Rough Country XJ winch bumper installed

[mprmnc]

I know I was here a while back and there were a few people interested in seeing more Cherokees with the new Rough Country Bumper. I was going to fabricate one because none of the ones I found were quite what I wanted. I tossed it around for a while and finally made the decision to buy one. I am VERY impressed. One of the biggest reasons I bought one was the fact that the winch is recessed into the bumper, a design I very much prefer. No winch blocking airflow and just hanging out in the open. I wasn't initially crazy about the bolt on D-ring mounts and grille guard, but the D-ring mounts seem fine now that I have them on. I don't like the light bar and HATE the stinger, but having the holes already there allow me to design my own grille guard and bolt it on making it easy to remove the grille if I need to (without having to remove the whole dang bumper.)

I was a bit worried about the number of bolts required to bolt the thing together, but EVERY bolt hole in the bumper and brackets lined up perfectly. I needed to make some small adjustments to get in on my Cherokee, but only because my Jeep has been wrecked in the front twice. For anyone wanting this bumper and wanting to know how it's made and the quality, they are FIRST RATE!!! Here are a few pics.

You can see in the first pic the bumper on my truck that I fabricated.





I'll come back after I build the grille guard and light mounts and update the thread.

 

[XJLI]

looks well together but damn that thing is a picnic table.

 

[mprmnc]

Not having been around too many XJ's with winch bumpers, I don't think it sticks out too far at all. There is one around here that has a bumper that mounts the winch on top and it sticks out every bit as far. It does look flat though. That might change after I've done the grille guard.

 

[98stocker]

Not on my list of favorites, but if you like it, and you don't plan on wheeling where that thing is gonna hit all the time, then my opinion doesn't matter!

 

[CaliXJ]

looks well put together but damn that thing is a picnic table.

X2... Great place to have lunch on the trail.:looney:

 

[xjbrian219]

X2... Great place to have lunch on the trail.:looney:

x3.... and a great step ladder for reaching into the engine bay

 

[clean4drxj]

looks well together but damn that thing is a picnic table.

x3, I see a good 2 to3 inches it could be moved in.

 

[planewrench]

We moved one back by removing two inches from the front of the mounts. Had to do a little trimming on the corners of the bumper where it comes around the fenders and, I believe, where it contacted the radiator support. We used an RC winch with the relay box mounted remotely behind the front crossmember. The only mod required to the jeep was a quarter inch trim off the bottom of the grille to clear the winch. I think this bumper is a good value and this mod made it look better.

 

[whitexj98]

We moved one back by removing two inches from the front of the mounts. Had to do a little trimming on the corners of the bumper where it comes around the fenders and, I believe, where it contacted the radiator support. We used an RC winch with the relay box mounted remotely behind the front crossmember. The only mod required to the jeep was a quarter inch trim off the bottom of the grille to clear the winch. I think this bumper is a good value and this mod made it look better.

Pics?!

 

[Cherokeekid88]

I really like that bumper. yeah its a bit bulky but I do like the design

 

[mprmnc]

I really like the look of it too. I was going to design and build my own, but the Rough Country was so close to what I was going to build anyway and the price just didn't make it worth it to build my own. If I'd built my own I'd have tucked the winch a little tighter, but I would have made the bumper to fit that specific winch. They have to design the bumper to work with a while variety of winches. I still think they did a great job with it.

 

[93bluebeast]

Yes i know "reviving old thread ooooh" now that thats out of the way i have been looking at gettin a winch bumper, was thinking of going with jcrs or maybe even rough countrys but from the websites pictures that thing does look like you would just be pushing boulders with it. Anyone have any ideas for a decent bumper with good approach angles that are right around the 400 dollar range? And please nothing with a 4 ft tall stinger that sticks out over the hood like rustys. My jeep gets made fun of enough. Lol

 

[themauler]

I think this guy still sells his.

http://gear-geeks.com/bumpers.html

 

[Green XJ Jeep]

http://detoursusa.com/xjbackbone.php

 

[chuck619120]

Check out these:

http://aresfabrication.com/shop/xj-stubby-winch-bumper-stealth/

http://aresfabrication.com/shop/front-evolution-winch-bumper/

 

[ROBZ95Xj]

Yes i know "reviving old thread ooooh" now that thats out of the way i have been looking at gettin a winch bumper, was thinking of going with jcrs or maybe even rough countrys but from the websites pictures that thing does look like you would just be pushing boulders with it. Anyone have any ideas for a decent bumper with good approach angles that are right around the 400 dollar range? And please nothing with a 4 ft tall stinger that sticks out over the hood like rustys. My jeep gets made fun of enough. Lol

https://www.theflopshopoffroad.com/collections/jeep-xj/products/jeep-xj-winch-bumper