An M8000 Warn weighing less than 50lbs.?

[Desertdude]

The 9000 I installed can handle 100-ft of cable I was only able to spool 85-ft and as time goes on the the rope is used it might not all fit on the spool. Unlike the 8274 on my FJ40 which can hold 125 of cable - have not yet reloaded it with synth rope yet - I am guessing I can get a full 100 ft on it.

I am looking forward to moving my control box under the hood with a cable remote socket on the front bumper and a dash switch inside the cab...

 

[Scott Brady]

I also plan to move the control box under the hood. It is a pretty easy mod. With the in cab controller and new hand throtle (can be locked at a specific RPM), I should be set.

Do you want me to make an extra set of cables for you?

 

[Scott Brady]

42.75 Lbs.

Here is an image of the fairlead. It really is a thing of beauty and is made of graphite impregnated nylon. It weighs only 10.5 oz :Wow1:. The winch rope only weighs 2.2 lbs.

So here are the preliminary numbers:

M8000 without controller or rope: 33lbs.
Controller and cables: 6lbs.
synthetic rope: 2.2 lbs.
Fairlead: .65 lbs.
Hook: .9 lbs.

TOTAL WINCH WEIGHT: 42.75 lbs. :luxhello:

What was removed:

Roller Fairlead: 12 lbs.
Wire Rope: 18 lbs. (5/16 x 100')
Gross: 30 lbs
Net Weight Savings: 27 lbs.

I will be moving the controller behind the front wheels, which will also improve weight distribution.

 

[BajaTaco]

TOTAL WINCH WEIGHT: 42.75 lbs. :luxhello:

... Net Weight Savings: 27 lbs.

:Wow1: :Wow1: Where is the bow-down smiley? hehehe

WHOA!!!! I can handle that! Now I want one! I think that is an acceptable addition out front (weight penalty for my truck) for the payoff involved. NICE!

 

[Desertdude]

A very generous offer! - not sure when I will be back in AZ. Might not be until end of Oct before I can focus back on the Tacoma. I do hope to get the GPS and the Maggiolina mounted while I am out here in California :jump:

 

[Scott Brady]

Here is the contact information for the composite fairlead:

FourTreks 805-583-8255

Fairlead The unit is only $49, which I think is a great deal for the quality and functionality you get.

For those of you who were with me on the Mojave Road trip, we met one of their Chief engineers, Luke at the gas station (he had the sweet vintage Bronco). A good group of guys!

 

[Scott Brady]

Just a quick update. The weight out of the front end has helped, and the leverage of the winch is less apparent than before. I also like the more subdued appearance too. The next project (hopefully this weekend) will be to install the in-cab winch controller, and relocate the control box to the engine compartment. Moving the controller will shift another 5 lbs. behind the front tires...

 

[offroad_nomad]

I mounted my wich control box up in the engine compartment near the firewall to keep it high and dry and so no one would mess with it:

 

[p1michaud]

Another mounting solutiong for the winch controller.

I mounted my wich control box up in the engine compartment near the firewall to keep it high and dry and so no one would mess with it

I had posted this in Scott's Tacoma mod thread but it's well suited for here as well...
...if your engine bay is anything like mine, space is at a premium so this is what I came up with for a mounting solution for the winch controller.

Cramped Engine compartment

Controller location pic 1

Controller location pic 2

Some of the pros/cons to relocating the winch controller are:
1-Keeps people from playing with your winch and possibly damaging the truck (i.e. mischievous people that is). I've read of people using paper clips to operate a winch (have not verified if it can be done, plus you would have to know what you are doing). This could also be avoided by a winch power interrupt kit.

2-Brings some weight back from the front bumper althoug it might be off set with the extra 18' of 2 guage wire used (i.e. over all weight of the controller and wire is greater by about 5 lbs)

3-Hotter in the engine compartment.

4-Less likely to be submerged that on the front bumper.

5-You have to open the hood to use the winch, but that will be remedied via an "In Cab" Winch Controler. Coming soon to my Taco...

Any others?

Cheers :beer:,
p

 

[p1michaud]

In cab winch control

This was originally taken from the Expeditions West 2004 Tacoma thread under: "Expedition Vehicles > Toyota (Truck, Tacoma, 4Runner)" but is was also applicable for this thread with some additional information.

