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Bertram31.com General Bulletin Board
Re: Windlass advice
Posted By: Joef In Response To: Re: Windlass advice (cwj)
Date: Wednesday, 30 March 2005, at 10:05 a.m.
Neil:
The size of the windlass depends on the size of your ground tackle, more than the depth of water...although to an extent, they are related.
Most mfgs will list a "max pull" wieght, which is the thoeretical wieght it will pull before stopping or popping the ciruit breaker. Then there is the "working wieght" which is the weight that the unit can handle on a continual basis.
There are 2 basica styles, horizontal, hwich typically mount on the bow, and are bolted on top of your deck. The vertical style, tyipcally is mounted below deck with just the gypsy and or drum showing above deck...looks-wise, verticals are nicer because you don't have this machine bolted to the fron of your boat...but you need to have the space below deck to mount a vertical...and i think they are typically a bit more expensive - but not by much i guess.
For a boat your size, you're probaby using a 10-15lb anchor and 300-600ft of rode with some length of chain. All of that , worst case, will wieght around 100lbs (20 for anchor, 20 for chain and 50 or so for all that rode). So you'll need a unit that can has a working wieght rating of around 100lbs.
There are a gazillion models to choose from - but two of my favorites (just went through all this last year) are the lewmar Sprint series...either the 600 or 1000 will work for you...or Quick crystal series either 600 or 1000. Quick is a little less expensive...and I think this is partially a "brand" thing because the quick unit seems to be well made. - Both of these are vertical units that are simple to install and look nice on deck.
Wiring needs to be heavy duty and per mfg instructions...dont cheat or you could damage the motor. (not to mention create a fire onboard).
Its sort of a pain in the butt - but there is no toy onboard that will save you more suffering than a reliable anchor windlass...for sure.
Joe
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