Finally finished messing around with the 12,000lb winch project

[supermanotorious]

My goodness, now 3 threads spanning 3 years (first, second) I finally wired that 12,000lb Harbor Freight winch. Part of the motivation was that my truck got stuck at Stoneman Lake both weekends I went to install the gate. The truck is 2WD which was a huge oversight, lapse in judgement when I was vehicle shopping. However I love that truck and it's pretty infrequent that I go offroad.

So recovery gear is my solution. My dad has a name brand winch and IMO the silliest system for connecting his winch to the battery. Let's just say it involves ring terminals, bolts, and wing nuts. I've been telling him to get the SB50 connectors and he is just stubborn about it all. So the other part of my motivation to finish was showing him how easy my winch is to connect to the battery.

I mounted the project box to my air cleaner box and routed the wire along side the radiator as it works its way to the grill area. I buttoned it all up with wire loom and zip ties. A quick test of the winch and it works excellent. My daughter filmed me showing how easily it connects and disconnects and I'll post the link below.

I also notched my lower valance so that it can be installed and the winch or other accessories can be installed. (Speaking of other accessories, how about a simple front ball hitch? My dad has long told me how easy it is to direct a trailer with a front ball but get this: I CANT DO IT! Its actually hilarious. My dad taught me how to back a trailer before I got my DL, in fact- years before. As a 16 year old at Lake Pleasant, AZ, several seniors from my high school asked me to back all their jet ski trailers on ditch day because they didn't know how. If you've ever launched your boat at Lake Havasu, Site 6 to be exact- you're familiar with the hecklers- I literally silence them when I launch and load. So I'm saying I'm an expert at BACKING a trailer. My mind is so wired towards backing trailers that I can not figure out how to front pull/push a trailer to save my life. I can only laugh at myself when I try because I get the same feeling that most women get when they try to back a trailer.)

For the wiring, I decided to leave the control box on the winch and just run power and ground to the SB50.

Now I need to build a heavy duty crate/wooden box to hold and stabilize the winch in the bed of my truck when not in use and get the wireless controller. I also ordered D-ring shackles and snatch blocks today from 4wheelparts.com but will need a ground anchor that I'll probably fabricate myself to round out my recovery kit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9_H_4SC9xI

 

[ezcome-ezgo]

Nice set-up.

 

[chancer]

A little off topic, but my work truck is a similar model. how about that battery location! Genious on the part of Chevy, I played Heck trying to get jumper cables on underneath that giant Fender mount. But all in all a great truck I totally understand why you love it.

 

[supermanotorious]

Yup, its a pain to access the battery, mine died and I swapped it out in the AutoZone parking lot but absolutely had to remove that support. As for jumping, you could always put the ground on the engine ground bolt and avoid going under the fender support BUT maybe you should put a SB50 connector on the truck and cut off the clamps from one side of your cables and put a SB50 on them, then you wouldn't even have to open the hood to get or give a jump.

 

[chancer]

Yep My wife has on of them connectors on her truck that hooks up to jumper cables. She does not even have to open the hood.
My truck is a company work truck. so you know not mine.