Mounting hi lift jack to Brush guard

[Cyborg]

I have serached for detailed info on how best to mount my hi-lift to the top of the brush guard on the ARB winch bumper I have. I have seen a couple of pix and have sent messages requesting more info from these guys but have received zero response.

I am looking for the best solution for doing this. I have devised the following and am wondering what others think of this idea.

I want to have two blocks of steel machined that have a curved bottom that form fits to the top bar of the brush guard. I picture these each being about 4 inches long. I will have 3 holes drilled thru them and they will be tapped. The blocks will be about 1.5 inches wide or so since i want these blocks to be able to (Nestle, SP?) into the rail of the jack against the holes and between the sides of the "I" beam of the jack rail. (Damn this is hard to describe) So in essence with these blocks mounted the jack could be simply set onto these blocks and it would not fall off. The 3 holes would mean that i would have 2 bolts going all the way through the bar from the bottom and screw into these blocks. The third one in the middle would be a extra long one that is the same but sticks up extra long to allow wing nuts to be threaded onto it to retain the jack. I imagine the possibility of drilling a hole through one of the studs and putting a small padlock on it for added security.

I would prefer to weld these blocks onto the bar but it is powder coated and I would rather not destroy a large part of it's finish and have to repaint and have it look like crap. When I get these blocks made up if anyone else is interested i could arrange to have more made for anyone else interested in the same type of mount.

Any suggestions/advice would be appreciated.

Larry

[loykd]

Larry, That sounds pretty slick. Would look great.

Below is a pic of one I saw mounted to the roll cage, over the passenger door. It's made using u-bolts and a piece of flat stock. I can picture it being adapted in a similar fashion to the brush bar.

Also, I recall Yousef or Art V had a pic showing another simple mount to the top of their brush bar. (I'd search for it here, but until CVC implements an artificial intelligence search feature, you wouldn't see it from me for days...)

[Art Vigil]

WOW Larry:eek:

That sounds way too complicated.
First off, which ARB bumper do you have?
The newest versions (circa '99) have two CB antenna tabs built in that are perfect for mounting a high lift.
You just need to get creative with washers & bolts. A quick trip to the local hardware store should be all you need. I saw one guy who used a pair of bushings as spacers with washers on top. He just ran a bolt through the center. Worked (and looked) great.
Do you have these tabs?
Here's a link to a photo of an ARB on a Disco, same design as the Defender bumper though. Note the antenna tabs (by the "N" and "R" in "Land Rover" on the hood):
ARB Bumper (https://www.expeditionexchange.com/arb/DSC00745.jpg)

If yous doesn't have these, maybe something like this will work:
https://www.expeditionexchange.com/arb/DSC00022.jpg
It's specifically for antenna's but I don't see why it wouldn't work the same way.
I pulled both photos for Expedition Exchange's website:
Expedition Exchange (https://www.expeditionexchange.com/)
I'd give John or Ho a call and ask them for their opinion, before you start grinding on your nice bumper.
Good luck,

[mhansen]

DON'T GRIND!!

It is true that the holes don't line up from the tabs to the holes in the high lift, but you can fab a simple adapter. Ill take a picture of what I did when I get home and post it.

[Art Vigil]

Here's a shot of my setup. I have a Rockware bumper with tabs but the idea's the same.
The high lift goes between the washers I'm holding:)

[Mike Hippert]

Funny, I was thinking of mounting the highlift on the brushbar also. Jimmy a friend of mine has his mounted on the ARB on his Disco 2. It has 2 brackets that bolt to the light tabs on the top of the brushbar.

[snuffer]

Larry, in my opinion the jack needs to be mounted in a spot where you don't have to look over or through it.

I know a guy that has his mounted on top of his ARB in a Disco I and you just can't see over the front of truck.

I think the ability to see over your front end so well is just another advantage a D90 has over most other 4X4s.

[dmarchand]

I have to agree with Randy. I had mine mounted on the brush bar, and decided to remove it as I felt it was complicating my field of vision. It's worth mounting the lift up there just to see if it will bother you. I had mine mounted up there for a year or more before swapping it out.

I also used TJM mounts to place the hi lift on my brush bar.
http://www.4by4connection.com/bulbarac.html

[Cyborg]

Hey guys, Thanks for all of the input. I do not know which version I have of the ARB winch bumper but I do not have two tabs up high that could be used for mounting it. I have two tabs down low just above the winch. On the top I have only one tab for a whip antenna. I like the idea of the light mount brackets that clamp on. I am just concerned that it may not hold a hi lifts weight under off road stress. I gues it may also matter which position it is mounted in.
Anyone have particular knowledge of these light mounts that clamp on being used for a hilift?? I will contact John at Expedition Exchange and get his opinion.

Larry

[dmarchand]

Larry, using the TJM mounts (clamp mounts), held my hi lift just fine. And I was definitely doing quite a bit of wheeling last year. I would use the TJM mounts over the ARB mount as they are of a better design (stronger).

[bugula]

Originally posted by loykd
Below is a pic of one I saw mounted to the roll cage, over the passenger door. It's made using u-bolts and a piece of flat stock. I can picture it being adapted in a similar fashion to the brush bar.


thanks for posting this! i've been overthinking (apparently) a solution to mount the hi-lift to the door's bar. this is much simpler. :grin

[ronward]

The light tabs on the top bar of my ARB are spaced perfectly for the holes in my HiLift. I ran a long bolt up through each hole and then ran a nut down the bolt to hold them in place. A washer and then a steel sleeve about 3/4" diameter and about 1" long (came with the mounting hardware spares supplied with an AB steering guard) gives me enough height to allow the jack mechanism to clear the bar. Cap it all off with a wingnut and it's done. Couldn't have been easier and cost me nothing.

[Mike Hippert]

I did the long bolt method this weekend on the ARB. Actually I used threaded rod and double nuts to hold everything in place. On a side note, if your highlift jack handle does not have the pin holding it in at the base then it will fall out on the trail in the dark just as you are going through a mud hole and you will never see it again. A 1" pipe will fit just perfect as a replacement, and as an upgrade use galvanized pipe.