new winch install..

I tack welded 2 pieces of angle iron over the 4 bolts so nobody can walk away with it.
But thinking... Whats to prevent someone from switching the **** to Free spool and pulling out all my cable ? or cutting it off..

I'm thinking about fabricating a hinged cover for the right side.... /lock box.

anyone else do anything like this or am I worrying too much?

 

I think your over thinking things,Worse a new rope for it depending brand and all that 100 bucks and up.

 

Not sure what kind of rope is on it.... The guy I bought the winch from said he paid $300.00 for the rope alone....

 

Bad news, thieves steal. Cant stop em, only slow em down. Depending on where you take the jeep is how theft conscience you must be. I work in the shipyard and drive my jeep to work. Anything of value is left at home. Including the winch, it's mounted on a receiver tube. Radio is a stock unit. Doors are unlocked. I pray they don't get overzealous and ****** the bumpers or wheels/tires.

If you park your vehicle in similar areas, I recommend you wrap the winch line around the bumper and lock the line to itself. Will slow them down.

 

If you look hard on amazon you can find it for a little over 100 bucks.Or master pulls cheapest one is 140 http://www.masterpull.com/classic-synthetic-winch-line/ which is for 6k to 8k winches,And always take what the guy you bought it off with a grain of salt,Think of them like a used car salesman they will say just about anything to get you feel like your getting a deal and buy it off them.

 

Yeah,
I hear ya.

I think it may be the high dollar Warn line... everything he gave me was genuine Warn ... D-rings, resse hitch cradle, misc adapters... even the fancy Warn ditty bag...

 

Actually if anyone needs this thing,
I'd give it away "locally" for a 12 pack of Busch....

Hollar at me,
I'm not on the site often..
203-695-1010 TXT

 

It could be but i have no idea off just a picture,The oem stuff can be good but if i break it id upgrade to amsteelblue/masterpull or something thicker and stronger.As far as anyone messing with it i doubt most are smart enough to free spool it to do it.Honestly if they wanna steal it they could find a way,And don't wanna scare you but these jeeps aint that hard to start.Id park in a well lighted area keep the best insurance i can afford and don't leave stuff laying around inside it that screams break in here,You know like a cell phone or tablet/ipaid and you should be safe.Or be like me clean your guns on your front porch once a month lol.

 

Winch on receiver mount is the best option, but I bet if you pulled tension on one of your shackles you couldn't turn the release lever. Also install an inline disconnect inside the engine bay as they could probably figure out how to jumper your remote input port to extend and retract the winch. I have a disconnect on my winch wiring even though it's just to a plug. In the winter up here, salt + snow + 12V = the plugs contacts get green corrosion. Might even prevent some corrosion on the relays in the box if not 100% sealed.

Edit: Definitely don't leave your shackles out on the bumper either...that's just asking for it:P

 

I installed the relay kit, so no power unless the key switch is on ...

not super worried about it, was just curious.... this thing is just my dog hauler/secondary vehicle.... got a good deal on the winch though... and said why not... maybe I will need to pull out some shrubs someday...

Good point on the tension/release lever.

 

Shackles....

I'm fixin to tack weld the ends of the bolts... soon as I grind off some of that sweet smelling galvanize.

 

That' makes them unusable...unless it's just for looks? you could just toss them in your glove box or under the back seat?

 

Lol, after a winter, the shackles need channel locks to open. Seriously though, never had anyone mess with my ****. But he'll, people have had their jeeps stolen from their driveways. Scumbags will be scumbags. I can break into an XJ in 2-4 mins with a clothes hanger.(keys got locked in mine lol)

 

Don't tack weld the shackles! WTF?! They are a tool not a bumper ornament. Dammit man. Leave them in the recovery gear box until they are needed. Who wants to listen to them clang around while you drive anyways?

 

bad idea says it's a bad idea...

didn't mean for them to be ornaments, figured I could still loop a chain through them... but yeah, they probably DO make a racket...

OK, in the box they go.

thanks.. I'd weld a snake if he would sit still...