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- #21
This is a solid plan. I run 255/85r16 tires and they've been amazing both on and off pavement. Skinny tires are great for how you plan to use it.
The Dissent aluminum is also a great choice. I have one with a Warn M8000 loaded with synthetic and it weighs less than what my Ironman Commercial Deluxe did WITHOUT the winch. It's definitely a good strategy to keep the armor as light as possible, and only as heavy as necessary. I also run a Dissent rear hybrid (steel base bumper, aluminum tire carrier and accessories) with double swing out. This pairs well with AHC plus some King KTRS-79 rear springs, which I recommend you consider. They're made specifically for AHC vehicles that plan to tow or carry lots of gear/ armor.
Regarding the winch, my unpopular opinion is to run an "undersized" one. That hunk of metal is going to be hanging off your front end 24/7, affecting road manners and suspension longevity. While the general consensus is that you should size your winch to 1.5x your GVW, there are a lot of factors that can influence what you actually need. Personally, I've opted to run a high-quality 8k winch with only 50' of synthetic line. This means that a) I carry around less weight b) I have to spool and unspool less line and c) I keep the line as close as possible to the drum which maximizes the winch's pulling force. I carry a snatch block and extension for double line pulls whenever possible. Nothing against the Smittybilt, but you might be able to get a smaller, better quality winch for the same or close to the same money.
I have seen people running smaller winches and it is something I have considered because, realistically, I will probably only be using the winch a handful of times per year and solid trees around here for winching are plentiful and in close proximity to where the truck is stuck. I will definitely look into the weight difference between an 8K and a 12K winch and report back.