2017 Tacoma TRO Off-Road. My "off-roading" has been mostly limited to rough and sometimes washed-out roads leading to trail heads where I wanted to hike. When my wife retires, we're going to get a 15'-17' off-road trailer and spend more time off-roading. Likely finding a place in a national forest, preferably not too far off a dirt of gravel road, parking the trailer and making camp, then exploring off-road in the truck without the trailer.

I want to get a brush-guard/winch-mount setup for my front end but I have zero experience with them. Warn seems to be a good brand for winches from what I've researched. The array of brush guards/winch mounts/light racks/push-bars/etc. is bewildering. I need some help filtering out the noise and focusing on the good stuff, please.

Question 1: For a winch, I think I want something that can pull 1.5 times the weight of my truck's max GVW plus the max GVW weight of the trailer. Is this sufficient?

Question 2: I'm pretty sure I want a brush guard that covers the full front and wraps around the headlights. I predominantly see these made of steel or steel and plastic. Most of the magazine articles I read preferred steel over plastic. Thoughts?

Question 3: What's a ballpark cost to hire someone to install a full-size brush bar, winch mount, and winch?

Question 4: What brands should I be sure to check out? What brands should I avoid?

Thanks for the help!

This may (or may not) be helpful.

I am concerned about installing a battle ship that is only anchored by necklace chain.  Investigate just what structure that awesome piece of steel is backed up by.

Also, I have heard anecdotal reports of insurance refusing claims on structural damage behind unyielding aftermarket bumpers.

https://www.bayareametalfab.com/

https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/103252-warn-vr-evo10-winch-w-steel-cable?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAivGuBhBEEiwAWiFmYWD68SxljxdOAVEbjX2HXzg5Et5C_9uV84CBBSFglQPofrFRdwCzLRoC2osQAvD_BwE

I can install a bumper and winch in probably about 3.5 hrs by myself. For you, stick with the cable over rope and get a few steel shackles, tow straps, and a quality pulley. That setup will get you out of anything you might get into from the sound of it.

Tacoma winch bumpers go from mild $600 to wild $1500+. I had a Warn Hidden Winch Bumper on my 2019 Toyota 4Runner.
Example of the same for a Tacoma:
https://sdhqoffroad.com/products/16-current-toyota-tacoma-semi-hidden-winch-mounting-kit
Shop around for the best price.


I'm on my 3rd winch, a 12k synthetic Badlands Apex. I had 2 steel cable winches previously.
https://www.harborfreight.com/12000-lb-winch-with-synthetic-rope-and-wireless-remote-56385.html
Find a coupon. Pay for the 3 year warranty. If it ever dies on you, swap it out at any Harbor Freight store in the USA. When you get close to the end of the warranty period, swap it out for a fresh one.

You will regret steel cable the 1st time you get stabbed by a broken cable strand, through your leather glove. That hurts!
You will also regret steel cable when it bird nests on you, every time you free spool it.

I have pulled some crazy heavy stuff with my Badlands Apex 12k synthetic using both straight pulls and 1 or more snatch blocks:

A 40ft RV stuck in the mud:
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A 2500 Chevy stuck in the mud downhill:
Attached File


A huge tree, my wheeling buddy's chainsaw was stuck in:
Attached File


A bunch of smaller vehicles.
Gladiator:
Attached File


Grand Cherokee:
Attached File


Another Grand Cherokee stuck in the mud:
Attached File

GoRhino makes a brush guard with winch plate attached.  I had one on my Tundra.   It.worked.great, saved my butt quite a few times.

All Tacoma bumpers more or less, install the same way. Watch a couple youtube videos and install it yourself. You can do it.

You will need a socket set, a basic wrench set, and maybe a torque wrench. A floor jack and a board can be helpful for holding the bumper while you bolt it to the vehicle. All of which can be bought at Harbor Freight.

Battery operated tools (Milwaukee, etc) makes things go a lot faster.

You don't need to pay someone to install a bumper.  


If your Tacoma still has a stock suspension, you will need to upgrade it / add a lift to support the weight of a bumper and winch.
Figure about $100 a corner for a lift installation. For that I pay a professional. They can install a lift a lot faster than I can. If I were you, I'd skip the 2inch lift and go straight to a 3 inch lift. It's a buy once cry once proposition.

