumper and he said it always hindered his cooling with the winch in front of the main radiator grille.


Not many pictures, as other things got in the way:

I did manage to get the hawse welded back to the length I wanted:


And welded some tabs to mount the solenoid right next to the winch motor:


Do you guys think a coating of underbody wax (the kind that solidifies and won't come off even with a pressure washer) would keep the solenoid safe from water ingress? It's a TG Thompson solenoid and they claim it is 100% waterproof...