Don’t Forget The Backside | Rear Bumper & Winch

It seems that enthusiasts frequently overlook the rear bumper when building their trucks. Their thinking must be, “the only problems I’m going to have are going to be in front of me.”

But that’s just not the case. While you may not be bumping your rear bumper as often, there is a definite need for a stout base, and just as much need for recovery and lighting accessories on the back of a 4x4. If you’ve ever tried to rescue someone behind you on a tight trail, then you know how useful rear recovery equipment can be.

Front winches are for going forward. Rear winches are for recovery.

And if you’re out wheeling by yourself and drive into something you can’t go any further forward into (or onto), then you better hope you have a rear winch because a shackle and a tow strap does no good if there’s no one to pull you backwards. One could argue that it almost makes more sense to have a rear winch than a front winch. Front winches are used to continue on forward, while rear winches are to get you back out of the stupid stuff you just drove into.

If you’re making a recovery of another vehicle, you’re better off using a rear-mounted winch than a front-mounted winch. The same goes for tow or shackle points—rear points are preferred over front tow hooks when having to pull a stranded vehicle.

So give your rear end some love—it may be your own butt that a rear-mounted winch is saving someday.

Rear lighting like these Rigid Industries Dually LED lights are perfect for backing up and for hooking up recovery equipment in the dark. The Dually’s four LEDs provide a lot of brilliance from each light. If you get really trick, you’ll hook LED lights like these up to an “on/on” switch, with one of the “ons” leading to your reverse lights. That way they’ll automatically come on when you throw your truck in “reverse.” Since LED lights have such a low amperage draw, there is the possibility of connecting them straight into your stock back-up light wiring and not having to run relays and switches.

Rear lighting like these Rigid Industries Dually LED lights are perfect for backing up and for hooking up recovery equipment in the dark. The Dually’s four LEDs provide a lot of brilliance from each light. If you get really trick, you’ll hook LED lights like these up to an “on/on” switch, with one of the “ons” leading to your reverse lights. That way they’ll automatically come on when you throw your truck in “reverse.” Since LED lights have such a low amperage draw, there is the possibility of connecting them straight into your stock back-up light wiring and not having to run relays and switches.