What bumpers fit badlands winch?

[harryG]

Probably putting the cart before the horse, but I picked up the Harbor Freight badlands 12000 lb winch today. Now I need to find an appropriate front bumper. I have a 2021 willys 2dr. So its time to turn to the experts here for your advice/suggestions. Its pretty heavy, but my willys a soft topp and plans for removing the rear seat is already a consideration. Greatful for all help. Thanks In Advance. HarryG

Sponsored

 

[mnjeeper]

Rugged Ridge XOR does NOT...already made that mistake.

LOD signature does I believe. Basically, you want something that can accommodate a Zeon.

 

[harryG]

Rugged Ridge XOR does NOT...already made that mistake.

LOD signature does I believe. Basically, you want something that can accommodate a Zeon.

thanks much

 

[Cahlheim]

Probably putting the cart before the horse, but I picked up the Harbor Freight badlands 12000 lb winch today. Now I need to find an appropriate front bumper. I have a 2021 willys 2dr. So its time to turn to the experts here for your advice/suggestions. Its pretty heavy, but my willys a soft topp and plans for removing the rear seat is already a consideration. Greatful for all help. Thanks In Advance. HarryG

The Rugged Ridge Venator front bumper will technically hold it, but it doesnt fit well. Good enough for sure, but if you’re looking for a perfect fit, look elsewhere.

 

[harryG]

Probably putting the cart before the horse, but I picked up the Harbor Freight badlands 12000 lb winch today. Now I need to find an appropriate front bumper. I have a 2021 willys 2dr. So its time to turn to the experts here for your advice/suggestions. Its pretty heavy, but my willys a soft topp and plans for removing the rear seat is already a consideration. Greatful for all help. Thanks In Advance. HarryG

wound up purchasing a Vijay steel bumper from Amazon. fit onto wrangler as well as winch monting fit perfectly. Only issue is LED lights need to be spliced onto fog light wires. very happy with set-up. pics to follow.

 

[New4xeMan]

The Rugged Ridge Venator front bumper will technically hold it, but it doesnt fit well. Good enough for sure, but if you’re looking for a perfect fit, look elsewhere.

What's wrong with the fit? Is the wiring pinched between the grill and the winch? I just ordered a Venator and have a Badlands 12k I plan to install - just wondering what I am in for.

 

[Cahlheim]

What's wrong with the fit? Is the wiring pinched between the grill and the winch? I just ordered a Venator and have a Badlands 12k I plan to install - just wondering what I am in for.

Pinched wiring is one issue, but reasonably easy to mitigate, and I think it existed with a number of winches regardless of the bumper.

My main struggle was the bumper is modular and acts as a clamshell around the winch. The physical dimensions of the winch do not allow the bumper to fit together as it is intended. It will “fit” but you’ll need to fight it a bit and the gaps between the upper and lower sections end up being wider than expected. The other issue is that the handle for the clutch needs to trimmed so it can be fully engaged or disengaged.

best I can do to illustrate what I am talking about.
You can see what the gap is supposed to look like with my wife’s 4xe (since we haven’t installed her winch yet), but you can see just how wide it is on mine.

 

[New4xeMan]

You can see what the gap is supposed to look like with my wife’s 4xe (since we haven’t installed her winch yet), but you can see just how wide it is on mine.

I see exactly what you mean, thanks for such a detailed response.

Doesn’t look bad TBH and without comparo photo I might have never noticed. Mine will probably look just like yours - already have the winch and bumper is on the way.

Is it the top cover running high riding on the winch body or the lower section pushed downward? Wondering if you can”relieve” it a bit with a grinder for a better fit?

 

[Cahlheim]

I see exactly what you mean, thanks for such a detailed response.

Doesn’t look bad TBH and without comparo photo I might have never noticed. Mine will probably look just like yours - already have the winch and bumper is on the way.

Is it the top cover running high riding on the winch body or the lower section pushed downward? Wondering if you can”relieve” it a bit with a grinder for a better fit?

It is acceptable for sure, but like I mentioned above, if you are looking for perfection, you may take issue with this particular combo. It doesn’t bother me at all - and like you said, side-by-side is where you really notice.
As for which piece is the flex point, it is definitely the top portion. The included winch plate provides enough rigidity to force the top to flex.

 

[cant wait]

Probably putting the cart before the horse, but I picked up the Harbor Freight badlands 12000 lb winch today. Now I need to find an appropriate front bumper. I have a 2021 willys 2dr. So its time to turn to the experts here for your advice/suggestions. Its pretty heavy, but my willys a soft topp and plans for removing the rear seat is already a consideration. Greatful for all help. Thanks In Advance. HarryG

I purchased thru Amazon a Tyger package Front bumper TG-BP6J800068 $ 461.00 --Tyger Rear bumper TG-BP9J81198 $299.00 and Smitty built( the winch bolt area is not a drop down hidden) amphibious 10,000 lb top mount(no issue on cooling air flow) $599.00 I know you are looking priced for a 12,000 lb. capatible. The install was easy. Hope this helps. I did a lot of research by company and spec prior to buying.

 

[New4xeMan]

It is acceptable for sure, but like I mentioned above, if you are looking for perfection, you may take issue with this particular combo. It doesn’t bother me at all - and like you said, side-by-side is where you really notice.
As for which piece is the flex point, it is definitely the top portion. The included winch plate provides enough rigidity to force the top to flex.

Just curious - I noted in the installation instructions for the Venator they mention needing to use the winch spacers for the Warn Zeon winch (which is dimensionally larger than the Badlands 12k winch). Did you try installing those spacers to lift the winch a bit to possibly provide a better fit?

 

[Traveller128]

I tried the Venator and Badlands on ours a couple months ago. The upper plate portion of the bumper, hits the front of the winch. I ground off a bit of the winch case (the upper squared off edge) to gain a little space, but it still hits and is very tight. Raising the winch will make it worse.

Also, the rear wiring exit from the winch interferes with the grill. The Venator bumper doesn't leave any room for a winch that has the heavy wire exiting the rear straight out. I ended up drilling a hole in the right side of the case, then used a grommet for the cable exit. I was able to install it without it rubbing the grill, but it was so close that getting the grill out to replace would probably require removing the winch.

We ended up removing the whole setup due to the weight/balance issue causing weird handling behavior and much reduced fuel mileage.

I really wasn't happy with the way it all went together. A smaller case winch would have worked better.

 

[AMT]

I grabbed this one on sale at Quadratech last year. Works great and not pricey; built in winch plate. Not the fanciest but it works:

https://rampageproducts.com/rock-rage-front-bumper

 

[New4xeMan]

Venator bumper with Badlands APEX 12k winch. Fit is very tight, but I managed to get a decent fit cheating the top bumper cover forward slightly (about 1/4"). Alignment is good and everything fit. Wiring is a bit tight between the winch and the grill, but I am going to leave it for now.

This pic shows better the alignment

I might grind 1/4" off the top[ cover where it hits the winch later if it bothers me, but for now I am happy and everything works properly.

 

[Martial Fartist]

Besides the grill/power pinch, it fit in the RR arcus.

Sponsored