Adding a winch: Trail Gear bumper or Marlin Crawler bumper?

[Tornadom]

Hello off-road forum people.

In the coming weeks I am hoping to add a winch bumper and winch to my 2nd gen 4Runner. At that time I would also like to install a rear bumper that has a 2" receiver and/or D-shackle recovery points made into it. I probably won't do much of any towing, but the receiver is nice for bike racks and other things.

I've looked around for pre-made bumpers since I lack the equipment to bend tubing and possess only marginal welding skills. In my search I have found 3 winch bumpers: Warn, Marlin Crawler and Trail Gear; given the absurd cost of the the Warn bumper I have ruled it out.

That leaves me with the Marlin Crawler and Trail Gear bumpers. Both companies offer a winch bumper for the front of my 2nd gen and both offer rear tube bumpers with a receiver. Price wise they are similar and the appear similar in overall design. Marlin Crawler is a semi local company for me (about an hour south of my location), and I do like supporting local companies. Then again, the Trail Gear stuff looks really nice as well.

Is there one brand that stands out above the other, or perhaps one that has features not contained on the other?

Any input on this will be helpful.

Also, any suggestions on a winch would be helpful. I am not a rock-crawling, weekend warrior, so I most likely will not need the best of the best in winching technology. I do however, want a reliable and simple winch to provide me a bit of help out on the trail should I encounter trouble.

 

[fourwd1]

How about some pics so people can check them out and give you their opinion?

 

[Tornadom]

How about some pics so people can check them out and give you their opinion?

They are very similar bumpers in design, which is why I was hoping to get the opinions of people who have actually used one or the other. Nevertheless, any help is better than none and I am open to all of it. Here you go:

Trail-Gear front bumper:


Trail-gear front bumper installed:


Marlin Crawler front bumper installed:

 

[fourwd1]

The 2 TG bumpers are slightly different, and the 1st TG one looks like the best design of all 3.

On the 2 TG's I like the beefier trusses from the hoop to the main horizontal bar, compared to the MC.
If they had a vertical plate from the winch mount to the main bar they'd be even stronger.

Probably not the answer you were looking for , just my .02

 

[fourwd1]

Oh yeah, the hitch receiver on the TG is a nice touch too.

 

[Tornadom]

The TG bumpers are model specific, and I believe the picture of it shown unmounted is the actual model for my 4Runner. As for the MC bumper, it too has a receiver, but it is hard to see in the picture.

 

[Tornadom]

Probably not the answer you were looking for , just my .02

Actually, that is exactly the kind of answer I was looking for. An answer that points out subtle differences and highlights technical specifications.

Thank you for your input.

 

[Richard_]

I like this one , Addicted Offroad
Pirate4x4.Com Bulletin Board - View Single Post - Addicted Offroad's new Toyota winch bumper

 

[manhunter]

The first TG has the double bar across the front, which is better than the second TG. The TG winch mount areas also have the plate that your fairlead is attached to, whereas the MC looks like just tabs. Of the three options, I would go with the first TG. Addicted Offroad also makes very good quality bumpers, but I think it will run you more. Make sure that whatever you get is made of good DOM material and not some cheap tubing junk. On the winches, a good quality winch for the price is the Smittybilt XRC8. Go ahead and spend a few extra bucks and get it with the synthetic rope.

 

[Tornadom]

manhunter - thank you for the reply. Would the XRC10 Comp (synthetic rope) be overkill for a 2nd gen 4 runner?

 

[manhunter]

manhunter - thank you for the reply. Would the XRC10 Comp (synthetic rope) be overkill for a 2nd gen 4 runner?

I have the XRC8 Comp (synthetic rope) and it works fine. The XRC10 would not necessarily be overkill, but you would need a minimum of the XRC8. Either one would work fine. Good luck on your choices.

 

[Tornadom]

Thank you for the information. A buddy I wheel with has an XRC10 on his YJ, so I figured something smaller on a larger vehicle would be insufficient. After talking to him it sounds like he expects his winch to pull him straight up the side of a rock going uphill, so I imagine that is why he has a 10k pound winch. You and most others have agreed that an 8k pound winch is a good starting point and probably enough for my needs.

