Any ideas for removable winch mount?

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I bought a small Warn winch that originally I was going to make a brace/bracket to go into my hitch. But I would have to run 4 gauge wiring from the battery for that distance. If I mount it in the front of the pickup box, I can use 6 gauge wiring and the smaller 50 amp connectors (in leau of carrying a second battery in the bed). The front wall of the box doesn't seem strong enough so going through the floor and a crossmember seems the better option. But I would like to remove the winch on occasions - any ideas on this would be appreciated, thanks.Last edited by tpcollins; 08-10-2011 at 08:06 AM.
Reply:Well, I recently made a removable brace for mine that is basically a piece of 4" C-channel that goes across the width of the bed and then each end has a down tube that fits snugly into the stake pockets about 10". In the center of the C-channel is a plate that the winch bolts into.Its very functional as I can locate it in any of the stake pocket pairs (front, middle or rear) depending on what I need to winch into the bed. Obviously you have to use a little common sense since the stake pockets were never designed for much lateral loading but if you just need to winch in a lawn tractor or a 550lb. welder on wheels, it works great. Also, we're talking about a 91 F-150 that has seen some better days so I'm not all that concerned about scratching the top of the bed rail.I just keep the wire coiled up around the winch and connect it to the battery with HD alligator clips. The whole arrangement stays in the pole barn and I just drop it into the stake pockets when I need it. I can put it in place solo in about 2 minutes. Comes out the same way.Eric
Reply:you might look into doing something like a fifthwheel hitch. some that I've seen have two sections of C channel mounted to the frame rails through the bed floor, and a raised cross member. If you don't need a flat floor on your bed, you could make the cross member removable with some heavy duty pins.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:I would not skimp on the wiring,   go to walmart and you can buy a set of HD jumper cables that are 4 GA for about $25 then you will have all the wire you need.Tiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:Install a trailer hitch reciever to the front and the the winch to the hitch tube.  you can remove it / intall  it when you want.  Same process used when people do not like to back boats & trailers around.
Reply:What's the line pull rating of the winch and what purpose do you plan to use it for? If it's to pull you out of a mudhole when your stuck, go ahead and make it a slide in rig to go in your reciever hitch. This will be the strongest place to winch from. Then go ahead and mount a reciever hitch on front like akpolaris said and you can winch from the front or back end. Take southpaws advice and don't go cheap on wire, use 4ga. or larger wire where ever you mount it. Even if you put it at the front of the bed, you can't go wrong with heavier wire. If you get it in a heavy bind, you'll be glad you had the bigger wire to pass the amperage when you need it. You could go with 1/0 welding cable, make one run from the battery and use the truck frame for the ground.