[hadji_85]

Has anyone installed a winch on a stock fj80 that didn't have any custom bumpers?

[Scott_sFZJ80]

I did see a guy with a front hitch that had a winch mounted on it.

[Beowulf]

Interesting question that might be better in the 80-Section.

The 80 was available with a factory winch in non-USA markets. There is a picture of an 80 with a factory winch capable bumper in a current thread in the 80-Section. Ask the OP to post up some more detailed pictures because he has located a winch from a breaker and he is planning on installing it.

I'm guessing there is a Toyota "winch basket" that is available that fits behind the factory bumper and between the frame horns. It would be fairly easy to adapt a Warn "winch basket" from another application. You would need to have someone do the fabrication if you don't weld.

-B-

[Cruiserdrew]

My friend Marty (not on mud) had a hitch mounted in the front of his 80 welded to the frame rails and nicely done. He then had a basket made to hold a Warn 9500, and Warn quick connects for power. It's cleanly done, but you would need a safe place to store the winch when not in use.

If you want pics-I should be seeing him in the next week or so and can sanp some pics.

[CodyRx7]

[e9999]

you could use a very heavy duty frame-mounted bar fitting over the factory bumper and attach a winch to that.

(Wow, coincidentally, I have one for sale, how about that...? )

[Beowulf]

Originally Posted by e9999

(Wow, coincidentally, I have one for sale, how about that...? )

I'll bet it is a beauty and tastefully done too. Please post a picture Eric.

-B-

[Pair_of_Eees]

Yes, this is my first post. I've been lurking here for a LONG time...and have been very sucessful in always finding what I was looking for using the seach function. This is an AMAZING site & forum!!

Anyway, I have a 96 LC and have always been curious about this very question....a winch with the stock bumper. Well after a LOT of measuring and thinking I just finished mine today...which prompted me to finally post!

The winch I used is an 8000 lb Chicago Elec. (yes...Harbour Freight) which I know many here will NOT approve of. But I had a several hundred $$ credit there from a returned generator to use so I figured what the heck. No it is not a Warn or a Ramsey (it actually looks very much like a Ramsey) but I know two others who've used these on their trucks with no problems.

So this winch comes with a very heavy 1/4" steel mounting channel. I removed the bumper from the truck and modified this channel to fit in between AND under the frame rails. I removed the factory front tow hooks and used those four frame holes and the OEM bolts to bolt the channel to the frame. You still will see the tow hooks in the after shot, but now they sit between their original bolts and the new winch channel.

Then the winch and roller fair lead got bolted to the channel. Then I measured and cut a rectangle section of the bumper face out for the fairlead to protrude from. Then the bumper got mounted back on the truck.

I still need to clean up the cutout opening in the bumper a bit and everything needs to wired. But that will be a piece a cake compared to figuring out a secure mounting method without butchering up the front of the truck too much. Besides the cutout in the bumper, the only other modification to the truck was SLIGHTLY trimming the vertical grille support to clear the rear cable guide on the winch. No other cutting or drilling on the TRUCK was necessary. If I ever need to go back to stock, I figure I can cover the hole in the bumper with a Toyota logo plate (we don't have front license plates here in PA).....or just buy a stock pulloff from one of you guys who went to an ARB!!!


Bumper off:


Beginning mods to mounting channel...


Mounting channel done (actually required more cutting after it went onto the truck to clear the bumper mounting brackets)


Mounting channel to truck...


Mounting winch to channel.....


Roller fairlead and rough cut of opening...


And another...

[e9999]

nicely done. Nice that all fits under so well.
Your bumper looks much nicer than most. You could have gotten an old ugly one for this exercise and just spray painted it. Why'd you make the hole in the bumper so tall?

[FirstToy]

what a great first post! i read about that HF winch while researching and alot of people like it and have had good luck w/ it. Looks nice and clean- if you go w/ a Hawse fairlead, it would be even more stealthy.

One cool thing a friend did w/ his roller fairlead- he bolted 2 spring clips on the back of the license plate and those clips fit onto the side rollers of the fairlead.
Pretty stealthy and cool- that would really hide your winch from prying eyes. Maybe some "toyota" plate since your state doesn't have a front...

