H3 G style customs winch mount who has one!?

[backwoods]

I personally have one and i am designing/lookin into having someone make a bumper thats not half plastic that we can mount all our winches and grille guards to so they are just put on the back shelf for instance Paladine71 has a bad*ss grill guard and wouldnt change that setup ...unless hes crazy but his week link in the front is plastic my goal is to fix this issue without going ARB i like what thorparts has for a platform and am wanting them to pick up my design that will be based on theres but without the winch mount built in and improve the integrity and take some stress off the tow hook mounting bolts by drilling some holes higher and be backed by steel instead of plastic...who would be interested? and im open for ideas ...i plan on drawing up my design tonight and will post pics...also heres Paladimes71s setup so you understamd a little better

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[08SolarFlareH3]

Not a G-Style mount, they are actually a CBPhoto mount. G-Styles just sells them.
http://www.cbphoto.com/Highmount/

 

[backwoods]

Thanks for the correction but still same situation :beer:

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[ReconH3]

By far the best designed winch mount out there. It may not be the best looking, but by far the most functional. Before I figured out the HMMWV mount fit on my H3 I was going to run a Warn 8274. The custom mount was going to be very similar. We had made one for a G-Wagen that was along the same lines. Main difference is it wasn't going to be compatible with brush guards like CB's design.


"Ex Umbris Venimus"

Sent from my iPhone

 

[backwoods]

Recon first off i hadnt got around to this yet but you have a sweet ride i want to replace my plastic with a custom sturdy bumper like thorparts and make it compatible with CBPhoto's mount with out the big hole thorparts has for their winch to mount to thats why i have mentioned some thing to to the owner of thorparts and will present him with the drawings as well i think this would be a nice optio. Especially for paladine71

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[ReconH3]

It's a great idea because you would get the best of both worlds.


"Ex Umbris Venimus"

Sent from my iPhone

 

[backwoods]

It's a great idea because you would get the best of both worlds.


"Ex Umbris Venimus"

Sent from my iPhone

Exactly sir i wish i was home at the moment my minds a rolling and if theres one thing i can do is draw lol and design stuff

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[Paladine71]

That would be really sweet. I agree that the plastic bumper is the only weak spot. CBphoto's winch mount is extremely well made and strong beyond belief. I have had some really heavy loads on there and it handles it with ease. It also sits high enough that my approach angle is unaffected.

CBphoto, Cris, your stuff is the best! :thumbs:

Having said that, I would be totally open to a redesigned bumper if it were strong but not extremely heavy. I'd even like something to protect that area like this sweet SUT has, as long as my approach angle doesn't suffer.

 

[backwoods]

Well with the the redesigned for gstyle aplication buber would still mount the exact same and should weigh alot less than an ARB as well and as far as that SUT right there i ll see what else i can come up with

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[Hunner]

This guy seems to be working on that and it would work with CB's mount and Thor, it would be 10 gauge steel light pods and hopes to have an optional center piece, if it ever gets done!:shifty:
You never know about this guy and his problem getting the fabshop to pay attention!
http://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/forum/showthread.php?1180-Hunner-EXtreme-exploratory-bumper-thread

 

[Paladine71]

I missed a bunch of threads there for a few weeks with work being hectic. Thanks, Hunner. I have some reading to do, but count us in on the interest.

 

[backwoods]

First idea basically fills the void on the thorparts bumper and its slotted in case you wanna throw an airtank behind ( stole that from hunner) what you think? open to suggestions

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[Sierra H3]

Yep, that is interesting. I strengthened the from end with Ridge Demon's plates and have a CB Photo mount, but have not used it yet due to not having the winch. Actually interested in going hydraulic due to a need to drag around felled trees and brush on my property. I agree the main issue to be careful of for a stronger bumper would be weight.

 

[backwoods]

Yep, that is interesting. I strengthened the from end with Ridge Demon's plates and have a CB Photo mount, but have not used it yet due to not having the winch. Actually interested in going hydraulic due to a need to drag around felled trees and brush on my property. I agree the main issue to be careful of for a stronger bumper would be weight.

Agreed but at the same time this wouldnt be a tank such as the ARB hold on let me get a pic

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[backwoods]

Also keeping the same dimensions as thorparts kepps weight down since it doesnt extend all the way to the edge of the truck ... And they use 16ga steel its a little added weight over plastic yes but well worth it
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[4speedfunk]

I got backwood's rendering....Thanks. First...a couple quick comments about the THORparts bumper, and how it mounts to the truck. Those of you that own one, know that its actually (4) separate pieces. The grille piece gets attached to the radiator support. Then the light pods bolt to that. Then the bumper is a completely separate piece and bolts to the frame of the truck. The picture of the bumper sitting on my deck is somewhat mis-leading...the pods and grille appear like they are part of the bumper but, they are not. I recommend leaving a 1/2" to 3/4" gap between the top of the bumper, and the bottom of the pods. This is because the grille/pods will move independently with the body, which is mounted to the H3's frame with rubber biscuits.

