My truck came with a winch, I've identified as an XD9000i, but no controller and the power cable disconnected. I had other priorities to handle, but this weekend I was tired of all my bumper-bling being non-functional, so I finally wired up the lights to a dash switch and fused power source, and set about firing up the winch
Externally it's in good condition, the clutch lever moves smoothly. The power cable is hard wired to the unit, no lug, and the cable is far too long for this car, so it's bundled up in the battery box. I'd like to trim it up and add an isolation switch, but I've never worked with that gauge, or anything near it. Anyhow, I wired it up to the positive battery terminal for now. I plugged in a new controller, and when I first hit >out I heard a single click then nothing. No more clicking in either direction.
I tested for ground between the small ground lug on the motor and my (-) battery and had no circuit. With a jumper cable between those points the winch worked like a charm. I tested the four mounting bolts to the bumper and only the two on the clutch side had good grounds. That's confusing me.
Anyhow, I had my old starter to (+)battery lying around, and I ran it from that lug on the motor to my frame and my winch works like a charm. I didn't have enough cable to return to the battery, but a ground's a ground right?
Like I said, the winch works now and didn't before, but I'm still confused and a little worried. Is this an okay setup, should I troubleshoot why it isn't grounding to the bumper? Is there a risk from running a ground jumper to the frame instead of the battery? Should I use another spot than the little ground stud on the motor?
This is my first time with a winch, so sorry for the total n00b questions. I went this long without dealing with it because I know so little about them.
Externally it's in good condition, the clutch lever moves smoothly. The power cable is hard wired to the unit, no lug, and the cable is far too long for this car, so it's bundled up in the battery box. I'd like to trim it up and add an isolation switch, but I've never worked with that gauge, or anything near it. Anyhow, I wired it up to the positive battery terminal for now. I plugged in a new controller, and when I first hit >out I heard a single click then nothing. No more clicking in either direction.
I tested for ground between the small ground lug on the motor and my (-) battery and had no circuit. With a jumper cable between those points the winch worked like a charm. I tested the four mounting bolts to the bumper and only the two on the clutch side had good grounds. That's confusing me.
Anyhow, I had my old starter to (+)battery lying around, and I ran it from that lug on the motor to my frame and my winch works like a charm. I didn't have enough cable to return to the battery, but a ground's a ground right?
Like I said, the winch works now and didn't before, but I'm still confused and a little worried. Is this an okay setup, should I troubleshoot why it isn't grounding to the bumper? Is there a risk from running a ground jumper to the frame instead of the battery? Should I use another spot than the little ground stud on the motor?
This is my first time with a winch, so sorry for the total n00b questions. I went this long without dealing with it because I know so little about them.