 

[Awz]

Don't know much about the front bumpers. Still looking for one on my 1st gen. (I don't really like the stingers), But have a trail-gear rear bumper, which survived a Hyundai a few weeks ago with only a few scratches in the paint. And I've hitched checked a couple of times in Moab, it's pretty sturdy. I can imagine the front bumpers are just as good, as they're made from the same material.

 

[CAN-03runner]

They are very similar bumpers in design, which is why I was hoping to get the opinions of people who have actually used one or the other. Nevertheless, any help is better than none and I am open to all of it. Here you go:

Trail-Gear front bumper:


Trail-gear front bumper installed:


Marlin Crawler front bumper installed:

This first TG bumper looks like it has some side bracing? Does this bolt to the frame?

I'm sure I can see a side bracing on the second TG, the Marlin or the Addicted bumpers. Coming from the 4th Gen world, side bracing was all too important. Is it sufficient on the 1st Gen, to only bolt to the 6 bolt points on the front even for side pulls.

I would think that all the force of the pull gets transfered to the front bolts unevenly on a side pull. But with frame braces on the side the load is also transfer to the side of the frame.

So the better bumper is the one with the side braces. I have no experience with either one it just makes sense to me in my mind... so if someone does have this experience on a bumper/winch mount with out side braces and winches regularly, maybe you can confirm or deny.

 

[Pikeman]

Tornadom- standard rule of thumb when buying a winch is 1.5x's the vehicle weight minimum but most recommend 2x's. This allows for the different multipliers for drag/resistance to recover your stuck vehicle.

Addicted off-road makes some good stuff but I also like the first TG one you posted

 

[04rnr]

marlin

 

[Hyde802]

Not sure how old this thread is but if you dont have one yet, another company to look at is 4xinnovations.

Edit: just looked. Thread started on 10/15/2010 and according to his sig, he does not even have the runner anymore.

CAN-03runner: The side bracing is good, not available on 1st gens without some custom work. The bumpers of 1st gens mount with 4 bolts to the front. The 2ng gens have 4 on the side, but still have the holes for the 4 front also. Is also suggested to reinforce the front 4 bolt because they are known to pull out under load. Addicted offroad makes a nice plate to go over them to make them stronger and add 2 more bolt holes. Hope that helps.

 

[Ross]

I like the bumper with the receiver in front. I have a small boat I like to get into tight places and a hitch in front would be advantageous for me.

As far as winches. I known a few that have gotten Smitty built winches and they have had problems, and they are painfully S L O W. I have had my Warn for over a decade and it has served me well.

 

[CAN-03runner]

Not sure how old this thread is but if you dont have one yet, another company to look at is 4xinnovations.

Edit: just looked. Thread started on 10/15/2010 and according to his sig, he does not even have the runner anymore.

CAN-03runner: The side bracing is good, not available on 1st gens without some custom work. The bumpers of 1st gens mount with 4 bolts to the front. The 2ng gens have 4 on the side, but still have the holes for the 4 front also. Is also suggested to reinforce the front 4 bolt because they are known to pull out under load. Addicted offroad makes a nice plate to go over them to make them stronger and add 2 more bolt holes. Hope that helps.

Yeah, this thread is a little old, but good info is always good info.

I've seen the 4xinnovations, I really like the rear bumper with the double tube. I find the single tube a little bare, better for departure angle, but looks wise it looks naked....

I don't see any shackle mount and not in the written description either for the front. I guess you can use the took hook if still available/accessible?

My choise would be addicted front bumper and 4xinnovations rear bumper.

I'm still warry of no side bracing. Maybe it's just me still being a 4th Gen guy and prudish...:nerd:

 

[KidVermicious]

I've seen the 4xinnovations, I really like the rear bumper with the double tube. I find the single tube a little bare, better for departure angle, but looks wise it looks naked....

I dunno about other states, but safety code in Utah wants a 4" bumper. I've have friends get dinged for their 2" or 3" single tube bumpers. Not an issue if it's a trailered rig, but something to think about.