That's a very clean set up. Great job!!!

 

has someone checked to make sure the factory bumper can handle a winch?

would hate to see someones winch go flying off the bumper if welds cannot handle the torque.

 

From what the pic's are showing they are bolting the winch to a winch plate and the plate is bolted to the frame. The winch is not apart of the bumper.

 

That is 100% correct. Winch AND fairlead are bolted to the winch plate (1/4 inch steel) which is bolted directly to the frame rails.

The factory bumber is plastic with a thin gauge metal bumper behind it. I'm suprised it holds itself. It is really just looks.

 

Well, add another install to the list! I got my shiny new Smittybilt XRC8 winch installed into my factory bumper this weekend! I purchased it from 4wd.com where they are having a special promotion (only two days left) for the winch and the much sought after universal winch plate discussed here for only $300. You can't be that with a stick! If you're gonna do this mod, now is the time to get your parts. The XRC8 appears nearly identical to the Mile Marker 8 that first inspired this project.

I mounted the winch upside down so it hangs down below the frame rails as has been done by others. This required some basic fabricating for fit of course. First, I used the two existing frame rail holes and drilled two more using the plate itself as a template. In order to bolt the plate in place, I notched the top hole in the end of the frame so I could fit a box wrench in. I simply used duct tape to hold the nut in place on the end of the wrench while I put the bolt and washers in from above. Worked like a charm!

For clearance, I had to cut back the bottom of the front bumper so it would fit around the winch. I also had to put a notch in the lower cross-member so the clutch handle could move back and forth. Finally, I cut a fair lead hole in the center of the bumper for the cable and mounted the roller fair lead to the bumper. Someone at Jeep must have been thinking about this as there were two holes in the bumper that lined up perfectly with the fair lead. I did all the notching with a simple Dremmel tool with cutting discs (used about a half dozen discs). It would have probably gone faster with a better power tool, but it can be done with very simple tools if needed.

Sorry, no pics with the plastic bumper in place yet. I couldn't quite get that far with the project. I ran out of weekend! Overall though, I am very pleased with how it turned out. This is definitely a doable way of getting a winch on your rig without spending an arm and a leg for a winch mount bumper. I'm still gonna do a new bumper eventually, but the next big purchase is tires so bumpers will have to wait a bit longer.

Here are the pics!


Before buttoning everything up:


Fair lead mounted to bumper:


Clutch lever and gear box cut-out as seen from underneath:


Spool clearance:


Motor clearance:


Left frame mount:


Right frame mount:

 

i like the look but how did you bolt down the plate? did you drill into the frame rails and mount it directly to it?

 

Thought I'd post one more pic now that I've got the factory plastic bumper trimmed to fit.

 

I did drill the frame and bolted the plate directly to the top of the frame rail.

 

You got me thinking now.
I already have a list a mile long of stuff that I need to do to the new Jeep once I pick it up. LOL

 

Thanks for the write-up! I like the look of the stock bumper with the winch mostly hidden from site. Very clean.