Advice for building winch bar

[marmel]

I have a LWB GQ Safari.

I have a Warn 8000lb winch to fit.

I was thinking of building a winch bar to suit. I think if I make the brackets and central section that holds the winch out of plate steel a local engineering shop has a water jet so can cut everything to my specs.

I will probably fab something up out of cardboard and take it in to get the plate steel cut from the shapes.

I am going to bolt the lower brackets to the chassis rails using the existing holes (3). I will use crush tubes inside to prevent the rails from deforming.

A few questions:

1. The plate steel I use for the brackets will go from the side of the chassis rails up to the base plate which will hold the winch. Should I use 10mm plate steel or something else?

2. Will the two brackets bolted to the chassis rails be enough or should I be looking for a couple of other mounting points to bolt the bar to, if so where?

I will post some pics as I progress as I think this is a reasonable way to do it when you have access to a welder but not to the equipment to accurately cut 10mm or thicker steel.

[darinz]

The last bar I built, which is still in use on a winch challenge truck with a very very strong pto winch (ie not a factory one), was made out of 6mm plate. It is held on with the 3 holes you are talking about and a 4th down below the chassis where the tie down point is. It is also only bolted to one side of the chassis rail so that you can still get inside the chassis to clean it.
There is no real need to use any more than 6mm! If you are smart with the design then 6mm uprights and 3mm everywhere else is easily string enough! If you want over kill then just use 6mm everywhere, anything more is totally a unneccassary and just adding usless weight.
I'm planning a winch bar for another GQ at present and that will be built to the above specs and that will have a Warn 8274 with twin 6hp motors in it. (Sometimes anyway)

When you say base plate, I hope that is vertical so the winch is on one side and the fairlead on the other? If it is horizontal then you are putting unneccassary load onto the winch housing. I know a lot of people do it that way BUT when starting from scratch it is easy to do it the right way!

[DieselBoy]

Yep, build it as light weight as possible

Seen heaps of people make bars that are so far into the "overkill" region, i.e the whole things made out of big 5 and 10mm plate its just nuts.


Speaking of Nuts:







Bloody West Coasters, even though Hillfilly is ruff, and it is the West Coast , its still over kill !!!!!!

So when building a bar think about the weight that you are adding out infront of the front axle, which is where you don't want it to be

[marmel]

Thanks for the advice.

So I need to mount the winch on the 'back plate' of the winch box as I look at the front of the truck?

Won't this place all the stress on the nuts instead of on the bolts?

[nstacey]

Thanks for the advice.

So I need to mount the winch on the 'back plate' of the winch box as I look at the front of the truck?

Won't this place all the stress on the nuts instead of on the bolts?

This is how Wellington Towbars have set up my winch

[SV1K]

Plans I have for a ARB replica for a safari

[darinz]

Thanks for the advice.

So I need to mount the winch on the 'back plate' of the winch box as I look at the front of the truck?

Won't this place all the stress on the nuts instead of on the bolts?

With the winch mounted as in the photo above, all the bolt and nuts due is stop the winch falling out. The load under winching is on the steel of the bar / frame. The only winching load onto the bolts / nuts would be side loads if winching on an angle.

The plans above are still massive overkill! The wings etc don't need to be 6mm as boxed 3mm is very very strong. I'm not an engineer so this is purely from personal experience.

[T-Boon]

I chose to build mine for overkill ...



Prolly not what your after.

[marmel]

I chose to build mine for overkill ...



Prolly not what your after.

How are your tow hooks/rings attached. Have you got them re-inforced behind the plate steel?

[Sadam_Husain]

If your building it for off road use you dont want to make a big bulldozer blade to go accross the front and decrease your approach angles, you'll want something that sits high and protects the corners and leaves gives approach angles

[niblik]

build one like this.. then ya can go anywhere..

[darinz]

Not great photo of the bar but this has room for a standard winch in it and is plenty strong enough. It is also lighter than the winch would be as well! The only thing that is really needed for a non race truck would be a little more bar work over the lights and bigger wings.
As it sit there it is for a rear mounted winch but the spot lights were so big there is enough room for a winch anyway!
It has 6mm sides and 3mm everywhere else.
In this the winch would sit on about a 45* angle but the pull would be in an acceptable angle to the winch. It would require a good failead as in a straight pull there would a small amount of load on it.

[T-Boon]

Have you got them re-inforced behind the plate steel?

Yes, the Winch is in a 10mm steel cradle, and where the hooks and eyes are there is a strip of 7-10mm (cant remember) welded underneith, It is a hell of a heavy beast, but the way I see, being IFS I can use it to beach up stuff untill my front wheels can get traction. Works well so far.

Its away at the moment getting the rest of the bars attatched, can uplead a photo if you really wanna see.

[Fakey]

Heres a link to a oz patrol site got some nice patrols on there, this link is to a GQ winch bar build thread , looks pretty good an would be easy to buildhttp://www.patrol4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=32997

[badnuz]

overkill??

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Cars/Toyota/auction-286153013.htm

[kiwipete]

overkill??

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Cars/Toyota/auction-286153013.htm

Fark yeah, no approach angles there at all.

[nachi]

overkill??

.. damn.. maybe I could have done one like that.

I got a winch off stinky and made one.. all 6mm plate..
maybe overkill but its all I had at the time...
its not a safari but...
http://www.clubisuzu.com/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=1132&start=0

[marmel]

Thanks for the link, looks similar to what I am going to do.

I see form your plan you were going to mount the winch on the front plate, any reason why you bolted it to the bottom plate?

[nachi]

Thanks for the link, looks similar to what I am going to do.

I see form your plan you were going to mount the winch on the front plate, any reason why you bolted it to the bottom plate?

Hey marmel.. only reason was that I didn't have the tools to rotate the clutch lever end.. I've kept it mounted back as far as poss.. the lever would have pushed it out another 60mm.. I can remount at a later date if need be... but as it is it should be fine.. look forward to how you get on. cheers

[albundy]

I take it the winch never came with the truck Do you think the winch may be somewhat light for the vehicle. I have only ever seen the warn 8000's on SWB, not LWB.
Saying that, when I built mine, I turned the winch on its side so the bolts were forward facing, bolted onto the bar that way I was able to get the thing right back agaist the radiator to improve approach angle.
Al

[marmel]

If it turns out to be a little light I can always take it out and replace the winch, making the bar up is my main aim at this stage but I need the winch for measurements etc.

[NJV6]

overkill??

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Cars/Toyota/auction-286153013.htm

And backwards!!!!!! I wonder if there is a winch on the back for winching forwards...

[darinz]

overkill??

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Cars/Toyota/auction-286153013.htm

And backwards!!!!!! I wonder if there is a winch on the back for winching forwards...

Yeah but those cast ali housings a really strong so it should be OK for winching over the speed bumps!

[Shane]

This is how I did mine,flat plate is 3mm with bracing on impact areas.



Shane