You should also look into rock sliders and skid plates.

Personally I much prefer the CBI Off-road bumper options for a full bumper or Southern Style Off-road options for a low profile bumper. Demello and C4 Fabrication also make nice winch bumpers that Are quality components.

Great information, everybody. I'm learning a lot!

www.tacomaworld.com
https://tacomabeast.com/products/toyota-tacoma-low-profile-bumper
With the Bandlands Apex 12000 synthetic roap from harbor freight.

That's how I went with my 17.
Something you need to think about is that you are going to add 150 lbs or more to the front of the truck, so it's going to drop in the front.
My taco got a 2.5" OME lift as well. And that led to bigger tires.

Looks good but...

How do you access the winch controls with that bumper? Do you have to reach behind the grill or is there an access point on the top of the bumper? My Warn had big holes above the Fairlead to access the winch controls.

Attached File

I have a question, please. What's the relationship between lift height and the added weight on the front bumper. How does increasing lift height mitigate the added weight up-front? Is it because it changes the angles of deflection caused by the additional weight?

I would have thought stiffness would be the way to mitigate it but, as I said up-front, I have zero experience with winches and precious little with recovery.

Second question, please. Is there a good resource I can access online to learn more about recovery? Given all the forces and resulting safety risks involved, it seems like something I'd be well-served to learn before I'm faced with having to do it. I saw everything from tie-down chains to arresting wires snap on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier and I want nothing to do with releasing tons and tons of energy into a flying cable-end, chain, shackle, or whatever.

Thanks for the help!

Taller springs with heavier duty shocks will both support the weight of the bumper and winch plus possibly give you a better ride. A lift also allows you to put taller tires on your vehicle. Without the suspension lift (shocks and springs) you will note the front end sagging plus the vehicle bottoming out on the trails.

I would avoid spacer lifts or lift blocks added to your stock springs - suspension. I did that on my 2006 Nissan Frontier and the ride was absolutely horrible.

The 1st mod I did to my 2019 4Runner was All Terrain tires. The 2nd was a Warn Winch Bumper and Winch. I noticed the front sagging and the vehicle bottoming out frequently because of the additional weight on the front. My 3rd mod was a suspension lift with upper control arms. That stopped the sagging and bottoming out.

On my 2nd tire change I added 33 inch mud terrain tires, rock sliders, skid plates, and a behind the grill light bar. The aftermarket SPC upper control arms improve the ride and handling of my non-KDSS TRD OR 4Runner. Ultimately all that steel armor made for a heavy vehicle. But where i off road we have rocks and lots off them.

I ultimately went to a 2 door Jeep. It just fits on the trails I wheel on better being skinny and tall. My 1st mod was a 2 inch lift, 33 inch tires, and a winch and bumpers. I've since gone to 35 inch tires. I have not added any additional armor in the form of skid plates or rock sliders.

My Jeep is lighter than my 4Runner was and sneaks around tight trees and over rocks better than the 4Runner did.

You might spend some time reading over at this forum, look at the pinned topics.  
https://www.tacomaworld.com/forums/3rd-gen-tacomas-2016-2023.186/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/forums/suspension.18/

RE Vehicle Recovery.

I've taken 2 off road recovery classes from Aaron Paris of Switchback Outdoor Safety.
https://www.switchbacksafety.com/

The 1st class was both safety and a hands on winching class at a Rendezvous in the Ozarks - Overland / Trail Riding weekend that is held yearly.
The 2nd class was all classroom covering the same things again. I took it because there were multiple members of my off road club taking the class. To include a bunch of our lady off-roaders.

Aaron stresses using quality rated recovery gear. He also sells it.
https://www.switchbacksafety.com/product-category/recovery-gear/
I've been upgrading my recovery gear overtime from Chinese garbage to rated recovery gear.

Myself and a few of the other members then did our own hands on winching / recovery class with the ladies and had them use their winches and set up the rigging.

Me in the middle discussing tree saver usage.
Attached File


I've also led a couple off road recovery classes with my Off Road Club.

You might contact Aaron and ask if he has anything scheduled out west. He's from Missouri but teaches all over the country.  

