Windlass reinstall

W

Will-C

New member
The nice people at Lewmar warrantied my 700 Pro Series windlass, The reinstall is pretty straight forward they have provided a new bottom gasket. I wondered if I should run a bead of lifetime caulk or 4200 or something around the bottom and let it dry before I pull it back down with the nuts on the studs, or run a bead around it after it is pulled down snug. Thanks in advance for your replies.
D.D.
 
I installed mine with 5200 on the gasket between it and the deck letting it squeeze out around the edge. after it dried I cut off the excess. I would not use 5200 today but 4200 would be a good idea at least.
 
Dave,

I don't know what would be the recommended installation/reinstallation procedure, but suspect that whatever the original installation required, would be the preferred thing to do now.

Is there anything that we should be doing for annual maintenance on a windlass? Obviously checking that bolts and fittings are tight - but I wonder if other items should be done now and then. ...maybe replacing brushes on the motor(?), lubricating vital parts (?)

Any thoughts?

Casey
 
Casey,
It came with the boat,so I don't know what they used. Ihave been using the windless since 2009. I don't use it a lot maybe 10 or 15 times a year. The earlier Pro Series had some seal problems and salt water intrusion is what was the problem. It would motor out ok but retrieving with no load it would go a couple of revolutions and then bind up. I sent it down to Fluid Technologies in Jacksonville Florida an authorized Lewmar repair center 904 384 9659. They said the newer units were improved and got Lewmar to replace the windlass free of charge. They do ask if you alway tie off the rode as hanging on the hook using the windlass without tying off can cause excessive loads and they will only warrantee that kind of damage one time. For whatever reason they replaced mine with a Profish which you can use as a free fall or motor down the anchor which is the more expensive model. I opened my old one up before I sent it out and there was rusty looking slime which used to be a white type grease. I think the seal on the side is what fails to keep the water out. I see the new unit the seal looks different. I would think sending a windlass out for a check up every two or three years might not be a bad idea if you are not going to use the boat for a month or two. Or open it up and clean it up inside and add some new grease. It's a sad day when you hit the switch and it does not go up. I only have a 15 pound anchor so it's no big thing but it is a nice feature. Once I was pulling up to a waterside restaurant. It was summer, the bay I'd come across was a little bumpy. It seems a line from the mid cleat had come off the handle on the back of the cabin in the cockpit that it was draped thru and the line was trailing in the water along side the boat unbeknowst to me. The creek where the restaurant is is sort of narrow I pulled up swung the boat hard to starboard getting ready to reverse to spin the bow around and a few nano seconds later the motor stalled. Shifter had pressure on it in not coming out of forward. I immediately used the windlass to drop anchor and tilted the motor up and cut my 1/2 inch dock line from around the prop in front of the patrons of the dock bar. I dropped the motor back down started it back up and retrieved the anchor and got docked. It was an embarrassing moment to put it mildly. Fortunately no real damage except my pride. We don't travel with lines attached to any cleats anymore. Next thing I want to so is add a contactor so the up / down switch is not handling the full amperage load of the windlass. The switch only has to handle the voltage to the coil of the contactor and the contactor is made to handle the heavier amperage for a longer period of time.
D.D.
 
A good sealant for gasket to deck or plastic to fiberglass is Boat Life
"Life Seal" This is a hybrid silicone/urethane sealant designed for this type of application.
 
Hi Casey,

Don't know what windlass you have, but: the only regular maintenance my Simson Lawrence Horizon 600 horizontal windlass needs is to remove clean and re-grease the gypsy clutch etc parts, which I do annually.

Over 13 years I've had to replace the plastic finger and the fleming once or twice. It's easy to see when wear on those is getting excessive.
 
Thanks Richard.

My windlass is a Lewmar V700, but I suspect an annual inspection and re-greasing as necessary is probably a good idea.

Casey
 
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