I'll be curious to see if you feel the move has been worth it.
I use my winch for utility purposes a lot, so steel has typically been a better idea for me, but at this point I don't like messing with that sort of thing unless I have to. I really want to lighten that front end, and it comes down to counting ounces when you've got all that steel up there.
Funny thing is, I designed a better bumper that's much lighter, but I still like the Trek unit I've got. It just sticks out a bit farther than it needs to, and I fucking forgot to weigh the thing.
I'll be having it adjusted soon to flush it up a bit, and I'll have a chance to see what it weighs. My design should be about 80-90lbs bare, but I'm expecting a bit more weight out of the Trek bumper.
At this point I don't remember how hard it was to lift. Couldn't have been too bad, though.
Moving to synthetic line, and eventually getting all the batteries back in the rear could help make a big difference. I'd have to get another winch or drum, though, as I don't think synthetic would like my drum after all that use.
I think lighter stuff is available now, anyway. The 9.0RC is something I considered a while back. Once I get the thing back in the condition it deserves, I'll be more interested in picking something up.
Cheers,
Kennith