Add Stealthfighter Bumper and Winch Combo

Currently running a Gen 2 X20 by Smittybilt, but the remote module has failed a couple of times and I want to replace. 4WP is real good about it and will give me credit to upgrade. However, ADD says that only WARN 9.5 CTI-s or TigerShark 9.5 will fit.

A. Looking at Gen 3 X20

1. Can you run a 12k vs a 10k...they are the same size. Is the bumper rated for 12k strength wise?

2. Anyone have experience with the Gen 3 yet?

B. Looking at the Warn 9.5CTI-s. For another 1200 is it that much better of a winch?
C. Anyone ran a different winch on the Stealthfighter bumper than what ADD recommends?

 

Smittybilt is a good winch however those remotes use up the battery (in remote handle) even when off. I always had to just plug it in and have never had their winches fail on me. The Warns come standard on Power wagon (2018) as mine heated up easily and ultimately burned up but was replaced under warranty. 4WP did an extremely in depth test of several winches and you would be surprised at the outcome. So IMHO Warn is a good company but way over priced ( most expensive and didn’t win the test)
I was going to purchase an ADD Stealth Fighter but had a question about winch access and customer service people were butt heads so I even though their product looks really cool I won’t buy from them.


Question regarding the Stealth fighter - how do you access it to correct bad spooling or just to keep an eye on cable spooling when winching in? Not just ADD but other hidden winch bumpers also ... don’t understand how you can take care of your cable if you can’t see it or access it?

Again the Stealth Fighter is Bad ass just trying to educate myself on these types of bumpers.

 

I was relatively new to the 4 wheeling game when I first put my truck together, so I wasn't thinking about things like..."how am I going to access this winch when I need to free spool or attach the wired remote when the wireless fails..." For the ADD Stealthfigther it's a total pain in the ass to acces those things. I can't imagine being half underwater or snow and needing to access them. I can be done, but if the clutch is bound up then forget it, it have to run out the rope to get the clutch out of a bind. You might say, well you might have to do that anyway, but my point is...your arm is at such an awkward angle trying to access the free spool that you can't put any pressure on it. Anyway...that's literally the only con to the bumper that I can think of...I love a lot more about it than I hate. Maybe some access holes can be cut? I don't know, I just starting thinking about it recently.

The word I get about WARN is that if it's not a ZEON, then it's just like all the other winches out there...just overpriced. So I told my 4WP manager that I wanted to stay with Smittybuilt since a ZEON (10s Platinum Zeon is what I wanted) wouldn't fit. The Gen3 X20 has some nice features for the price...just no wireless remote. I guess I don't care about that too much if the control module can be relocated to an easily accessible location.

To specifically answer your question. I keep an eye on the rope when spooling in to make sure it's working side to side and if it doesn't, I unspool after the job is over and redo. You can kinda see the rope through the fairlead.

 

Great response to questions, thanks for the input!

 

I went with DeMello , shipped yesterday with winch and lights included. I am excited, it is supposed to arrive mid next week.

 

Depends on which 12k winch you want to put back there. A m12000 most likely will not fit behind most aftermarket bumpers. It’s a large frame winch whereas the vr 12k, ZEON 12k, harbor freight 12k etc. are all mid frame. Just something to think about when you’re looking at winches