Anchor Windlass - What kind of rope

My windlass runs great with the chain but doesnt reel manila line in well at all. Curious to know if nylon is typically a better material.. Also, the transition where the line meets the chain always gets stuck going through the windlass and is a PITA.
Anyone experiencing similar problems?
Thanks in advance for your reply!

Are you sure you have manilla rope? That is a really strange thing to have. It certainly wouldn't have come with manilla from the factory.

Yes, nylon is the normal kind of line to use. 3-strand is typical - 8-plait is a slight upgrade.

Most likely, assuming you are mistaken about the manilla thing, your rope has simply gotten stiff over the years. This would explain both issues you are having. Ideally, rope should be washed every so often and even soaked in fabric softener. A big bucket is fine for this. Otherwise, similar to all others that have had this problem, you can cutoff a few feet at the rope/chain connection and re-splice... turn the rope end for end... or replace the rope all together.

The other thing that could explain your issue (and you can search on this site for plenty of threads about this thing, as well) is that the spring that pushes the "finger" onto the rope has gotten tired and is need of replacement. If you can be careful about it, lightly push on the finger (maybe with something OTHER than your finer!) and see if it helps.

Agree with Lazy Daze, you most likely have nylon 3 strand, and it does get stiff over time. Fixing the finger so it applied more pressure, and cleaning/softening the rode helps. Eventually, you may get frustrated enough with it that you replace it with chain. If you don't anchor much, maybe it's not a big deal, but it was for us. For our rode, we have 125' of chain and another 100' of nylon behind it. We almost never need to get to the nylon, because we're typically anchoring in only 10' of water, so even at 7-1 scope we have chain left.

OK guys thanks. Maybe it is nylon.. its got that manila color to it so i will check. we are going to anchor alot and want to use it easily. Its the first year with the boat so I need to add soaking the line to the list of to-do.
it gets tricky when it gets stuck and you need to mess with it while getting on the winch at the same time... think i''l look into the spring / finger tensioning also - thanks lazy daze!

I've had two Sea Rays, both with weak springs and both have the exact issue you describe. I just assumed this was status quo!

An easy solution for the transition from rope to chain is to open the anchor locker door and pull down on the rope as your windlass gets to the chain connection. This works 100% of the time in my experience. If you can't run the foot switch while pulling on the rope at the same time it can be a bit tricky. So I get the chain right up to the windlass spool and about 50% of the way around, then stop and pull the rope from the locker, then go back to the foot switch. Works flawlessly...

Ahh, nice. thank you. that does sound like a good and workable solution. now I have to ask the stupid question - where is your foot switch? I dont believe I have one if it is actually a switch on the deck...

Katemma Life said:

Ahh, nice. thank you. that does sound like a good and workable solution. now I have to ask the stupid question - where is your foot switch? I dont believe I have one if it is actually a switch on the deck...

Click to expand...

It's entirely possibly you don't have foot switches on the bow. You'd know it if you did, they are quite obvious. Sorry for the confusion.

Though a bit more of a pain in the rear, the process I shared will work regardless of where your windlass switches are. You just need to run to the anchor locker and then back if you're running it from the helm. Be swift out there