When I was first instructed on the use of a winch I was told to always raise the hood of the vehicle during winching. The hood would then serve as a shield if the cable snapped. Your set-up with the contol box under the hood would actually force this practice which is not always the easiest thing to do.

Excellent point, having the hood up is an excellent practice, but not always easy or possible in some situations as you mentionned. I have also added an In Cab Winch Controller as another alternative.

A few other cons with having the winch controller under the hood as I have discovered lately:

1-You will want to ensure that the remote wire can't get tangled in the fan when using the winch with the engine runing. :Wow1: This can easily be remedied by carefully routing the wire when pluging in the controller.

2-With all the mods under the hood (second battery, battery isolator and winch controller) perfoming regular maintenance or repair can be challenging. I have made an attempt to make the mods with minimal impact, but for some work they will be bothersome. I'm thinking of alternator replacement for example.

Just a few thoughts, sorry for the ramblings...
Cheers :beer: ,
P

 

[p1michaud]

Mounting the composite fairlead

Here is the contact information for the composite fairlead:

FourTreks 805-583-8255

Fairlead The unit is only $49, which I think is a great deal for the quality and functionality you get.

For those of you who were with me on the Mojave Road trip, we met one of their Chief engineers, Luke at the gas station (he had the sweet vintage Bronco). A good group of guys!

Scott,
I purchased my composite fairlead from SKY-Manufacturing and it's made from UHMW. Look under the "Accessories" section and scroll down a bit, they are only $25!

I do have one comment/concern about mounting a composite fairlead. Did you have any problems properly torquing the mounting bolts that go through the fairlead and bumper to the winch?

I noticed that the bolt was starting to compress the UHMW so I added a larger washer to spread the load and try to get to the required torque (about 30 ft-lbs). I also added some medium strenght Loctite for extra security (the mounting bolts for the winch came with lock washers). I did not quite get to 30 ft-lbs because the plastic fairlead was starting to compress quite a bit so I stopped because I was afraid to break it. Did you experience the same issue with your fairlead?

I would suggest that they change their design slightly to press in a metal sleeve where the bolt hole is so that you could achieve the proper tightening torque without damaging the composite fairlead while having the fairlead solidly mounted.

Just a heads up to the folks on the forum who are considering composite fairelads, some people on Yotatech have experience problems where the composite fairleads were distorting during winching. One or two reports of this happening from what I read. Might be justification to go to aluminum, not sure.

Cheers :beer:,
P

 

[Scott Brady]

The composite fairlead I am using has the bolt holes recessed, and included hardened washers. They also use graphite impregnated composite to improve hardness and rigidity of the fairlead.

But I really love the 10 oz weight

 

[Scott Brady]

After searching for some time, I have found a new roller fairlead, which is designed specifically for synthetic line. It is just hitting the market. Several on this forum have seen it in person, and it is quite impressive:

It is from a company called Viking Off-Road

Here are the details from Thor, one of the owners and the R&D guy:
"Yes the rollers are Delrin, Genuine DuPont Delrin. There are other materials that are basically the same but the name Delrin is a registered name for DuPont’s polymer recepie. The aluminum housing is 5052 aluminum (regular variety) harder aluminum will crack on the bends. The anodizing is a Type II military specification with CO2 laser engraved logo which preserved the anodizing, it just bleaches it out. Also, we do our part for the environment and pay extra fees to properly dispose of the anodizing chemicals. The pins are a medium hardness - high quality stainless steel, as are the hex bolts/nuts. The retaining rings are of high strength zinc coated steel."

The unit weighs just over 5lbs., which is 1/3 the weight of a Warn roller.

 

[Desertdude]

Well there you go spending my money again :hehe:

That looks real sophisticated - I look forward to getting rid of the rust prone warn model - I have the replacement rollers installed all ready - wonder if I can just order the housing?

 

[UncleChris]

I out the Delrin rollers on my original WARN farlead.

The ARB for the 05 Tacoma is desgined to be used with a roller fairlead. The mount is recessed into the bumper. A bunch of us were planning on using a hawse, until we realized that using a hawse would lead to bumper interference with the winchline at an angle. This could also have been fixed by fab'ing a mount that puts the hawse out further, but I am pretty lazy.

They swap out directly with the stock rollers. Minor weight savings as you keep the steel frame.

The whole Viking assembly might be the way to go to save weight.