On a similar note, I would recommend you join an Off Road Club in your area. Hands on recovery experience comes from using your gear on your own vehicle & others. Facebook is a good place to find groups. I admin for my Off Road Club  - the Mark Twain Mafia plus the Missouri 4x4 Rescue facebook group.

On that note I'd bet there is a Washington 4x4 Rescue group. These are all volunteer groups that rescue people stuck off road for free.
Also join this group on Facebook / their website. It is a nationwide volunteer off road recovery group.  
https://offroadportal.org/

Lastly, if you haven't done so already, get a book on off road driving and read it. I still refer to this book I bought back in 2006 when I bought my 1st 4wd vehicle. It has a section of off road recovery.
https://www.amazon.com/Four-Wheelers-Bible-3rd-Complete-Adventure/dp/0760368058

Thank you very much, Sir! Wonderful information. Exactly what I needed. Thanks for taking the time to "steer" me in the right direction.

I'm on it.

Attached File


A wheeling buddy made the following sticker for me and I agree with it.
Attached File


Lots of beginners love to brag about never getting stuck. My response to them is you're not trying hard enough.

Read up on Tread Lightly. Tread lightly ultimately means going through / over an obstacle on the trail vs going around it.

"It's funny because it's true."
-- Homer Simpson

Thanks!

Anytime brother!

1 last thought - Safety should be on your mind all the time. How can this thing I'm doing kill someone or myself if something fails? How can I prevent that from happening?

Great advice. Thanks. Safety focus comes pretty easy to me; I spent a couple of decades in military aviation, including test-flying experimental aircraft. I've also seen a lot of catastrophic failures from my early days in the Navy, when I worked on the flight deck. Stored energy that can be instantaneously released deserves a lot of respect and I try to give it to it. Heavy metal flying through the air at supersonic speeds scares the ever-living shit out of me and that's a good thing.

Safety is a big reason I'm wanting to invest in a winch and in making sure I know what I'm doing so I can do it properly.

On that note, there have been a couple recent incidents where someone was killed or wounded resulting in a life flight from off road recoveries gone wrong.

It's a good idea to review these incidents and apply the lessons learned to your own gear and practices.

Some basics - don't use a trailer hitch ball as a recovery point. Most people have heard this. They can break off and fly through a windshield killing the occupant. Late last year a guy used a drop hitch to pull out a stuck vehicle. The drop hitch and ball broke off and flew through the stuck vehicle's windshield killing the driver.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mb3BkeeXlIo




Recently a guy in Canada had a soft shackle attached to a kinetic rope go through his windshield an almost kill him. I blame wrong tool for the job. He attached the soft shackle directly to the recovery vehicle's steel bumper. The recovery vehicle sent it and snapped the soft shackle sending it flying into the stuck vehicle's windshield hitting the driver.

This is a long video but it's worth a watch.

Attached File


A snapped steel winch cable can cut a person in 1/2. A snapped synthetic winch line will leave some bruises.
Ronny Dahl on youtube is Toyota guy in Australia, I think he's done some videos on snapped winch lines comparing steel to synthetic. They are worth a watch.

I'll add some videos and pics in a few from my phone. My home internet is really slow.

Thanks. I read a thread here just recently discussing at least one of those incidents. I've used my truck to pull my tractor out of the mud a few times but my little tractor only weighs about 2,000 pounds and it was on level ground. I picked up a straight hitch and D-ring shackle and used a synthetic tow strap for that purpose.

I have an engineering background, albeit in flight test engineering and mostly avionics. But it's enough for me to understand that towing or pulling with something that has a 90-degree angle poses additional risk. I may not be able to calculate the forces involved but I can usually see the obvious stuff.

Take your time. I'm about to launch off into a busy day of provisioning, shooting, working out, and cooking. I may be retired but I'm not dead.

I carry and use a hitch shackle frequently either on my vehicle or the stuck vehicle.

Example
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CQFUQ6?tag=arfcom00-20[/url]

I just winched a kid stuck in the mud Sunday using that as a rear recovery point on his vehicle.

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTLdCGxDy/

Analyzing that vid: I started with a winch blanket on my winch cable but didn't put it back on for the video. He was mostly free at that point.

