Shepherd12
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Josh
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- Dec 12, 2018
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- Wilds of PA
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- 18 JLR HellaYella m/t
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- Something about cryogenics
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- #1
As the title states, I have completed a pretty clean winch solenoid installation, and I thought I would share in case others are looking for a remote mounting solution.
I recently bought and installed a ROAM Offroad front bumper, which resulted in a subtle installation of a Smittybilt X20 10k winch.
The front end looked really good to me, and I didn’t want to clutter it up with a solenoid box. So I opened the hood and started to look around a bit.
Ahh... a beauty cover, right?
Yup. Useless. Hey, a bracket! Looks like I could modify that...
FYI, I cut off an unused stud (upper right, primed white) and took about half of the lip off the other end (lower point, primed white) but if you decide to do this, don’t take off the whole “peninsula.” You’ll need it in a bit. I cut the stud, mounted the box, then marked and cut the peninsula, but really the second cut was just for bonus points to clean up the look.
These two pics show the same thing from two views. The T-30 Torx bolt that held the engine cover now holds the bottom plate of the solenoid to the bracket. I *did* have to cut the T-30 down a little bit to clear a heater core line below the bracket.
With the switch for the wireless remote mounted forward, a stainless screw (originally intended to mount the solenoid to it’s intended bracket on the winch) conveniently tucks into the inside corner of the “peninsula” that you didn’t cut off earlier, and screws into it’s intended hole in the bottom of the solenoid box.
Fully installed position. Easy to reach. (Not wired.) I *very carefully* bent the oil dipstick back about 2 degrees by hand to make it easier to clear the solenoid box. No issues.
All wired up. There are a few advantages to this location. The lead between the positive battery terminal and the solenoid is only about a foot long, and tucked up close to the hood - which really minimizes some potential dangers. The wires between the solenoid and the winch are replacements for the original. They are 48” long. (~46” would have been ideal, but I wasn’t cutting, stripping, and resoldering 2-gauge wire for that much of a difference.)
To get the wires from the solenoid to the winch, I had to make 5 substitutions:
4x 48” 2-gauge wires
1x 10-gauge “primary wire” with:
A 10-gauge ring connector on one end
And A 10-gauge “piggyback” connector on the other. *this one was hard to find - but available on Amazon*
The wires basically drop straight down the front of the engine and turn forward for the winch. Pretty easy path to take. Mind the belt, pullies, and moving parts of the driveline. Use loom near corners or moving parts.
The hood clears the solenoid box completely when shut. No impressions at all on the hood liner. I *do* have a Rubicon, so I can’t guarantee it will work on a sport model.
I recently bought and installed a ROAM Offroad front bumper, which resulted in a subtle installation of a Smittybilt X20 10k winch.
The front end looked really good to me, and I didn’t want to clutter it up with a solenoid box. So I opened the hood and started to look around a bit.
Ahh... a beauty cover, right?
Yup. Useless. Hey, a bracket! Looks like I could modify that...
FYI, I cut off an unused stud (upper right, primed white) and took about half of the lip off the other end (lower point, primed white) but if you decide to do this, don’t take off the whole “peninsula.” You’ll need it in a bit. I cut the stud, mounted the box, then marked and cut the peninsula, but really the second cut was just for bonus points to clean up the look.
These two pics show the same thing from two views. The T-30 Torx bolt that held the engine cover now holds the bottom plate of the solenoid to the bracket. I *did* have to cut the T-30 down a little bit to clear a heater core line below the bracket.
With the switch for the wireless remote mounted forward, a stainless screw (originally intended to mount the solenoid to it’s intended bracket on the winch) conveniently tucks into the inside corner of the “peninsula” that you didn’t cut off earlier, and screws into it’s intended hole in the bottom of the solenoid box.
Fully installed position. Easy to reach. (Not wired.) I *very carefully* bent the oil dipstick back about 2 degrees by hand to make it easier to clear the solenoid box. No issues.
All wired up. There are a few advantages to this location. The lead between the positive battery terminal and the solenoid is only about a foot long, and tucked up close to the hood - which really minimizes some potential dangers. The wires between the solenoid and the winch are replacements for the original. They are 48” long. (~46” would have been ideal, but I wasn’t cutting, stripping, and resoldering 2-gauge wire for that much of a difference.)
To get the wires from the solenoid to the winch, I had to make 5 substitutions:
4x 48” 2-gauge wires
1x 10-gauge “primary wire” with:
A 10-gauge ring connector on one end
And A 10-gauge “piggyback” connector on the other. *this one was hard to find - but available on Amazon*
The wires basically drop straight down the front of the engine and turn forward for the winch. Pretty easy path to take. Mind the belt, pullies, and moving parts of the driveline. Use loom near corners or moving parts.
The hood clears the solenoid box completely when shut. No impressions at all on the hood liner. I *do* have a Rubicon, so I can’t guarantee it will work on a sport model.
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