M37 winch bumpers

[Sgt Jiggins]

Hello All,

While taking the front bumper off of my wo-w M37 to press out a dent, I remembered an older buddy has a set of winch bumpers kicking around. Huh... maybe it's time to fab a plate and put a 12vdc winch on the old girl...

Which leads me to ask:

1)are the winch bumpers the same for both sides or are they side-specific?
and
2)are the frame-end mounts the same for both the full bumper and the winch bumpers?

Cheers,
SJ

 

[Evil Dr. Porkchop]

The bumpers are side specific, one side is slightly longer than the other. They mount the same as a full bumper too.

 

[gringeltaube]

Hello All,

While taking the front bumper off of my wo-w M37 to press out a dent, I remembered an older buddy has a set of winch bumpers kicking around. Huh... maybe it's time to fab a plate and put a 12vdc winch on the old girl...

Which leads me to ask:

1)are the winch bumpers the same for both sides or are they side-specific?
and
2)are the frame-end mounts the same for both the full bumper and the winch bumpers?

Cheers,
SJ

To 1): Drivers side is about 1-½" longer than pass. side.
To 2): Yes, but for extra support, the winch bumper (halves) each take an additional bracket on their inner ends, which firmly attaches them to the stock winch frame. You might want to consider this when fabricating your mounting plate.

 

[Sgt Jiggins]

gringeltaube, thank you for the pics. that answers the question of the bumpers directly. and raises a question in my mind about the mounts: from what I can see of your pic, those are the same mounts I have on my truck... maybe it was a ww truck in a previous life.

cosmetically, the truck is largely faithful to what they were. the wheels aren't stock (1/2" plate from Stockton wheel) and the 1100x16 XZLs are a giveaway something isn't "correct" with the truck. but otherwise, it "looks" (nearly) like what it was when it rolled off the assembly line in 1951. I've sat on these winch bumpers for almost 20 years because I didn't want to alter the look of the truck. but when i recently removed the front bumper to press a dent out of it, it really made me rethink that because it gives a very different look to the front end of the truck.

do you have a ww and wow truck to compare handling differences? I have many mods 'under the hood', but power steering isn't (yet?) one of them. thinking about spending the weekend seeing what it would take to fab up a 3/8" plate to put a 15000# warn 12v winch in that space. just don't want to spend a lot of time on it only to find it tips a balance.

 

[gringeltaube]

The mounts ARE the same for both versions, as Evil Dr. Porkchop already said. The only thing you prob. don't have are those two inner brackets....

I only had this one truck for a short time. Got the winch and PTO, rebuilt them both and then made the conversion. Cut the original bumper to create those "bumperettes". Had to fab the frame extensions too; also replicate one of the brackets shown above, since it got lost somehow...

I didn't notice any difference in handling - before/after - but again, I didn't get to drive it much at all, before it was sold.

One thing about the M37-WW-design: both frame ends are not rigidly connected any longer. That means that any force applied to the bumper end would tend to bend/twist the frame! Imagine a loaded truck hanging from those paper-clips...

.... Except, if it had some kind of truss running underneath, in between of both bumpers.
I'm sure that the part encircled red in this picture is exactly that...


I found this picture only after doing my conversion. The truck was later retrofitted with a piece of 1-1/2" × 5/16" flat stock, accordingly.
From dozens of winch trucks I have seen so far, none had this truss in place. Apparently not many have thought about this...?

 

[Sgt Jiggins]

Yea, I wondered the same... it seemed "vulnerable" having those ends "flailing around". I use quotes because it's relative... but yes, a weak point on the truck, agreed. I had planned to truss the frame substantially with a large mounting plate underneath. But now, thinking about this point more, it may be more appropriate to stick with a full bumper with a cutout and roller fairlead. Bonus, it keeps the original lines more faithfully too.

 

[just me]

The top plate and tie rod of the winch help to tie the two sides together.

 

[1Pinkerton]

If you’re still running 24v system then a 12v winch won’t work unless you have a separate system for it.

Im putting an additional winch on my 52’. A 24v mounted on the headache rack to pull in logs.

My PTO winch is not the Garland but it’s a Tulsa winch and poorly welded in. There was no roller tension bar so I added one.

 

[Monkeyboyarmy]

I'm casually looking for winch bumper parts to put a winch back on an M56 that I have. If you end up having spares or going a different route, i would be interested.

 

[Sgt Jiggins]

I have the PTO, the Garland winch housing (missing an internal gear/cog I think?), the bumpers. Could fab the top bracket and be done with it but for a minor hitch:

I dropped a 318 in it probably 15 years ago. Getting the PTO to route around that would probably be more hassle than it's worth. So I'm looking at Warn 15000# 12v unit. Not optimal (I'd rather than the PTO winch honestly), but it will do for what I need it to: self-recovery and recovery of the SEE (God forbid I ever get that thing Really stuck!)

If you’re still running 24v system then a 12v winch won’t work unless you have a separate system for it.

Im putting an additional winch on my 52’. A 24v mounted on the headache rack to pull in logs.

My PTO winch is not the Garland but it’s a Tulsa winch and poorly welded in. There was no roller tension bar so I added one.

 

[Sgt Jiggins]

I'll try to keep that in mind MBA. I think one of the M37s in the junkyard may have bits and pieces you'd be interested it. I already have orders to post pics of my next trip out there.

I'm casually looking for winch bumper parts to put a winch back on an M56 that I have. If you end up having spares or going a different route, i would be interested.

 

[1Pinkerton]

Might only be missing a shear pin. I’ve got only one shear pin and the schematics for the Garland, wish I had the Garland over the Tulsa.

Have you cracked that winch open to ascertain if it’s only a sheared pin yet? I’m willing to bet it’s missing that rather than a gear cog. If so, then you can resell the Garland for a pretty penny. Many buyers out there want that winch, including myself.

Did you scrap the 24v system? If not there’s many manufacturers that make a step down inverter so folks can run 12v devices. Average price is around $40.00. I’ve kept the 24v system and have ordered the step down unit so we can power our phone chargers etc.