Rear hitch mounted winch

Would a rear hitch mounted winch be a good idea to slap on if you had to make a trip to the mountains in the snow or is the hitch not strong enough.

 

Yes and no.

I have used receiver hitch mounted winches many times. They have value. Like any use of a winch the risk of damage to your vehicle or others comes from the guy running it.

 

I have both front and rear hitches on my Tacoma. I frequently run the winch from both ends. It's a safe, practical way to be set up, and way more versatile than just having a winch in the front bumper.

 

I might buy a hitch mounted winch plate then if its practical, i seen some at tractor supply ill have to look more closely at them. I guess one mounted on the rear would be better than nothing.

 

I use my winch for work more than wheeling. When wheeling, I winch from the rear more than the front.

 

The rear hitch is the strongest point on the rear of the truck to winch/pull from (assuming it is a factory hitch).

 

I have used a front mount winch for self recovery countless times. My hitch mounted one I have never used for self recovery. I have used it for moving a 40' sea container (rolling on 4” schedule 40 pipe) into position, pulling a main electrical service into a 2000A main in a food plant, loading vehicles onto my flatbed trailer and loading a 2000lb lathe onto my flatbed.

It is handy as hell but weighs a TON. 125lbs for the winch plus the mount which I would say is at least 15lbs. I have electric forklift battery connections on it to connect to my 1ga battery cables. On my old truck I had theses connect to a pigtail directly to the battery. Currently I would use the clamp ends of the cables to the battery.