Would it be more safe for me to have my hood up? Yes. Theoretically synthetic winch lines fall to the ground when they break. However having the hood open would've given me more protection.

So that brings up another point. What gear should you have to go with your winch?

I carry a lot of recovery gear that I have used with my winch. Some of this is basic and some is advanced. I will make note next to the item for basic vs advance.

1. A weighted Winch Blanket aka a Winch Damper (Basic Must Have)
https://www.warn.com/winch-cable-damper-91575
This is a must when using steel cable. It weighs the cable down. If the cable snaps the dampers job is to drop the cable to the ground.
Theoretically this not needed for synthetic winch cable as synthetic doesn't react like steel cable when it breaks. I should probably have 2 of these but only have 1.

2. Tree Saver (Basic Must Have).

I started with a RhinoUSA made in China tree saver. It got cut in 1/2 on a sharp front bumper. I replaced it with this one from Switchback Safety:
https://www.switchbacksafety.com/product/sos-tree-saver/

What's the purpose of a tree saver? Wrapping a winch line around a tree and connecting the hook back to the winch line will work. However it will kill the tree and possibly damage the winch line. A tree saver when wrapped behind around a tree is a short static (no stretch) recovery strap that allows you connect your winch hook to the strap's end loops.

Other uses - connect a snatch block to the tree saver. Use the tree saver to tie the rear of your vehicle to a tree or another vehicle. A tree saver can be used as a bridle on a stuck vehicle that doesn't have a good front recovery point.  

3. A static (non-stretching) 30ft recovery strap (Basic Must Have).
https://www.switchbacksafety.com/product/sos-static-recovery-strap/

I have the above one. It replaces a RhinoUSA that also got cut in a similar way.
This can be used for gentle pulls on vehicles that are stuck or unable to get over a rock ledge. It can also be used to extend your winch line. This past Sunday I used mine with a hard shackle and snatch block to initially pull that stuck Chevy out.

4. Hard Shackles & Soft Shackles (Basic Must Have)

I like having a couple of each type.
https://www.switchbacksafety.com/product/van-best-3-4-shackle/
https://www.switchbacksafety.com/product/treaty-oak-offroad-dillo-hide-soft-shackle-sos-edition/

I had a cheap Chinese D-Ring Shackle that came on my Chinese Jeep bumper fail. The threads wore out on it in a year. I replaced it with the Vanbeest shackles.

Uses for the metal d-ring? Connecting a snatch block to your tree saver or 30ft static strap.

Uses for a soft shackle? Connecting your tree saver and 30ft static strap together for a longer pull. Connecting a strap or kinetic rope to a stuck D-Ring.

I have 3 soft shackles, 2 of which (Gator and Smittybuilt brand) are looking worn out. The 3rd is this Harbor Freight Badland soft shackle. It's almost the same quality as the above Treat Oak soft shackle.
https://www.harborfreight.com/soft-shackle-58168.htm

5. Snatch Block (Advanced)

I consider it a must have. I have 4 but primarily use 2. With 4 you can winch backwards from your front mounted winch. I've never tried it. I use 1 snatch block frequently and 2 snatch blocks occasionally.  
https://www.harborfreight.com/forged-snatch-block-58175.html

Using a snatch block with your winch allows you to double the winch's pulling power. A 12k winch becomes a 24k winch. Using 2 snatch blocks doubles that. My new personal rule is Snatch Block Everything.

Maximum winch pulling power is based on a couple wraps of the winch line on the drum. So the more line you can pull from your winch = more pulling power. The last section of synthetic winch cable on my Harbor Freight Badland Apex winch is Red. When using a snatch block I pull all the cable off the winch except for the red portion.

Here's a simple 1 snatch block recovery I did on this gal's stuck Gladiator posted above:
Attached File


Sunday, I didn't want to get too close to that stuck Chevy as he was in Deep Mud.
I 1st put a hitch shackle on his truck and then connected my 30ft static recovery strap to that. On the end of the strap I connected my snatch block with a D-Ring Shackle. My winch line went through the snatch block and back to my Jeep's front bumper. The 1st pull freed him from the nasty hole he was stuck. He wasn't completely out yet.

