I did quite a bit of research and came to conclusion that I wanted the Warn 12k over the 9.5XP. Although, the 9.5 would have been adequate and a lot less work I just wanted the peace of mind that I had the biggest thing I could get. I knew that some of you guys had modified your TJMs and ARBs for the 12k so I knew it was doable. I also saw where some of you had winches behind your stock bumpers but could find no good threads discussing how to do it even with an 8k let alone a 12k. So here is your thread.
I picked up this unit locally after searching for weeks and finally placing an add on Clist. It's a couple of years old but in really clean condition IMO. I went ahead and stripped it down and checked out the gears and innards. All appeared to be in excellent shape. Only two minor concerns: 1) the cap screws that held the transmission on had lost their torque setting a tad and some oils from the previous rig had lightly dirtied up the gasket, cleaned all those parts and sealed em with RTV. 2) the upper weep vent on the motor didn't have the sealant installed so the motor had some light rust inside the casing which I cleaned up and ensured the upper hole is now sealed.
I wasn't sure exactly how I would make it fit but after gazing up inside in a few times I figured there was room if I just rearranged some things. Yes some day I do plan on replacing the front end on my rig. There are a lot of things I like about the current options but none of them sit quite right with me so behind the stock bumper it goes for now. The one key factor and goal of this configuration was to keep the hawse fairlead positioned in the factory location just behind the license plate screws. I just didn't want anything hanging down beneath that area and wanted to keep it clean looking. I will be running this cast fairlead and steel cable for now and will eventually replace em with some superline and aluminum lead.
So that being the goal, I determined that I would need to run the winch backwards and pull the line over the top of the spool rather than beneath like usual. No problem, I'd just turn it around so the motor still wound correctly. This caused the clutch lever to face the radiator so I'd have to change that as well. One thing that I am quite impressed with on this winch is how versatile the design is which allows you to change the position of the cross bars, clocking of the motor and transmission, feet forward or down, and also cast with additional holes into the base for an additional 4 mounting bolts which I tapped and used. I'm not sure this would have been the case with another model or brand.
I picked up this unit locally after searching for weeks and finally placing an add on Clist. It's a couple of years old but in really clean condition IMO. I went ahead and stripped it down and checked out the gears and innards. All appeared to be in excellent shape. Only two minor concerns: 1) the cap screws that held the transmission on had lost their torque setting a tad and some oils from the previous rig had lightly dirtied up the gasket, cleaned all those parts and sealed em with RTV. 2) the upper weep vent on the motor didn't have the sealant installed so the motor had some light rust inside the casing which I cleaned up and ensured the upper hole is now sealed.
I wasn't sure exactly how I would make it fit but after gazing up inside in a few times I figured there was room if I just rearranged some things. Yes some day I do plan on replacing the front end on my rig. There are a lot of things I like about the current options but none of them sit quite right with me so behind the stock bumper it goes for now. The one key factor and goal of this configuration was to keep the hawse fairlead positioned in the factory location just behind the license plate screws. I just didn't want anything hanging down beneath that area and wanted to keep it clean looking. I will be running this cast fairlead and steel cable for now and will eventually replace em with some superline and aluminum lead.
So that being the goal, I determined that I would need to run the winch backwards and pull the line over the top of the spool rather than beneath like usual. No problem, I'd just turn it around so the motor still wound correctly. This caused the clutch lever to face the radiator so I'd have to change that as well. One thing that I am quite impressed with on this winch is how versatile the design is which allows you to change the position of the cross bars, clocking of the motor and transmission, feet forward or down, and also cast with additional holes into the base for an additional 4 mounting bolts which I tapped and used. I'm not sure this would have been the case with another model or brand.