1997 Ranger Hidden Winch Plate

[ekhunter]

I’ve done a lot of searching and can’t seem to find anyone who makes or has fabbed up a winch mount that hides the winch within the factory bumper. Has anyone heard of anyone doing this, some drawings or even pics would be nice. If not then I am going to go ahead and go from scratch and build something up…I kind of like the way the front end looks and don’t want the big steel winch bumper messing it up!!!

 

[ShhhhhDougsHere]

I like your post.
And I agree I like the look of most factory bumpers.
And there's a lot of non-factor bumpers that I do not like the look of.

 

[sgtsandman]

I’ve done a lot of searching and can’t seem to find anyone who makes or has fabbed up a winch mount that hides the winch within the factory bumper. Has anyone heard of anyone doing this, some drawings or even pics would be nice. If not then I am going to go ahead and go from scratch and build something up…I kind of like the way the front end looks and don’t want the big steel winch bumper messing it up!!!

I don't recall seeing anything like you are looking for made for a Ranger. It's probably going to be something you have made or make yourself.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

So I’m gonna move this to where it belongs…

And yeah, gonna have to be something you fabricate yourself. I’ve gone to building my own custom bumpers lately.

 

[Shran]

I don't remember seeing anything like this that you could buy off the shelf. Space is pretty tight under there - I'm not sure if some winches would even fit without lowering the mount down below the bumper (defeats the purpose.)

Front mount receiver hitch might be a good alternative, you could mount a winch to a receiver cradle and just remove it from the truck until you think you might need it.

 

[ekhunter]

Thanks for the replies, I am gonna finish up the 4.56 gear swap/repair and then I’ll look at how I can build something. I’ll post some pics as I get it underway.

 

[Uncle Gump]

I believe @Lefty stuck a small winch behind his bumper. I'm pretty sure it would be under sized for for an off road rig. I think it might be a bit newer also.

 

[Shran]

Having needed to use a winch a lot over the years I think an 8000lb model is the minimum anyone should run for a Ranger size rig so that is what my size & space thoughts were going off of. A 5000lb winch might fit better, an ATV winch would for sure fit...but why undersize something like that... especially with the tiny cable those come with.

That said I wheeled with a guy who had a Nissan brand ATV winch on a Jeep and he got hung up pretty hard on some rocks, and it actually pulled him through the obstacle. I was expecting the line to break or the winch to come apart, or the whole mount to rip off as it was all pretty janky. Still, why take that risk.