For my readers that own 4x4, or service trucks of some sort, and are equipped with a front mounted winch, I have found a workable solution to replace jamming your front license plate up on the dashboard, or using bailing wire to hold it to the grille...
On my 2004 Ford F150, I have an Engo E9000 winch installed on a Go Rhino brush guard / winch mount. It looks great, and pulls even better. But living and driving in a state that requires both a front and a rear license plate on my vehicle required some serious digging...
At first I tried the Smittybuilt roller fairlead license plate bracket. Simply put, Don't bother. The weight of the unit itself simply slides down the rollers, there is great lateral control and hold, just not vertical, and no permanent mount of any sort, just grab and pull and off comes your license plate for any thief that wants an easy plate to steal...
I found out the hard way how easy it was to lose my front plate. Earlier this week I got a call from Officer Muir of the Friendswood Texas Police department asking if I drove a beige Ford truck...
Fearing my truck had been stolen, I shakily responded yes I do... Is there a problem?
He kindly informed me that he believed he might have my license plate, it was found in my church parking lot...
I guess I parked too close to the bushes on Sunday.
A quick order of the EZ Flip License Plate bracket and a quick installation and I now have the problem permanently fixed...
I should have noted the fit notes. My Engo E9000 appears to be nothing more than a rebadged Smittybuilt 9K, and the fairlead looks the same. The EZ Flip says it does NOT fit Smittybuilt... I found out the hard way, they are right...
Some quick grinding with my rotary tool and the holes were elongated sufficiently to securely hold the bracket, and off to the races I went...
I have a suggestion to the folks that make the EZ Flip. Why don't you set your laser cutter to make the mount holes elongated such that it will fit Smittybuilt, and Warn style roller fairleads? It might take an extra half a second in manufacturing, but would open up a MUCH larger market for your product!
Bypassing that issue, the install went very smoothly.
Step #1. Gather tools needed. These include a Phillips head screwdriver, Outward opening spring clip pliers, a 1/4" socket set with extension and U joint, and a set of metric allen wrenches.
Step #2. Unbo the unit, and remove the protective plastic from the metal surfaces.
Step #3. Using the small flat head screws and locknuts, attach the plastic clips to the metal frame.
Step #4. If your fairlead is installed correctly, the spring clips will be on the BOTTOM of the roller fairlead. Careful remove the clips and pins leaving the rollers in place.
Step #5. Assemble the license plate to the frame. Top of plate goes toward the hinge.
Step #6. With license plate facing away from you, line up the mount holes in the hinge ears to the holes in the fairlead, and reinstall pins.
Step #7. Reinstall spring clips. If you have them available, now might be a good time to get new ones put on.
If you did everything correctly you should be able to swing the plate down into position, and click it on to your rollers to secure it. Pulling in a rotating motion from the bottom of the plate unhooks it and the spring swings it up and out of the way to allow for winch use...
This thing is just so brilliant, and necessary for those of us in 2 plate states to avoid tickets that it ought to be included with the winch, or at least the fairlead... Like I said, this thing is brilliant!
Speaking of brilliant, there is ONE configuration I can think of where this will NOT work... On my fairlead there are holes right behind the pin holes to mount off road lights. If those lights were mounted, they would interfere with the operation of the plate bracket. Long story short, won't work, at least not well...
Now that I am done, I have a solid, secure, and somewhat good looking plate mount that keeps me from getting the attention of my local police department.
All things considered, a win win for me!
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