[markavalenti]

My older brother and I did a very similar set-up to Pair_of_Eees on his 96 (even the same winch and color LC) looks very factory, and works well... however, respooling is a bit of a pain with out easy access to the spool. Pics to come

[Pair_of_Eees]

E9999...thanks for the compliment! The height of the cutout was actually not intentional. It's the only measurement that I was a bit off on, but it's only really noticable when you are eye level to the winch. I'm still very happy with how it turned out. I may have to make the opening bigger in some way because I need to be able to reach the winch clutch lever. I may be able to accomplish that through the drivers side bumper vent though.

This winch comes with a hawse fairlead (not the roller) and I was going to use that (I agree it would have been stealthier), but I wanted a roller. The only issue I see with using the hawse it that it does not stick out far enough to clear the bumper face when its mounted on the winch channel. I thought about mounting the hawse directly to the bumper, but I did not think that having the pressure of a loaded cable on the bumper was a good idea. The roller fairlead was on sale for $30 at HF. The winch is on sale currently for $299. They also have a 9K on sale for only $50 more.

I still need to mount (and wire) the winch solenoid/control box, and there is not enough room either on top of the winch or mounted next to it on the channel. But as you can see, there is plenty of room under the stock bumper for a realistically sized winch. HF has 9K & 10K winches in this line that don't seem to be much bigger. My backup plan if I needed more front to rear space was to kick the bumper out from the front of the truck a few inches to give more space behind it. I've seen this done on old Dodge Power Wagons that came with a huge factory winch. But....obvoiusly that was not necessary.

[Bikeman]

Pair of Eees,

Thanks for the pics, I have been wanting to do this for months. You made it easy to know where to cut the hole in the bumper, and have taken out the guesswork! I just ordered the winch plate from Harbor freight and will be getting a Warn 8000 from 4wheelparts whoresalers soon.

[MJADDICTION]

Very nice, I like it.

[e9999]

Originally Posted by Pair_of_Eees

E9999...thanks for the compliment! The height of the cutout was actually not intentional. It's the only measurement that I was a bit off on, but it's only really noticable when you are eye level to the winch. I'm still very happy with how it turned out. I may have to make the opening bigger in some way because I need to be able to reach the winch clutch lever. I may be able to accomplish that through the drivers side bumper vent though.

This winch comes with a hawse fairlead (not the roller) and I was going to use that (I agree it would have been stealthier), but I wanted a roller. The only issue I see with using the hawse it that it does not stick out far enough to clear the bumper face when its mounted on the winch channel. I thought about mounting the hawse directly to the bumper, but I did not think that having the pressure of a loaded cable on the bumper was a good idea. The roller fairlead was on sale for $30 at HF. The winch is on sale currently for $299. They also have a 9K on sale for only $50 more.

I still need to mount (and wire) the winch solenoid/control box, and there is not enough room either on top of the winch or mounted next to it on the channel. But as you can see, there is plenty of room under the stock bumper for a realistically sized winch. HF has 9K & 10K winches in this line that don't seem to be much bigger. My backup plan if I needed more front to rear space was to kick the bumper out from the front of the truck a few inches to give more space behind it. I've seen this done on old Dodge Power Wagons that came with a huge factory winch. But....obvoiusly that was not necessary.

maybe you'd want to comment on how much room there is left around the winch for folks who'd like to use a different (larger) model?

[Pair_of_Eees]

Originally Posted by e9999

maybe you'd want to comment on how much room there is left around the winch for folks who'd like to use a different (larger) model?

Side to side room seems fine for something bigger....as long as the winch you're using has the flexibility to mount the control box in different locations, which I think that they all do.

Front to back room would be the issue, but a larger winch would likely need a larger (deeper) mounting channel. Assuming that you mount it as close to the vehicle as possible (like I did) to come in contact with as much of the frame rails as possible, it would probably stick out towards the bumper another inch or so. But there is room there, and if you had to, you could probably mount the bumper outboard of the grille another inch or so by modding the brackets which I thought I was going to have to do.

