A little windlass help please

SaltLife

SaltLife

New Member
Jun 21, 2012
15
Long Island, NY
Boat Info
1983 340 Sedan Bridge
Engines
454 merc's
This "new to us" boat did not come with a windlass. It is wired for one, has the control buttons on the upper helm, and even looks like there was once one installed.

Its a real pain for my wife to handle the anchor especially freeing it after a day at anchor.

My question is :
What kind or style of anchor did these boats come with?
What would be a direct replacement using the factory control and wires?

i plan on buying one used from a place that sells used boat stuff, they have quite a few but im not sure what one i will need.

Any help would be great thanks in advance.
 
SaltLife said:
This "new to us" boat did not come with a windlass. It is wired for one, has the control buttons on the upper helm, and even looks like there was once one installed.

Its a real pain for my wife to handle the anchor especially freeing it after a day at anchor.

My question is :
What kind or style of anchor did these boats come with?
What would be a direct replacement using the factory control and wires?

i plan on buying one used from a place that sells used boat stuff, they have quite a few but im not sure what one i will need.

Any help would be great thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

I don't know what anchor it came with, but that really doesn't matter. You want the right kind for the conditions you anchor in. A 22lb Danforth style would be my recommendation. It probably came with a Good Windlass. Do yourself a favor and buy another one. They're the best.
 
390x said:
I don't know what anchor it came with, but that really doesn't matter. You want the right kind for the conditions you anchor in. A 22lb Danforth style would be my recommendation. It probably came with a Good Windlass. Do yourself a favor and buy another one. They're the best.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. I have a danforth on their now not sure of the size. Ill have to look. do most windlass's wire up the same way?
 
I disagree with using an original good windlass...

# 1 yes they will pull the anchor up. (Most of the time)
#2 yes it will wire directly in with your current boat.
#3 yes, they are well built.
That's all the ''good'' I have to say about the original equipment...

Now the bad I have found...
Will not free fall. Meaning if you want to drop anchor some one has to manually pull out the rode until you touch bottom then you can back from it and feed it from the helm.

Will not except chain! Its good to have a few feet of chain to protect the rode and to help set the anchor. The original windlass will not allow but a few inches if even that much.

I am currently looking at replacing mine with a Lew Mar pro fish model. Now, I'm not sure how much is going to be interchangeable but the swap should have little complications.

For the record I have personally tried 4+ good windlasses and they have all had the same issues!
 
Thanks for all the great advice so far. :thumbsup:

I dont absolutely positively have to have free fall. but it would make it alot nicer. i just cant be in to places at once an the wife is unable to do the anchor duties. As long as they all wire up the same way then any install shouldnt be too bad. I dont want to spend a fortune because the boat is currently up for sale.
 
IMHO:
Free Fall is nice to have in the sometimes tight places we anchor around here.
The Danforth type anchor seems to hold the best. Make sure that whatever windlass you get takes chain. The original windlass from my boat didn't and it should have. I wasn't too upset when it died. The chain makes a difference. Haven't had any issues with the anchor holding in these soft bottoms since I've had some chain on there.
Also, don't get a Powerwinch. I made that mistake and I'm stuck with it. It works for me but is very poor quality and a bit tempremental. The company was sold a few years back to an RV company and it shows.
If I had it to do all over again I would get a Lewmar free fall. We have one on my Uncle's 22' boat that I share with him for fishing and it works flawlessly.
 
My Good windlass free falls fabulously. They also have a rope/chain model which is absolutely first rate. Mine is the original '89, and I've never had an issue. My parents have an original '87 on their Carver, and they've never had an issue either. Everyone else I've see with Maxwells and Lofrans' have had constant jams with chain, and various other issues. I'll take the Pepsi challenge with a properly maintained Good any day. Also, in many cases, when they won't free-fall, it's because of the rope, not the windlass.
 
Last edited:
390x....

Hum, every one I have dealt with will not freefal without assistance. How big is your anchor? Any weight added to it... no chain correct?
 
22lb Danforth, no chain. Again, the problem is usually the rope. Mine feeds out so fast that you have to keep an eye on it, but I have a really good/soft New England Ropes rode.
 
Pyrojodge said:
390x....

Hum, every one I have dealt with will not freefal without assistance. How big is your anchor? Any weight added to it... no chain correct?
Click to expand...

I can't tell by looking at your avatar, but a self launching (pivoting) type bow roller set-up helps a lot, as does having a little slack in the line/chain. I find that if mine is pulled back in the locker too tight it will give me a problem self launching. With just an inch or so of slack it drops with no problem.
 
I can run it out and it will drop foot or two until the windlass engages into free fall mode then it has to be done by hand from that point on.

I plan on replacing just to put some chain on the rode. Plus I might as throw some more money at my hole in the water... why else do I work all the time?
 
I would almost guarantee that the rope is your problem. Mine will feed out with just the weight of the rope. To aid in getting it to drop in the first place, I lengthened the two tabs that catch the flukes on the bow roller to move the center of gravity of the anchor so it would fall when I engage the drop on the windlass.
 
Pyrojodge said:
I can run it out and it will drop foot or two until the windlass engages into free fall mode then it has to be done by hand from that point on.

I plan on replacing just to put some chain on the rode. Plus I might as throw some more money at my hole in the water... why else do I work all the time?
Click to expand...

I have about 10' or so of chain. More than enough for what I use it for. The chain is great!
Letting out all the line, letting it get wet, and then letting it recoil in the locker when you retrieve it helps with a lot of line related problems. I try to let out all 200' in the begining of the season. It is a pain in the shallow water around here, but I pick a day when nobody is around and I take my daughter along to give me a hand.
 
I have a Lofrans Progress 1 on my 290AJ and a plow anchor with 15 feet of chain braided to some OLD ass rode (which I need and plan to replace). It free falls perfect everytime. They don't make the P1 anymore buy that's not my point here. I would go with a plow anchor...period. Now I'm no pro, but having the extra weight on that anchor sure seems to help with free fall.

On a side note, if I were buying another boat; which is always a possibility, I would be more likely to pay more for a working windlass with a plow than one with a Danforth, even though they hold the vessel just the same in most conditions...just feels better looking at that plow versus a Danforth.

IMHO...if i'm selling a boat, I'm replacing old with new every time I have the opportunity to. It's the little things that sell.

Hope this helped!

Reveler's Revenge
 
So went down to the boat today and took a look. Theres is 2 fat wires one has 2 wires in it the other about 5. So thats good.

does it matter if the windlass is horizontal or vertical?
How much pull power should i be looking for ? 1983 340 sedan bridge
 
Well, with a good you'd be wanting a model c, and that would be a 75-1000lb pull. Horizontal or Vertical is up to you.
 
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