Front Receiver Winch Compromise?

[dasadab]

I have gone back and forth and whether to just get an ARB front bumper and mount a winch in it or just install a front receiver and get a winch and bracket for the front receiver. The front receiver concept is appealing because it cheaper and gives me the option of not driving around with the front winch when I am using the truck (2015 Chevy 2500HD, Crew Cab, Standard Bed, Diesel) as a daily drive in crowded L.A. Any additional length in a crowded city is a PITA.

Warn makes a receiver, mounting plate, and of course a wide selection of winches.

I figure that I can just install the winch when I am heading out from the City, remove it when I return.

The front receiver concept also avoids messing with the front bumper, which on the diesel has a intercooler in the front, I think.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Durango1]

I went with a front receiver hitch and a Warn 10,000# winch with synthetic rope. I also bought the Warn hookup kit to run the winch off my rear receiver hitch if we need to winch out in reverse. I've never used the winch yet which is fine with me! But it does give me a warm(n?) feeling to know it is available if I need it!

 

[Ace!]

I don't think most front receivers are rated as high as you might want for your winch. It doesn't mean it won't work, just that the receiver or front frame mounts may be the weak link. So, if the receiver is rated at 9k lbs and you're using 12k winch, the receiver will likely fail first.

My thought on that though is that you have to get to that point first, so there really isn't a point of failure unless you're really stuck. I assume you have a 7k lbs truck (more or less) and unless you're really bogged down in the mud or hanging off a ledge you're not getting to that failure point. It's also the first wrap on the winch drum too, which you're not likely to use unless absolutely necessary. It's probably going to be fine.

 

[Ramblinman]

I have used a Warn Front Reciever hitch with success. I keep my winch behind the Pass seat out of the elements. When I am positive I will not need a winch it stays at home. In the dry garage. I also put a cargo rack on the front using the receiver when required it makes a great jerry can holder.

This said make sure you do not plant your front end in to a mud hole where the receiver becomes in-accessible. I believe keeping my winch out of the elements - I live in Canada ( Read, sleet, snow, rain, and salt) - it will keep my winch serviceable always.

The Receiver hitch on the front adds versatility to my truck.

 

[JHanson]

The receiver/portable winch option is tempting. But keep a couple things in mind.

First, with your truck you're going to want at least a 10,000-pound winch, and that is going to be a beast to move around, even with synthetic line. It will also put a lot of lever moment waaay out on front of your truck, not to mention the extra length. Of course you'd be saving weight by not installing a new bumper, so you might consider that a wash.

Second, even if the receiver is strong enough to accept the stress of a winch that size, receivers (even in the rear) are not designed to handle side loads, but straight pulls. So you'd need to be very careful with your recoveries. Does your truck have a recovery point rated to accept a shackle for winch duty? If not, you won't be able to rig a double-line pull with your receiver-mounted winch, and that will reduce its versatility.

That's not to say your idea is wrong, just that it will come with more compromises than you'd have if you installed a proper winch bumper.

 

[Ace!]

Yep, terrain may limit your winch points and straight line pulls may be difficult to find or double-line if there aren't acceptable anchors (i.e., trees or acceptable anchors on the vehicle). I still think though that the front receiver would likely work most of the time and if you've practiced winching and straight-line, double-line, snatch blocks, tree saver use, you'll probably find it was useful as a permanent mount.

 

[Kolockum]

I have a front receiver mounted winch. It has served me quite well in some of the bone headed decisions I have made. One important thing to remember if your doing a snatch and block pull (I.e cable goes from the winch to pulley on a tree back to the truck) do not reconnect it to the hitch find another tieback point not connected to the winch.

And photos of my last winch. About 3 years ago, I just slid sideways off of a dirt road.

 

[Ace!]

Looks like someone vandalized your license plate.

 

[Foy]

I have a 12,000 lb winch w/steel cable and a Draw Tite front receiver. I have never had to use it (thank goodness). The winch is HEAVY and would be a PITA to attach if nose-down in a hole. That said, I doubt I'd ever enter said hole without the winch attached.....unless I wanted to keep my options open for a bass-ackwards recovery using the rear receiver, the possibility of which is one big reason I went with the front receiver set-up to begin with.

I would definitely not like the weight of a winch bumper and a winch up front all the time.

The flexibility provided by the front receiver is great. Hitch-hauler for a gennie, fuel cans, a bike rack, or just a step-up to better reach the transmission dipstick and fuel filter on the old diesel. Finally, I have the option of using the winch as a rear recovery on my little 2WD Mazda or one of the old IH Scouts still in the fleet.

Foy

 

[ntsqd]

I suspect that a rear receiver hitch can withstand significant angled loading. A reasonable engineering premise would be to design for failed trailer brakes.Whether a front receiver hitch has those same design loads applied to it I've no idea.

