Today I finally got around to installing my HF craigslist special winch that I bought a few weeks ago. I was relieved to get it all hooked up and find out that it works

Couple questions I probably should have asked BEFORE I installed, but now I'm just curious... I knew I would have to trim the grill get the winch in there, so I was prepared for that, however, have others had to cut that big metal strip that sits behind the plastic grill? My winch would NOT fit with that sucker still in there, so I just took a hack saw to it and cut it out. There are a couple braces that go up to the radiator shroud thingy that I left in there... hopefully someone even knows what I'm talking about...

Also, where did people run their wiring? I ran mine under the radiator, but above the steering dampener. I don't think I like it there. After I was almost finished, I realized that there is a rubber like thingy on the side of the radiator that can by pulled out to give much better access to the engine bay. Wish I would have run it through there. Thankfully I used some anderson power plug things I got an amazon, so i can just unplug the wiring and move it.

Overall I'm really happy with how it turned out. Thankfully those big hella 700FFs hide the huge gaping hole I cut out of my grill! I probably could have trimmed slightly less, but it doesn't bother me.

 

Looks good man!

 

Nice. It looks good sitting on that bumper. God, I really hate my bulk a$$ ARB.

If you want the winch to last you'll need to pull it apart, clean out what little factory grease is in there and re pack it w/ marine grade lube. Afterwards, run a bead of RTV around the face of the electrical box creating a waterproof seal and you'll be ready for any mudhole, swamp, creek, or ocean you can throw at it...

Check this out for instructions on how to disassemble pack.

Waterproofing a Winch | IH8MUD Forum

 

Also be sure to post your review of the functionality of the winch here once you had a chance to play with it.

https://landroverforums.com/forum/mo...-review-61513/

 

looks sharp.

 

Looks great, man! There are a couple options for wiring; there is the one you talked about around the side of the radiator. There is also a flap on the plastic piece between the grill and the headlight that opens and allows you to run cables behind your headlight and straight up to your battery/fusebox or up the other side the same way, atleast that's how it is on my '03. That's how I have my lights run.

 

Thanks everyone!

@ coors - thanks for those links. Haha wish I would have taken it all apart when it was off the bumper! I'll definitely get around to going through it and re-greasing it and waterproofing it. Also, after I'd had a chance to use it, I'll be sure to post a review and comments. One thing I read was that it is pretty loud, although I took the cable completely out to rewind it so it was even (it was all a mess when I bought it) and when I was winding it up, it didn't seem all that loud to me. But then again, I've never really listened to others winching either.

@ Alex_M - I'll have a look at that access by the headlight. I definitely need to rerun the wiring. I don't like where it's at right now.

@ jamestfl, madlands - thanks fellas!

Also, anyone know about cutting that big metal bar thingy behind the grill? I guess it depends on your bumper and winch mount, just wondering if anyone else has had to cut theirs to fit their winch in... I'll try to snap a picture of what I'm talking about if I remember...

 

Which anderson plugs did you use? That winch draws up to 325 amps at full load and a lot of the anderson plugs most commonly seen aren't rated that high.

 

These are the ones that I got. Hopefully they'll hold up. Worked good when tested yesterday.

 

Unfortunately Rough Country doesn't provide any useful technical information other than the cable gauge, which is #2.
Based on the length (7') the cable is suitable for up to a 300amp load and still keep an acceptable volt drop. Unfortunately the actual connectors are an unknown, but hopefully they used suitable connectors.
It's only at near to or at full load that they'd likely even be an issue, even if they are a little undersized.