This is an example of what I did for the 1st pull:
Attached File


The 2nd straight pull w/o a snatch block (tiktok video) was to get him past the soupy stuff. I then turned my Jeep around connected my kinetic rope to him and pulled him the rest of the way out. I used the kinetic rope like a static strap.

Gear continued.

6. 100ft Winch Line Extension (Advanced)

https://customsplice.com/collections/winch-rope-extensions/products/3-8-extension-diamond-line-winch-rope
This, plus your winch line, plus 2 or more 30ft straps, a tree saver, and a 30ft kinetic rope will get you to that far away tree.

It's also fantastic for double snatch block pulls. My buddy did this double snatch block pull on another stuck chevy:
Attached File


This winch pull is called a Spanish Burton.
Attached File



Not mentioned - Pulley Snatch Block Wheel and Soft Shackle. This is a replacement for a the traditional closed heavy metal snatch block with steel Bow Shackle, above.
https://www.amazon.com/Factor-55%C2%AE-SOFT-SHACKEL-00264/dp/B0BBWLMWR4
This linked one is probably the best one out there. The teeth on the wheel somewhat hold your winch line on the wheel. Most of them don't have the teeth and your winch line can slip off. You don't want you winch line rubbing on the soft shackle. That's how you cut a winch line or the soft shackle.

As we saw in the Canadian incident - soft shackles are weak and break. I just don't like the idea of putting all that weight and force on a soft shackle. Especially when using it with a snatch block.

I'm not a fan and don't own or use one. It's a hot item right now with Overlanders trying to save weight - which to me, is dumb. I'm driving a Jeep not backpacking with recovery gear. A wheeling buddy of mine is a fan of them we frequently discuss them but I so far have refused to convert.

My friend Jason who used the Spanish Burton above is a fan of those soft shackle / wheel snatch blocks.


He and I were pulling downed trees off the trail at a 90deg angle and used his winch line extension attached to my Jeep.
We weren't using the winch.

This is the setup:

Attached File


Can you guess what happened? The winch line fell off the pulley. We caught it before it snapped. A closed snatch block with steel shackle would've prevented that. We had to have a person out there holding the pulley till we had tension on the line. Then it worked.

no expert on Tacoma's but for the last 30 years I have run(on Land Cruisers) ARB bullbars and USA made Warn winches(9.5, 10k to 12,000) as well as Warn 8k upright 8274's on older Land Cruisers(40/45's)  my oldest Warn was made 1982...and its still going strong and parts are still available

never been disappointed with either ARB or Warn, they make good stuff and the ARB deluxe bullbars still look good(same basic design for 40 years) and offer good protection. Warn's however have become very spendy and there are other options now.

our Cruisers with winches all have a 2" suspension lift which i think is still the sweet spot before you jack up other stuff

@Cascade-Dude

I just thought about https://www.tacomaworld.com/find-new/17869652/posts and figured you could find some valuable info on how to set up your rig if you want to go more in depth on setting up your rig.

I started off with something like this and upgraded shocks on my 14 before I went all out and built a Moab capable machine.

ARB is the answer.

Thanks for all the help, everybody. The ARB bars look nice and rugged.

I'd go US made over Arb. Screw those Australians... Lots of Arb stuff is made in China, do double check.

Arb bumpers are good to go though.

Except...
They don't come with front recovery points. You will also want to buy some front recovery points go with the Arb bumper.
Arb has gone all safety conscious with impact ratings etc. Getting in an accident with an Arb bumper will result in the bumper being destroyed / crushed. I seen some wrecked Arb bumpers overseas.  

We're a little less safety conscious with the construction of our US made winch bumpers. A US made winch bumper will destroy another vehicle and except for lost paint, look brand new afterwards.

I'm drawing a blank on the company name right now but a US company that sells Toyota winch bumpers actually advertises that capability. Why is that important? Off road, I hit stuff with my bumpers all the time - frequently on purpose. I use my bumper to push over dead trees.

Having a heavier steel bumper that will withstand a vehicle crash... has the added benefit off allowing you to push through a road block - stopped vehicle, in a BLM Antifa riot situation. That may come in handy when Trump is elected.