tobyw
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Toby
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2018
- Threads
- 18
- Messages
- 163
- Reaction score
- 371
- Location
- Washington
- Vehicle(s)
- 2024 JLU-R XR
- Thread starter
- #1
Although I had been pleased with the winch tray I had initially fabricated for the OEM plastic bumper (thread here if anyone is interested in seeing that: https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/winch-mount-for-plastic-bumper.7605/ ), there had been a few too many times that I smacked the outside corner, causing the plastic bumper to fold back into the tire. Even the relatively mild BFG A/T's had no issue finding ample traction on the plastic bumper 
Anyhoodles, it was time for a more substantial solution...
I started with an old leftover bumper I had built for one of my JKU-R's a while back:
There is about a 1-1/4" difference in the distance between the grill and the mounting flanges for the front bumper, so my old bumper would not bolt up directly... No big deal, as I wanted to clean up the looks of it a bit and go with some hidden hardware. So I made some simple 'L' shaped spacers and repurposed an old YJ transfercase drop to create some capture strips for the mounting bolts:
Then I made some tapered corners to finish the bumper off a little cleaner and less brutally utilitarian than it had been in it's previous life:
A little work with the hot glue gun, some grinding to smooth things out, and a dab of fresh paint:
Should get the winch mounted back up sometime later this week, and then I'll decide on what to do for auxiliary lights... Round or maybe an LED bar this time??
Anyhoodles, it was time for a more substantial solution...I started with an old leftover bumper I had built for one of my JKU-R's a while back:
There is about a 1-1/4" difference in the distance between the grill and the mounting flanges for the front bumper, so my old bumper would not bolt up directly... No big deal, as I wanted to clean up the looks of it a bit and go with some hidden hardware. So I made some simple 'L' shaped spacers and repurposed an old YJ transfercase drop to create some capture strips for the mounting bolts:
Then I made some tapered corners to finish the bumper off a little cleaner and less brutally utilitarian than it had been in it's previous life:
A little work with the hot glue gun, some grinding to smooth things out, and a dab of fresh paint:
Should get the winch mounted back up sometime later this week, and then I'll decide on what to do for auxiliary lights... Round or maybe an LED bar this time??
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