For those with winches

[Timmy390]

So I ordered my winch and it's delivery is being delayed due to the 7 inches of show and ice here in AR. I'm hoping to get it tomorrow as it's been out for delivery for two days now.

My question is how much room did everyone leave between the winch and the grill? I have a winch bumper that was built by the PO and it's HUGE. I've cut it down some leaving lots of room for the winch but how far can I go once I get the winch mounted. Do I need 1 inch, two, three or can it be mounted flush and not interfere with operation.

I don't want to screw this up and have to build a new bumper.

Tim

 

[WyleCoyote]

What type of winch - upright (WARN 8274) or laydown? I think the biggest concern is airflow through radiator being blocked. The Winch shouldn't move at all once installed, and if you have a cable backlash, no amount of clearance is going to make a difference

 

[surveyor5]

I used an 8274 for 25 years with one inch clearance. No problem.

 

[jedblake]

The pos/neg cable connectors that go from back of the winch to battery seem to keep it off the grill a few inches already. When I mounted mine I took a piece of stainless about 8"W x 8"H about the size of the cable spool, I put a 90 degree bend in it to make it stand up and mounted to my steel bumper behind teh winch. This way no matter how much slack it does when spooling it will not interfer with my clean grill. P.S. I have about three years with this set-up in Vegas and no air flow/cooling problems.
jed

 

[Timmy390]

sorry guys, should have posted what winch. It's a Smittybilt XRC 8 with cable not rope.

Tim

 

[kayakersteve]

I have mine about 1 inch off of the grill. That seems to be around what I have seen with other people.

 

[Z Bronco]

My 8274 Warn is very close to the grill, never have had cooling issues. I cut back my old bumper to get the winch closer and reduce the snowplow effect I was getting in off road dips. My new bumper (Hanson) is close as well.

 

[kayakersteve]

Here's a few pics too!

 

[rootbeer]

I think every bumper and winch combo is going to be a little different not to mention every Bronco ;D I have a Mile Marker 9500 and a Protofab bumper my biggest issue was the hood latch hitting the winch so I left enough room to clear it so the hood would open. I have 1 1/2 inch clearance from the grill to the winch and about an inch from the hood latch to the winch. I did notice it runs about 5-10 degrees warmer after installing the winch and bumper depending on driving conditions. I mounted everything as a unit loosely so I could make sure to get the clearance right then drilled the holes.

 

[BroncoJAK]

Made me curious so I went out and took a look at mine. The bailibilt bumper with a lay down style winch I have ~2" clearance.

 

[Steve83]

The lower you get cable coming off the winch drum, the more effective the winch will be at extracting your truck. So a mount that places the drum below the grille is better than in front, for lots of reasons.

 

[deltarat]

Any clearance where it is not touching should be good. All the stress is pulling it away from the grill.

 

[hartbronco]

My bumper with a 8274 on it (14 years) and no problems .

 

[Timmy390]

Thanks for the info and the pics. I guess all I need now is for the snow to melt so the FedX guy can get to my house.

On a side note, the USPS ran without any delays. I got junk mail the past two days but FedX can't get me my winch.

Tim

 

[Steve83]

Did you offer to let them use it to reach you? ;D

 

[Devin]

None. My winch sits below my grill. Right down in between the frame rails.

 

[Viperwolf1]

None. My winch sits below my grill. Right down in between the frame rails.

Mine too.