Also, for the record, I had originally intended to mount the plate and winch ON TOP of the frame rails, but once I had the winch on hand and the bumper off, I could see that there was not enough height room to do this.

After I clean up the bumper cutout edges, i am going to install some black door edge guard trim to give it a more finished appearance.

[hadji_85]

wow, nice. I'm glad i'm taking a welding class this quarter.

[ktknaack]

Thats a nice set up. Good job. I will have to take a couple pictures of mine but I have something similar on my 93. One tip if you have to have a front plate like we do in VA is to take your licence plate and mount two mettal "D" flash light holders to it on each end. They will clip on tight to the fair lead. I put a ramsey in and cut out the front bumper in a similar way but the fairlead covers the lip of the hole. I put the connection for the cord on the front bumper with a cap/cover. It has worked out well for pulling people out of sand and ditches but I don't rock crawl with it... I will say that under a very heavy load, say a f350 dually diesel crew cab resting on its frame with holes as deep as the suspension would let the tires drop in the sand... It will still make the front bumper flex enough that it will pull in little dimples in the end caps of the front bumper from where the plastic meets the support. It all flexes and wants to pop back but the support stays put. However, for the money and weight you save its a good set up. Where did that picture of the factory looking cover come from. I want it....


Kevin
93 w/ OME50mm, 33's, winch, air comp. and holding tank, slee trans shift kit, Garvin roof rack... need used sliders or full proof fab drawings!

[Bikeman]

I did my winch project during the blizzard on Thursday. MM winch, MM winch plate for a heep. I used the existing hawse fairlead since the roller fairlead was on BO and I might run rope in the future. I made a custom mount for the solenoid box and luckily everything cleared for the bumper reinstall. I will get around to repainting the bumper someday, and wrap the pos. power cable to prevent abrasion causing a short. There is also easy access to the clutch and to plug the remote in:

[shinton]

Did anyone keep the pictures from above, they are Red Xs now? I would love to see this / planning on doing this with my refund moolah!!

Sam

[Beowulf]

Sam,
I am seeing the pics in posts #5 & #8 OK.
-B-

[98 SNAKE EATER]

Originally Posted by Pair_of_Eees

Yes, this is my first post. I've been lurking here for a LONG time...and have been very sucessful in always finding what I was looking for using the seach function. This is an AMAZING site & forum!!

Anyway, I have a 96 LC and have always been curious about this very question....a winch with the stock bumper. Well after a LOT of measuring and thinking I just finished mine today...which prompted me to finally post!

The winch I used is an 8000 lb Chicago Elec. (yes...Harbour Freight) which I know many here will NOT approve of. But I had a several hundred $$ credit there from a returned generator to use so I figured what the heck. No it is not a Warn or a Ramsey (it actually looks very much like a Ramsey) but I know two others who've used these on their trucks with no problems.

So this winch comes with a very heavy 1/4" steel mounting channel. I removed the bumper from the truck and modified this channel to fit in between AND under the frame rails. I removed the factory front tow hooks and used those four frame holes and the OEM bolts to bolt the channel to the frame. You still will see the tow hooks in the after shot, but now they sit between their original bolts and the new winch channel.

Then the winch and roller fair lead got bolted to the channel. Then I measured and cut a rectangle section of the bumper face out for the fairlead to protrude from. Then the bumper got mounted back on the truck.

I still need to clean up the cutout opening in the bumper a bit and everything needs to wired. But that will be a piece a cake compared to figuring out a secure mounting method without butchering up the front of the truck too much. Besides the cutout in the bumper, the only other modification to the truck was SLIGHTLY trimming the vertical grille support to clear the rear cable guide on the winch. No other cutting or drilling on the TRUCK was necessary. If I ever need to go back to stock, I figure I can cover the hole in the bumper with a Toyota logo plate (we don't have front license plates here in PA).....or just buy a stock pulloff from one of you guys who went to an ARB!!!


Bumper off:


Beginning mods to mounting channel...


Mounting channel done (actually required more cutting after it went onto the truck to clear the bumper mounting brackets)


Mounting channel to truck...


