Recommended 12k Winch And Mounting Plate For A Trailer Hitch Receiver

Question:

I have a Silverado 3500 HD Crew Cab Gas V8. It has the trailering package. I would like to mount a winch to the receiver. Receiver is the larger one like 3” 5/8 or something. I believe the hitch tows 14,000. I was thinking of a 12,000 pound winch. I need to winch as much as safely possible. 1. Are there any hitch tongues designed for winches? Or what would work? 2. What would I need from an electrical standpoint? 3. How videos on how to wire this?

asked by: Matthew S

Expert Reply:

For a 12k winch I recommend the Bulldog Winch Trailer Winch # BDW10039. Bulldog is a well-known name in the winch community and this specific model comes with a wireless remote that you can use to easily activate the winch from anywhere within a 100' radius.

To get this winch mounted to your trailer hitch you'll need the Bulldog Winch Hitch Mounted Winch Mounting Plate # BDW20011 and a reducer. You should have at most a 3" receiver tube opening so I recommend double checking the opening to determine what you have. You'll measure the inside of the receiver tube and not the outside. Assuming you have a 3" opening you would need a reducer like the # C45408. Let me know what you end up measuring and I'll try to find a different reducer if yours is larger than 3".

As for the wiring, you'll have a few different wires to hook up. Starting with the shorter wires you'll have a positive, negative, and ground coming off of the control box which are all color coded to match up with on the motor of the winch. The longer positive and negative cables will run to your battery. I've attached a short video below where Dave will walk you through this process with a similar winch from Bulldog.

If you need longer cables to make it to your battery then Bulldog has two kits to help, 7-1/2' # BDW20347 and 24' # BDW20348.

If you have any other questions please let me know.