Me too
I thought it was kind of a given that by bed mount I meant in the bed but tied into the frame rails). I was thinking having it right at the back of the bed would eliminate any issues of hitting the sides (although that could be solved with a fair lead at the back). The main reason I was thinking in bed is to keep it out of the way but still accessible.
I have a Warn 10K winch and I use it to launch/retrieve a 4000 lb sailboat using my 1985 F150. I was using my 1990 Jeep Wrangler with the winch on the front bumper until I sold it. I do NOT want that ugly winch on my truck's front bumper!
I too am thinking of mounting a winch in the bed near the tail gate in a "removalable" fashion.
I am considering getting a set of 5th wheel bed rails and instead of mounting the rails in the center of the bed as is usual, mount the rails them as close to the rear as possible then use a goose neck hitch type mounting plate with pull pins across the rails and mount my winch cradle to that plate.
OR
Simply mount a 6" wide steel plate across the bed from bed bolt to bed bolt at the REAR of the bed then mount my winch cradle to that plate.
My only questions are;
1) HOW MUCH PULL CAN THOSE BED BOLTS TAKE?
2) Should I tie my mounting plate to to more then 2 bolts, say also the midway bed bolts as well as the rear bed bolts?
Anyone have any warning on doing either of the above?
THANKS for any thoughts.
Sailer