Mounting winch to channel.....


Roller fairlead and rough cut of opening...


And another...

Exactly what I have planned for a new M8000

[98 SNAKE EATER]

Originally Posted by shinton

Did anyone keep the pictures from above, they are Red Xs now? I would love to see this / planning on doing this with my refund moolah!!

Sam

Copy and paste this link to your address bar:

http://home.comcast.net/~ryang99/misc/image1.jpg



Then hit your back button and all of the pix should show up for you

[reffug]

I tell you what.

I'll sell you the pics............

[shinton]

I had to do the properties thing and see the pictures at his homesite. Then, I guess because they were in temp files or something they NOW work on here!!

It was a bit dark to see but I am guessing there are 4 bolts going thru the plate UP and into the frame rails? (That is the way it reads at least)

What kind of access do you have from the top to change the winch to/from free spool and put the remote control in?

I was thinking of going with a sealed 9k unit but now leaning towards the Warn M8000 and remote mounting the solenoids back under my hood.

That and trying to sit it more fwd and possibly UP some so the front edge of the mount would be flush with back of bumper. So the bolts for fairlead would go thru and the fairlead would be on the outside of stock bumper if you will.

prob gonna just take more welding to do that, but will look a bit more stock. Excellent job onthis, thx!

Sam

[98 SNAKE EATER]

It looks like he has just enough room to flick the clutch switch with his finger...

I've played around with the HF winches and it's rather easy to switch as long as the cable isn't loaded

I plan on going with a Warn M8000 and from what I see, I'll probably have to access the clutch lever from the plastic bumper vent thingie on the driver's side...

[shinton]

I am seriously thinking on INVERTING this setup so the plate is ABOVE the frame rails and the winch is hanging upside down!! This would make it much easier to reach up underneath and engage/disengage the spool.

This would also have the advantage of tucking the winch up a bit higher / which I believe will allow me to mount more fwd/closer to bumper. Ideally the lip for the fairlead would sit flush behind the bumper itself.

[98 SNAKE EATER]

Originally Posted by shinton

I am seriously thinking on INVERTING this setup so the plate is ABOVE the frame rails and the winch is hanging upside down!! This would make it much easier to reach up underneath and engage/disengage the spool.

Not when you're bumper deep in mud


From the measurements I took, the M8k lever would still be reachable from under the bumper in this position and if I get too deep in the muck, it only takes a few seconds to remove the plastic bumper vent thingie for better access


You can also rotate the lever housing to another position if you want, so there's no realy need to flip the entire winch except for clearance

[rutbeer]

Hey Shinton, I'm just down the street from you over in Winston. If you want to see a 12V factory 80 series winch, I just got one in from Japan on Friday. I haven't unpacked it yet for photos, but it will go up for sale when I do. You can call me at 3363991124 if you want to come look at it.

[Pair_of_Eees]

Originally Posted by 98 SNAKE EATER

It looks like he has just enough room to flick the clutch switch with his finger...

Correct. There is just enough room to move the switch....It's tight, but I've been able to do it when I needed to.

Originally Posted by shinton

It was a bit dark to see but I am guessing there are 4 bolts going thru the plate UP and into the frame rails? (That is the way it reads at least)

Correct again. There are two bolts on each side. I basically drilled the mounting channel to match up to the factory threaded holes in the frame where the tow hooks mount. I though it made sense to reuse those holes because they were obviously intended to deal with the weight of the vehicle.

I've had the setup on the truck for about a year now and its been great. No issues with the winch or the mounting method. The only frustrating thing is keeping the rollers on the fairlead from rusting. They seem to rust immediately upon getting wet. I tried various protective lubricants/sprays and finally found one that seems to last for a month or more between applications. If anyone is interested, I can go look at the can....I don't remember what it was called.

As far as the pics not showing up....I am now sure why and it is driving me nuts too. It is apparantly a Comcast thing as that's where the pics are hosted. As noted by others if you get the properties of the pics in the post and then paste that into your browser, you should be able to see them. If anyone still has trouble, I'm more than happy to send them diriectly to you....just PM me.