Bend in Part of frame
 

This is my first post, and not happying to be posting unfortunately :S

I have an 09 fourtrax 420 canadian trail edition.

I'll try to describe this the best i can without pictures.

behind the front bumper, there the winch would normally go or behind it, there is a piece of frame going across from left to right its flat and has 3 holes in it about the size of a quarter.

When i was stuck, i went to take a piss and my friend who doesnt have a clue hooked the winch into one of those holes and pulled me out.

When i looked the piece i described was bent out , not too bad but enough to notice and enough to piss me off lol, i was able to bend it back using a combonation of a rubber mallot and a pair of plyers. i dont think it was bent bad enough to bend anything else connected to it.

just wondering what your opinions are on this? do you think theres a chance something else could be damaged? what is that cross member for anyways? can just that piece be replaced? i dont think its a big deal but im really particular over my new ATV and it was a stupid mistake to start with. i googled this but couldnt find anything, partly because i dont know the proper name for where the hooked the winch on. any adivce would be appreciated.

also mods if this is the wrong section please move it.

http://img840.imageshack.us/i/91841814.png/

this is a pic

Just to make it easier.

https://img840.imageshack.us/img840/8593/91841814.png

Does not look to be part of the Main frame, how does it steer and feel,like normal still?

yea its perfect, ive driven it for about 5 hours since this happened, i didnt even notice until i got to lookin for something to do last night.

and just to add to this the piece i am talking about has the vin stamped on top of it.

Looks to be a light secondary frame member,to support the rad bracket or bumper, you should be OK.

Next time getting help out of a spot, hook somewhere on the much stronger main frame.

copy the VIN, unless you have it in your paperwork, for future reference. doesn't look too bad to replace. probably be able to order the part and replace it at your convenience, sometime before surface rust sets in along with the mud into the torn metal.

I wrecked the front of my RINCON by hitting someone doing like 55.. it mangled the small frame stuff but the rest was straight as an arrow.. I wouldnt worry about any frame damage...

I would do my best to clean off the part and coat it with some paint to preserve the VIN as best as possible...just for the sake of avoiding potential future identification issues.

Next, try to mount a tow point somewhere so that your numb-nutted buddies don't repeat the error the next time you get stuck.