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I'd use the cleats and not the box link. Those should be plenty strong to winch up an ATV. While it may weight 500 pounds its in tires so it's a lot easier to roll.
Also, skip the PullZall and put a winch on the ATV. If you're by yourself and you get stuck you can use the winch to get you out. I have a SxS and tow it on my tilt snowmobile trailer. It's pretty sketchy to drive it up so I use the winch all the time to pull it up instead. Works great. I have a superwinch terra 35 on it. It's saved me a few times!
It's a Yamaha Raptor. Not gonna get a winch on that. Haha.
I still wouldn’t do it for this application. Unless the design has changed since 2015, which it likely hasn’t, there isn’t any substantial structural support behind the boxlink mounting points. It’s just sheet metal. Reinforcing the cleats with a backing plate to sandwich the bed side panel may create the illusion of rigidity, but I’d fully expect the bed panel to fail along the edge of the backing plate. The load will cause the cleat area to deflect, twisting the backer plate until it shears the aluminum it rests against. These cleats are meant for keeping cargo from sliding around when you turn, brake, or accelerate. They’re not meant to be used as an anchor point for cargo transfer. Dynamic loading and static loading are two very different situations.
There are two proper ways to do this:
1. Use ramps
2. Mount your winch like a fifth wheel, getting your structural support from a crossmember beneath the bed. In other words, bolt the winch onto a crossmember that stretches under the bed.
I have ramps. My post here is geared towards my bike breaking, me being alone, in the middle of nowhere, and not being able to get it in the bed. I may just suck it up and go old school-stand it up on it's grab bar, put it in neutral, walk it towards the bed of the truck, lower the front onto the tailgate, muscle the back end into the bed. It doesn't seem as easy as it used to be 15-20 years ago. Haha
red truck 2013 f150...used a strap between the cargo holds...ended pulling the curve hole out of the bed....made the bar for my 16..now on my 18...no damage and works great for winching in...also holds the front of the machine down...no worries of it going through the window..unless the cable snaps.. see the way the strap pulls the box sides.. with the bar its held straight..locked in the cleats.. also front plate...steel and aluminum dont mix...just my added protection locked in the cleat..
Last edited by Steve Osborne; 10-13-2018 at 10:59 AM.
I have ramps. My post here is geared towards my bike breaking, me being alone, in the middle of nowhere, and not being able to get it in the bed. I may just suck it up and go old school-stand it up on it's grab bar, put it in neutral, walk it towards the bed of the truck, lower the front onto the tailgate, muscle the back end into the bed. It doesn't seem as easy as it used to be 15-20 years ago. Haha
Right. Nobody likes lifting heavy things, especially alone. What we're telling you is that even a 250cc crotch rocket would exceed the load rating of the cleats due to the physics involved. While I'm sure there will be no shortage of anecdotal comments to the contrary, the math is resolute. That's not a load the system is designed to handle. Can you do it? Maybe. Does that mean you should? From an engineering standpoint, absolutely not. The failure would be violent and likely a sudden surprise.
The underlying message here is to proceed at your own risk, or reinforce the connection point with true structural support. This is what I would do:
1. If the winch is mounted on the vehicle being stored in the bed, mount an appropriately rated D-ring to the bed, bolting it through a crossmember beneath the bed.
2. If the winch is mounted to the bed of the truck, bolt it to a crossmember beneath the bed.
Do not depend on sheet metal for structural integrity. You're begging for trouble.
10-12-2018, 05:53 PM
