I'm in the process of switching out the stock bumper to a mid-width by Poison Spider. There are options. Other than maybe letting the air flow to the radiator easier, what are the pros (and cons) of a recessed winch vs just mounting it on top? Thanks for any replies.

 

All about air flow. I'd go recessed. I've had recessed before and I have a non-recessed PSC BFH bumper now. I swear I run a little warmer with the increased blockage. Not end of the world, but if you have a choice there's no reason to not go with better airflow IMO.

**and I'm right here in the Texas heat with you.

 

I doubt that air flow is that big of a deal, but, in the absence of an engineer to challenge this response, I would think that a recessed location would be better for distributing the strain of the pull to the bumper. A top mount would put more torque on the top bolts, while a recessed mount (depending on how it's connected to the bumper, should more uniformly stress all 4 mounting bolts. There's a post somewhere on this site with someone who bought a China-made aluminum bumper where the winch was on top, and a tough pull bent the bumper.

 

Thanks for the replies.
I chose to go with the Poison Spider Bruizer bumper I didn't particularly like the square holes for the lights but I wanted the recessed mount.
Also a Warn VR10 winch.

Next decision is which rear bumper.

Freedom

 

I personally like the winch mounted low, not as much as air flow, but when you’re stuck, chances are you need to be lifted up to get out of the hole you got off in, a high mounted winch can be more of a downward pull instead of lifting up causing more pressure on the frame. Just my personal opinion though

 

Mounting a winch on top of the bumper will cause a twisting force on the frame when pulling. This is simple physics. The greater the pull the greater the twisting moment and the stronger the winch the more potential for this. Not a real concern for most people but once you find you have pulled too hard it is too late and the damage is done. When I purchased my first JK new in 2011 there was no existing winch plate available from anybody so I designed my own. I wanted the "pull" to be exactly between the frame rails so I designed the mounting height so the cable at the bottom of the winch spool for the first and last wrap was centered on the frame rails. On a side note, winch maximum pull ratings are published using the first wrap on the spool. Remember that most pulls are NOT from the first wrap so you may not get all the pulling power you expect when winching. I had a friend that was surprised when his strong winch stalled and did not pull to it's "capacity". In addition, I wanted optimum air flow for those hard slow climbs when air traveling through the radiator is only achieved with the cooling fan(s) and not augmented by vehicle speed. I admit that it may be a small advantage but is an advantage none the less.

My $.02 worth, ah what the heck, make it a nickle.

KG6SLC aka Eugene

 

Can you post a pic of your winch and bumper, I’m thinking of switching my Smitty XRC and Quadratec winch for a PSC Brawler Lite & Warn VR EVO 10S