ZachJKUR
Member
Hello all,
If you're at all like me and like the look and function of the stock steel bumpers on the 10A/Hard rock/Recon editions, but you want to mount a winch, then I can tell you there aren't many options. After doin my due diligence, I found the options are limited to 4 mounts. The Mopar mount, the maximus-3 mount, the rugged ridge mount, and a mount by Rustys Off road. I didn't look much at the Rustys because from my perspective (with a background in mechanical engineering) the structure was silly. Furthermore, it was purely an offset mount, so even though it is compatible with my Zeon, which is a centered winch, it would appear to be offset. The Mopar one seemed a little overpriced, but in the spirit of quality, I still kept it as an option. I did not like the way that it mounted the winch essentially as a front bumper such that the entire load was put in tension on 8 bolts. The Maximus three was a stout design and was also copied by Bulldog Winches (which is why I didn't look at them - as an engineer, I do not like copycats.) The only design feature I did not like about the Maximus-3 was that the primary attachment was only two bolts. Also, with no rear reinforcement of vertical reinforcement, the mount was susceptible to quite a lot of torque from the winch. The Rugged Ridge Mount was ultimately the one I went with. I was originally skeptical just because of the Rugged Ridge name - but I was ultimately impressed with the quality construction with 1/4" steel plate. The design fit like a glove. Like the Maximus-3, it mounted behind the frame horn flanges so that under load, the frame was put directly in tension, rather than the bumper bolts. It also mounted to both the upper and lower bolts on either side keeping four points for primary attachment. To combat unwanted torques, there are vertical gussets on either side. There is also a rear plate that helps compartmentalize the unit which I really liked! The rear plate bolted to the top of frame where the factory air dam (between the bumper and grill) used to be which further eliminated any possible torques. It is compatible with both centered and offset winches.
Here are the only pictures I have. Unfortunately I goofed and didn't take any pictures during the install.
:rock:
If you're at all like me and like the look and function of the stock steel bumpers on the 10A/Hard rock/Recon editions, but you want to mount a winch, then I can tell you there aren't many options. After doin my due diligence, I found the options are limited to 4 mounts. The Mopar mount, the maximus-3 mount, the rugged ridge mount, and a mount by Rustys Off road. I didn't look much at the Rustys because from my perspective (with a background in mechanical engineering) the structure was silly. Furthermore, it was purely an offset mount, so even though it is compatible with my Zeon, which is a centered winch, it would appear to be offset. The Mopar one seemed a little overpriced, but in the spirit of quality, I still kept it as an option. I did not like the way that it mounted the winch essentially as a front bumper such that the entire load was put in tension on 8 bolts. The Maximus three was a stout design and was also copied by Bulldog Winches (which is why I didn't look at them - as an engineer, I do not like copycats.) The only design feature I did not like about the Maximus-3 was that the primary attachment was only two bolts. Also, with no rear reinforcement of vertical reinforcement, the mount was susceptible to quite a lot of torque from the winch. The Rugged Ridge Mount was ultimately the one I went with. I was originally skeptical just because of the Rugged Ridge name - but I was ultimately impressed with the quality construction with 1/4" steel plate. The design fit like a glove. Like the Maximus-3, it mounted behind the frame horn flanges so that under load, the frame was put directly in tension, rather than the bumper bolts. It also mounted to both the upper and lower bolts on either side keeping four points for primary attachment. To combat unwanted torques, there are vertical gussets on either side. There is also a rear plate that helps compartmentalize the unit which I really liked! The rear plate bolted to the top of frame where the factory air dam (between the bumper and grill) used to be which further eliminated any possible torques. It is compatible with both centered and offset winches.
Here are the only pictures I have. Unfortunately I goofed and didn't take any pictures during the install.
:rock:
