Warn winch brand mount for a trailer?

[Sid Post]

My searching so far has really only turned up ATV/UTV winch mounts or integrated bumpers.

I intend to buy a Warn Zeon winch in a few months but, I'm taking my trailer in for some work and want to get a mount made for it then. Is this something I can buy cost-effectively somewhere or, what sort of specifications do I need to give to my trailer guy to ensure the mount has the bolt holes and structure to support the larger Zeon option?

TIA,
Sid

 

[gatorgrizz27]

Amazon product ASIN B000BQQQII

 

[NatersXJ6]

Harbor freight makes a very good universal winch plate for about 1/3 that cost that could be bolted or welded across the tongue or front of a trailer.

 

[Sid Post]

Harbor freight makes a very good universal winch plate for about 1/3 that cost that could be bolted or welded across the tongue or front of a trailer.

Is it rated for the 12,000lb Warn Zeon?

 

[NatersXJ6]

Is it rated for the 12,000lb Warn Zeon?

It is a simple steel plate, I’m not sure rating really applies. I guess the real question is for you to answer, how are you mounting it to the trailer? In my opinion, I have one of these plates and have used them on projects, it is fine for a 12k winch as long as it has the right hole pattern for the winch mount. Google can help you with that. When you say winch for a trailer, I’m thinking winch on the tongue for pulling loads onto the flat deck? How much pulling force do you really expect to generate? Most trailer winches I’ve seen are 2500-3500 lb. If you put a 12k winch on a trailer, how are you powering it?

In any event, I would guess that the HF winch plate is the same as every other builder winch plate out there. Just a laser cut piece of 1/4” plate with a folded up lip to mount a fairlead on.

 

[WOODY2]

My searching so far has really only turned up ATV/UTV winch mounts or integrated bumpers.

I intend to buy a Warn Zeon winch in a few months but, I'm taking my trailer in for some work and want to get a mount made for it then. Is this something I can buy cost-effectively somewhere or, what sort of specifications do I need to give to my trailer guy to ensure the mount has the bolt holes and structure to support the larger Zeon option?

TIA,
Sid

Winch rating and anticipated load? It's all in the details.

 

[Sid Post]

Right now, I need something to attach to my trailer. In 2~3 years, I plan on building an Expo rig where I will use this winch on the rear bumper. At that point, I would likely just winch directly off that vehicle to put something on the trailer.

In terms of power, I have two 29DC marine batteries in addition to my tow vehicle for higher amperage loads. The two 29DC batteries by themselves though, should provide enough amperage and runtime for my winch needs onto the trailer.

 

[displacedtexan]

Is it rated for the 12,000lb Warn Zeon?

12k is 12k.

Winch mounting holes are universal.

 

[Sid Post]

The Big Tex trailer repair shop fixed me up with a good heavy winch mount.

The guys in the Mount Pleasant, Texas shop took good care of me and my trailer.

 

[Ozarker]

I'll be putting a cheap HF, Bad Lands winch in my cargo trailer, how hard can it be?

 

[Sid Post]

Dang, seems like some guy that wears a white dinner blazer with black dress slacks and black Bostonian shoes to go out to eat lasagna, can't figure out how to get a piece of plate steel or angle iron under a trailer and drill four holes, seriously?

Have you recently priced paying someone to drill holes in plate steel or priced plate steel itself? Then there is the issue of a Rube Goldberg operation using a torch with dubious precision.

Cheap Chinieium mounts and winches are easy enough to find and may be good for a once-a-lifetime winch pull before they fail but, do you really want risk expensive things over trying to save ~$800? In my case, Big Tex has the press brake, verticle drill, and plate steel to make a good winch mount for a reasonable cost out of steel appropriate for a good high-torque winch.

Just have your butler make a few phone calls to metal shops in your area. Flip out a grand and I'm sure some guy with some common sense can mount a cheap Bad Lands winch on a trailer which is all anyone would actually need. But, if your dinner crowd would embarrass you for a less expensive winch, buy a Warn, top of the line model with synthetic line and a variety of attachments, after all, there is an image to maintain with that trailer with this crowd on line.

Sorry, but there is value in a good-quality winch that will still work after being rained on and caked in mud. If you only need to use it once and know when that pull will be needed, a cheap winch 'might' work.

Just say'n, anyone smart enough to pass a driving test should be able to figure out how to operate a drill and wrench and should be able to figure out how to bolt a winch to a trailer. Make sure you don't mount it backwards!

Assuming you don't have a real shop with mills and drill presses, who out here can hand-hold a drill to put 4 holes in the right place in a piece of plate to bolt up your winch? Then there is the quality of the welds to attach this plate to your trailer so that you won't bend or warp your trailer with a hard pull.

 

[Ozarker]

I agree, it can get complicated.

Or, simple

Sorry if I was mistaken, but I thought this was about pulling an ATV on a trailer,
not like a wrecker service or pulling a dozer, something more like a residential riding mower.

 

[Sid Post]

In my case, mainly pulling a dead tractor onto my trailer.

I have pulled a DEAD Kubota RTV-1100C onto it with a come-along. Compared to that, an ATV would be a total calk-walk!

 

[bas157]

I've got something like this (not HF brand, but similar design)

3500 lb. Step Bumper Receiver

Amazing deals on this 3500Lb Step Bumper Receiver at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

Winch is on a 2" receiver mount cradle. I can use on another vehicle if need be and winch isn't out in the elements 24x7x365
My trailer did have a little plate at the front that I could have just drilled 4 holes and mounted the winch directly to it if I had wanted to.

 

[displacedtexan]

Assuming you don't have a real shop with mills and drill presses, who out here can hand-hold a drill to put 4 holes in the right place in a piece of plate to bolt up your winch? Then there is the quality of the welds to attach this plate to your trailer so that you won't bend or warp your trailer with a hard pull.

Who can't measure and drill 4 holes?