winch build part 2

Well the winch worked out awesome, but I had one beef...the lack of controls inside my cab. Sure, I mean I could just plug in my wired remote and run it through my window, but thats kind of lame.

So...I decided in-cab controls were necessitated.

First, removed the front panel,



Decided to first make a switch panel here, instead of the silly step thing Ford had designed. Cut it first with a grinder



then fine tuned with a dremel



at this point, found some suitable material...0.125 aluminum...also known as a stolen road sign



bent it up and cut some holes in it



this is the switch I got from 12voltguy.com it is a push button style, with an LED safety switch, so I cant accidentally hit the buttons.



at this point, gave it a little paint, and bolted in the switch.





Ill save you guys the details about the wiring, heres a pic inside the solenoid box from my winch...kind of intimidating if you dont know what youre doing.



basically I just tapped into the in/out lines that went to the wired remote, as well as the earth ground.

It works fantastic, and its really nice not having to get out of the cab to use the winch. It will be super nice for those rainy/snowy days.

If anyone has any questions feel free to ask

cool deal, really good location for it too

I've always liked that spot for a switch panel. That's what I love about the late 2nd/early 3rd gen interior.



I'll be drilling out another hole on the other side sometime and picking up 3 of the switch on the right to put in there. I cannibalized the right switch for my car when advance sold me a bad LED rocker, and the middle was hooked up to an illegal siren (car alarm on a switch) which I unhooked (cut) right after my 2nd car accident when the troopers were wandering around my car. They reached in and flicked my switches so it's a good thing I did.

You do nice, clean work. I like it!

If you feel so inclined, I would be interested in a little more detailed write-up of the wiring. Once I get another winch for my current truck, I want to do the same thing..and I'm sure once I crack that solenoid open, I'll need the help.

99RangerKrazy said:

You do nice, clean work. I like it!

If you feel so inclined, I would be interested in a little more detailed write-up of the wiring. Once I get another winch for my current truck, I want to do the same thing..and I'm sure once I crack that solenoid open, I'll need the help.

Click to expand...

Hey thanks. Since you asked, and I'm bored Ill fill in a few more details.

First here is the switch I used, it is a very straight forward switch, one button for in, one button for out, both of which are connected to a safety switch.



Below is the back of the switch, and the wiring.



There is a ground that goes anywhere, a hot line which goes to any fused 12 volt source, a lead from each of the buttons, and another ground which goes to the solenoids.

here is a schematic.



Now, you could just use an illuminated safety switch, and a momentary toggle switch and make up this setup by yourself, but I really like cleanliness of the 12voltguy stuff.

His stuff is based off of Warn winches, which use 2 solenoids per in/out, for a total of 4 solenoids. Now, and as in my case, my winch is a single speed, with only 1 solenoid per switch. This is where I RECOMMEND a button type switch, as you only need to ground out the buttons to make the winch operate. There is no need to run a 12 v source to the buttons.

Basically how it work is this, the buttons do diddly until the safety switch is lifted, which in turn turns on the LED on the tip of the toggle. For the safety switch, the 12 v source lights the LED, one ground from it goes anywhere, and the other ground goes to the solenoids. It is this ground which allows completion of the circuit, and is what makes it a safety switch. In my case, I simply used the earth ground (which is connected to both solenoids) and connected my ground from the safety switch to it.

Now with that out of the way, you can focus on the IN/OUT leads. There is a single lead, as previously mentioned from each button. Now, inside youre solenoid box, there will be wires that lead to the plug for the wired remote. This is the easiest place to tap into. In my case, there were 3 wires connected to the plug, one IN, one OUT, and one HOT 12 v. You need to sort out which wire is the IN and which is the OUT. Basically, when you hit IN or OUT you ground out one solenoid, and complete the circuit. I found the easiest way to figure out which was which was to contact the manufacturer but it may be labelled in your manual. You could also use a test light, and with the remote figure out which lights up the light when you press in/out.

I spliced into my box as seen below.



After this, I hooked everything back up to test it, and once I confirmed it worked, I coated my solenoid connections with dielectric grease (to prevent corrosion) and then with a grommet, made a space for the new leads to come out of the box. Then I sealed the box WELL with clear silicone...don't want any water getting in there.

Oh, another thing, the wire I used to connect the switch to the solenoid box, was an extension cord that I cut the ends off of, makes for a nice insulated wire.

If you have any more questions feel free to ask. All the wiring will depend on what kind of switch you run, and what winch you have (and the solenoid wiring)...but I can do my best to help you.


Cheers

-Nathan-

-Nathan- said:

Click to expand...

Judging by the bottles; party in the garage?


Seriously, nice build! I wish the 2nd gens had nice places like that to mount switches. I'm having a hard time finding a home for my AFR gauge!

nope just another saturday afternoon working in the shop

Iron Ranger said:

Judging by the bottles; party in the garage?


Seriously, nice build! I wish the 2nd gens had nice places like that to mount switches. I'm having a hard time finding a home for my AFR gauge!

Click to expand...

Thanks for the write up! Definitely going to be helpful in the future.