Any winch gurus around help needed to identify this winch

[TQA]

I have this winch fitted to my 1978 Bombay Explorer. [44 feet built in Key largo Florida ] It lifts and lowers the swing keel on a wire. I suspect it is a wire halyard winch of some type but it could be a purpose built item.

Can anyone identify the make for me please. As far as I can see there are no numbers or letters anywhere but I have not dismantled it. [ I am a founder member of the 'If it aint broke don't fix it' club

Also it operates in an unusual manner. I can wind 3 to 5 turns in either direction before it gets very stiff, I then wind 1 or 2 turns in the opposite direction then it frees off and I can wind 3 to 5 turns again. It does this if there is load on the cable or not. Is this normal??

 

[penfold]

It is not working properly; it needs to be dismantled and the fault diagnosed. The symptoms suggest the brake mechanism which is usually built into these is partially seized. The outside of the winch suggest that it is a good age, so maintenance may have been deferred resulting in the fault. I would dismantle, clean the bits then reassess whether it's savable.

 

[DownWest]

Post this on the Wooden Boat Forum, somebody will quickly id it for you. But previous advice important. A bit of TLC is better than 'Aint broke..' Esp as it lives on the coachroof.
A