Because of how it is currently made...its tough to adapt the existing parts to look like the sketch backwoods came up with. It would require some new tooling and a few mods to how I'm currently cutting the metal. I think a second grille (in front of the existing one) would be do-able. Then the fairlead mount and the extended part of the bumper would have to be cut off. It would basically be nothing more than a metal version of the stock front end. The backwoods sketch is actually a nice looking design (without a winch), and I'm sure it could be done. But, I'm not sure how attractive it would be with the CB-mount stuck on in front of it. Nothing against the CB-mount...it fills a niche in the market, that nobody else has. Its an inexpensive, simple, proven way to add a winch to your H3 without any mods in about 10 minutes. Its old-school off-road gear at its finest, and there are a lot of em out there. But, to engineer a new bumper from the start, fully-intending to add a CB-mount on top of it seems a tad misguided. I mean, if you're gonna put the time & effort into making a bumper...you should incorporate the winch into it. Whether it starts with mine, CB's, or something completely different.

What if you took the stock THORparts and made a sheet-metal cover for the winch? Form it so it mates up to the light pods, and put your slots in it (for cooling). You could make it removable to expose your winch on SAT-SUN....and quickly re-install it for MON-FRI commuting and such. That way you get a nice looking hidden-winch design...but with all the working benefits of a fully-exposed design. Just thinkin out loud.

 

[backwoods]

on the same lines i agree with having a winch mounted pretty much in the same spot ...but why not make the front include the fairlead mount as well an maybe have an access hole just in case of winch issues?...also was there an issue with mounting a warn winch on a non body lifted truck? Is there any reason we couldnt make the bumper a solid one peice but keep the similar styling which is attention grabbing as well ?

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[backwoods]

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

Screwed around for a few hour this is basically it but would either be like 5 3 inch holes accross the front for air flow all thes dimensions are close but could be off since i havent actually had a thorparts bumber in front of me nor did i remove plastic...input here!

 

[backwoods]

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[4speedfunk]

Wow...black spray paint? Dude you're over the top! Now thats a mock-up!

why not make the front include the fairlead mount as well an maybe have an access hole just in case of winch issues?

Why not just buy an ARB, DOI, or Road Armor? Save yourself a ton of headaches, (and money).

also was there an issue with mounting a warn winch on a non body lifted truck?

Not an issue with Warn per say. The issue is with the Warn Powerplant. Its a winch/air compressor combo, and its too tall to clear the stock plastic grille.

Is there any reason we couldnt make the bumper a solid one peice but keep the similar styling which is attention grabbing as well ?

Again...the ARB is all of those things, without the fabrication and cost. In fact, it might be cheaper to buy an ARB and take a plasma cutter to it. You could trim off the excess fat and leave the winch mount and attachment points in place. You could also do this with the THORparts, but its not one-piece like you're wanting. The light pod design I came up with, are very complicated pieces. They are formed in a high-tech press-break to very exacting angles. I make them from 16ga. because that thickness can be formed to nice, tight, corners. Because of this thickness...they are then TIG welded by hand (these guys are true artists), to keep distortion to a minimum. If I were to try and make them from 3/16"...they would have larger radius's on the bends, and I simply could not make them as precise. Also they would weigh more than the bumper itself! Those little guys will cost you a fortune to make.

It would be very easy and cheap to take a THORparts front bumper to a fab shop. They could weld (or bolt) the pods to the top surface of the bumper. This would get you very close to what you're after. Then you could cut the extended platform and fairlead mount off the front edge of the bumper, and weld-in a piece to make it flat. This would allow you to mount your CB shelf on in front of it. Then all you have to do is make your own grille to fill-in betweent the pods. In fact...you might even be able to re-use the 16ga. grille that comes with it, to make a new one. It would be an easy task, and get you what you're after. I can't imagine it costing more than a couple hundred bucks.

If you want to build a one-off bumper like your cardboard one from scratch...you're probably looking at $2000, and a week without your truck. I think it would be far cheaper and faster to start with a bumper that has all the mounting holes and structure figured out.

 

[backwoods]

Alright well i guess ill save up and buy one of your bumpers and modify it

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[backwoods]

Anyone out there have there bumpers off that would be willin to take some pics an measurements for me
?
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk