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Removable Winch Plate





12.28.22



Rear Mounting Winch Plate



PLEASE NOTE: Complete testing has to be done with actual recoveries before I can recommend this, but I'm documenting what I have done, and will update this upon further testing.

The idea is that if I were to get myself stuck and not be able to pull myself through the obstacle, that I would be able to move the winch to the rear hitch and recover myself. The hitch mount is at an angle due to the power steering lines that run under the radiator fan at the time of this build. All things can change in the future.



Base Winch Plate



I started with a base 1/4in plate, cut to fit around the current frame and bumper mounts. If you didn't want to do a removable winch plate setup, I would recommend welding the plate to the frame, or if you were building a custom bumper, you could weld it to the braces that bolt into the holes alongside the frame rails.

In order to fit a 12k pound Rough County winch, I cut the hood support brace, and welded a new brace into place that hugs closer to the condenser. This gave me an extra inch to work with to keep the winch plate from sticking farther out in the front.



Cross-member Notch



Again, the hitch mount is at an angle due to the power steering lines that run under the radiator fan at the time of this build. The cross-member was notched as shown in the picture.



Cross-member Brace



The cross-member was braced with 1/4in steel to prevent any issues from occurring due to the cutout that I made.



Bending Thick Steel



To make bending 1/4in steel easier, like this fairlead plate, cut halfway through where you want to make the bends, and then weld the cracks up.



Fairlead Plate



Pieces of 1/4in steel where welded to the front of the winch plate to attach to the old front bumper bolt mounts, and the fairlead plate was welded to the mounting plate at the same angle as the bumper side braces were going to be set to.

The holes to mount the winch were made by placing a piece of paper under the winch, tracing where it should be located on the paper, then flipping the winch over and cutting out the holes where the winch bolts go through. Tape the paper back down and drill out the four holes using a 7/16" drill bit.



Winch Plate Handles



Handles were cut out of angle iron, pieces of metal were welded to the top sections to enhance the grip comfort, and then smoothed out with the angle grinder.



Winch Plate Top View



Underneath, I added two tabs, which the hitch pins will go through the frame, and then into these, as another point of bracing and easy disconnection. Top view before mounting the winch.



Mounted with Hitch Pins



Here you can see how the hitch pins are utilized, and they were drilled out with a 5/8" drill bit.

The stock skid plate was re-attached with a small cut-out, due to the hitch receiver setup.



Winch Front Plate



The front plate was cut out of 1/8" plate and is held in place by two bolts, for easy removal. I printed the Nissan logo onto two sheets of paper, taped to the plate, and then cut everything out with an angle grinder and dremel tool, followed by a tungsten carbide rotary burr to smooth everything out.



Installed



There is enough room above the Nissan logo plate for me to reach in, to plug in the winch remote or adjust the winch clutch.

Everything was primered and painted using the same T-Rex Black Spray-on Bed Liner, as used on the front & rear bumpers.


The complete list of items used can be found in the Parts List below. Links may include affiliate referrals.



Parts List





Total Cost = $676



Metal used for Winch Plate



$16



Acquired at my local scrap yard


Rouch Country 12lb Winch



$500



Comes with 85ft synthetic rope



Warn power solenoid



$62



Lets you turn winch power on via toggle or other switch to prevent electrical shortage in the event of car accident, for example.



2-4ga Quick Disconnects



$29



For quickly disconnecting and moving to power connection setup in the rear of the truck.



5/8 in Drill Bit



$16



For drilling hitch pin holes in frame and plate tabs.


7/16 in Drill Bit



$6



For drilling winch mounting holes.



Master Lock Stainless Steel Hitch Pin (2)



$28



For quick release of the rear of winch plate to frame.



Tungsten Carbide Rotary Burrs



$19



For cleaning up the front name plate and other hard to reach area


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