For a winch of this size I'd want two receiver sockets, one near each frame rail.

 

[JHanson]

I suspect that a rear receiver hitch can withstand significant angled loading.

You're probably right. But notice our choice of words? "Suspect" and "probably." The inarguable fact is, a receiver hitch is designed for pulling a trailer, not winching. The only winch mount I trust fully is one designed to withstand the stresses of winching.

 

[Ace!]

One of the interesting things to consider is how the things attach, a bumper versus a receiver. Does one attach with more hardware (more grade 8 bolts) than the other and does it attach along the frame rail or only at the end of the frame rail (are the bolt being pulled in shear). We know how the winch attaches, in either scenario. So, what is the weak link, the receiver pin, or the four bolts that hold the winch to the winch plate, or the receiver bolted to the ends of the frame rails, or the bumper bolted to the end or side of the frame rail.

I think at the end of the day, the pin is probably going to bend, but that's only a guess.

 

[dasadab]

Thanks for the excellent feedback. I am thinking of the Draw-Tite receiver (65068) as opposed to the Curt (C31071) for my truck. The Draw-tite sits higher, but does require a little bit of plastic body trimming, according to the reviews. After talking to Warn, I am also thinking of the Warn S-10, 10,000lbs. http://www.warn.com/truck/winches/ZEON_10-S.shtml

It's much lighter than most at 75lbs and is consistent with the rated receiver pull capacity of 9,000 lbs. Per the Warn guy, I can use a snatch block in order to double the capacity, without the downside of a heavy winch. But....I know nothing about this stuff (John Snow), just internet knowledge. I want to plan for moderate bone head roads, not crazy bone head roads. I'll leave the crazy ones alone (hopefully).

I don't know about the rating of the front tow hooks on the truck. I will have to see if their capacity is mentioned somewhere.

 

[ntsqd]

I say suspect because I don't actually know anything specific about their design. However, I do know something about design in general and an angled pull or push would be high on the list of things to consider. In fact the max tolerable angle would be the subject of some experimentation I'm quite sure. It may be codified by the SAE, ASME, or DOT and it may be mfg specific, but for angled loads to not considered during the design and testing would be professional negligence.

I did some shear and bending calcs on the std 5/8" hitch pin some time ago when using a receiver with pin only (no slider) for a recovery was under discussion on Expi. My conclusion was that lots of other bad things will be close to happening by the time that pin is a problem. Moving to a SHCS or F911 (.com) hex bolt with a minimum 2.25" long shoulder instead put them out of the range of concern.
Now that I can, I should run a simple FEA simulation on this and see what it looks like.

 

[Ace!]

Just another thought, but are there other ways to get to where you want, other than a receiver and winch? I know it's completely outside the box, relative to your original post, but what about spending that money on a front limited slip, like a TrueTrac. It may mean you don't need the winch if you have the traction you need to get in and out of where you want. The downside is it may just mean you get stuck farther down the trail in a more precarious position...

 

[Foy]

The downside is it may just mean you get stuck farther down the trail in a more precarious position...

That's exactly what we used to say, back in the day when 4WD vehicles were pretty much limited to Jeep CJs and Wagoneers, 4WD pickups, and IH Scouts. "Yeah, having 4WD lets you get stuck in WAY harder mudholes to get out of".

In some ways, having a winch is sort of like having a pickup truck: You start finding non-recovery uses for it around the ranch and pretty soon you wonder how you ever got by without it.

Foy

 

[Ace!]

As someone that owned an IH and a TJ...I resemble those remarks

 

[Ramblinman]

If was going to use my winch with the intent to help me travel through difficult areas I would certainly use a bumper mount. I mostly use my winch to help me recover from my mistakes and for work related tasks - such as recovering big game.

 

[JHanson]

I don't know about the rating of the front tow hooks on the truck. I will have to see if their capacity is mentioned somewhere.

That would be very smart. A lot of 'tow hooks' aren't really even tow hooks; they're simply tie-down loops to secure the vehicle during transport.

When I demonstrate using a receiver for recovery, I always use a receiver insert with a shackle attachment, rather than simply looping a tow or kinetic strap around the hitch pin. The insert lowers the possibility of bending the pin; it changes the stress to a shear situation.

 

[ntsqd]

It should be fairly obvious to a moderately educated person whether or not that loop hanging on their vehicle is a tie-down or some form of a tow attachment. Those put on the front of late model full size 4wd pick-ups are sized & placed appropriately to safely assume that the litigious-sensitive OEM intended them to be used for recovery of the vehicle.

10 pages of bending (or not) of hitch pins:
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/29552-Safe-to-use-recovery-strap-on-hitch-pin-instead-of-shackle