Currently available winch solutions for 2021+ Bronco

[Bird Dog Off Road]

There is also Bay Area metal fabrication

This may be my new favorite.

Something for the original thread creator to consider is posting the weight of these units for comparison purposes.

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[rutherk1]

That works in theory but in practice you want as much winch power as you can afford/fit as well as a bunch of cable length. This is especially true for a heavy vehicle. You never know how far away you are from a solid recovery point.

Back in the day, I had a very heavy off road truck (8300 lbs) and I knew the winch I carried would be the only way I'd move my heavy butt. My winch had 160ft of steel cable and more pulling power than most winches...that extracted me several times when I was buried or I pulled someone out that was very stuck.

My Bronco will be a daily so I'm looking for a winch mount that tucks away a bit.

My Warn EVO 10S winch was only ~$550. I'd rather have it and not need it then not have it and need it. If you have to pay for a recovery service, it will not be cheap either. You don't have to pay $2-3k for a quality winch.

Yeah. My issue is most of the mounting solutions seem to not be ideal. I had a super cheap champion winch on my RZR and it served me well. I just hate all the mounting options for the Bronco. I also have the OEM metal front bumper so most of the after market units won't work with it. Seems like someone could make a mount that hooks to the tow points on the vehicle.

 

[campbebc]

@Shinoko thanks for gathering all of this info. Have you been able to get install instructions from these companies? Specifically looking to see if there are any (or all) of these offerings that either don't utilize or entirely replace the tow loop/intercooler support bracket. (Green parts)

I'm looking to swap from standard plastic to MOD bumper and don't want to do any cutting, would prefer if I can simply swap my loops with someone that has gone aftermarket and had MOD - https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/thre...d-bumper-for-heavy-duty-modular-bumper.23814/

 

[MUDLVR]

@Shinoko Please add the DVB Offroad Bumper:

https://dv8offroad.com/pages/ford-bronco
https://dv8offroad.com/blogs/news/low-profile-bronco-front-bumper

and

the LOD Offroad bumper:

https://lodoffroad.com/products/2021-ford-bronco-front-bumper

and

the ARB Bumper:
https://rogue-offroad.com/ARB-2021-Ford-Bronco-Front-Bumper-Wide-Body--Non-Winch_p_11656.html

@Administrator do you think this would be better in the following section instead of this one?:
Armor: Bumpers, Bars, Sliders, Rock Rails, Skid Plates

 

[madbaird]

@Shinoko thanks for gathering all of this info. Have you been able to get install instructions from these companies? Specifically looking to see if there are any (or all) of these offerings that either don't utilize or entirely replace the tow loop/intercooler support bracket. (Green parts)

I'm looking to swap from standard plastic to MOD bumper and don't want to do any cutting, would prefer if I can simply swap my loops with someone that has gone aftermarket and had MOD - https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/thre...d-bumper-for-heavy-duty-modular-bumper.23814/

I think this might be what you are looking for? https://www.roughcountry.com/tow-hook-shackle-conversion-kit-rs171c.html#2921=6437
Instructions: https://s3.amazonaws.com/roughcountry/install/92RS1710.pdf

 

[campbebc]

I think this might be what you are looking for? https://www.roughcountry.com/tow-hook-shackle-conversion-kit-rs171c.html#2921=6437
Instructions: https://s3.amazonaws.com/roughcountry/install/92RS1710.pdf

That could do it! Do these essentially mimic the factory mounts that the MOD bumper comes with? Which would allow me to then swap to a MOD?

Edit: Looks like these are only meant to replace the tow loops with traditional tow mounts to be used with the Standard Bumper. It looks like it would interfere if I were to swap to a MOD bumper

 

[mpeugeot]

My Warn EVO 10S winch was only ~$550. I'd rather have it and not need it then not have it and need it. If you have to pay for a recovery service, it will not be cheap either. You don't have to pay $2-3k for a quality winch.

So which is better, the Warn EVO 10s or the Harbor Freight Apex 12000s? They are about the same price (I got the HF one for $529 - they regularly discount it from the $629 regular price).

 

[Bird Dog Off Road]

So which is better, the Warn EVO 10s or the Harbor Freight Apex 12000s? They are about the same price (I got the HF one for $529 - they regularly discount it from the $629 regular price).

Not sure about the Harbor Freight units as I've never used them or know anyone that has. Warn is a tried and true brand that has decades of history. I've not heard good things about the reliability of other Harbor Freight items though.

 

[mpeugeot]

Not sure about the Harbor Freight units as I've never used them or know anyone that has. Warn is a tried and true brand that has decades of history. I've not heard good things about the reliability of other Harbor Freight items though.

Yes, but the Warn VR EVO 10s is a made in China winch also. In some regards, it looks like they are potentially made by the same factory.

 

[Tilzbow]

Yes, but the Warn VR EVO 10s is a made in China winch also. In some regards, it looks like they are potentially made by the same factory.

Made in China doesn‘t necessarily equate to low quality anymore. In most cases, when a Chinese contract manufacturer (CM) takes on a product (or any CM in any country) they build to the specs and quality standards defined by the company they’re building for. In the case of Harbor Freight these standards are cheap and low quality in my experience.

All that said you could be right about the Harbor Feight and Warn being made in the same factory, with all the same parts except for a difference in the badging and an external cosmetic part or two. That’s really common in consumer goods such as appliances.

 

[mpeugeot]

In the case of Harbor Freight these standards are cheap and low quality in my experience.

In many instances, HF does offer many things with poor tolerances and lessor quality. So I agree, it can be hard to tell what is of better quality and what is of lessor quality.

HF really has shot themselves in the foot (repeatedly) in the past for not differentiating the higher quality items from the low quality items; however they have improved in their marketing by now differentiating some of their higher quality products from their lower quality products.

I have not extensively played with the Apex 12000 Synthetic winch yet, however, the initial impression I have from playing with it is that it is one of their higher quality offerings. It would be fun to see which one is actually better, because the specifications are actually pretty close on the Warn VR EVO 12s and the HF Apex 12000 S, and I was surprised to see the spec sheet suggest that the HF was better on paper.

I suspect Warn may have under-rated theirs (over-deliver and under-promise), which would make a lot of sense where your brand name is important (Ford could use to learn that lesson).

 

[Hemisfear]

In many instances, HF does offer many things with poor tolerances and lessor quality. So I agree, it can be hard to tell what is of better quality and what is of lessor quality.

HF really has shot themselves in the foot (repeatedly) in the past for not differentiating the higher quality items from the low quality items; however they have improved in their marketing by now differentiating some of their higher quality products from their lower quality products.

I have not extensively played with the Apex 12000 Synthetic winch yet, however, the initial impression I have from playing with it is that it is one of their higher quality offerings. It would be fun to see which one is actually better, because the specifications are actually pretty close on the Warn VR EVO 12s and the HF Apex 12000 S, and I was surprised to see the spec sheet suggest that the HF was better on paper.

I suspect Warn may have under-rated theirs (over-deliver and under-promise), which would make a lot of sense where your brand name is important (Ford could use to learn that lesson).

This from a guy named Peugeot?

 

[mpeugeot]

This from a guy named Peugeot?

Your point???

 

[Hemisfear]

Your point???

Really, that’s all you got?

 

[Shinoko]

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