RichardS
N/A
We were sitting in the cockpit enjoying the morning sun today, when a charter Dufour 50 came drifting past us from the bow about 20 feet away on our starboard side. The anchor chain was hanging down as the boat drifted backwards so I was slightly concerned that they were going to catch our anchor chain so I stood up to see what was going on. There were 3 Austrian couples on board and one of the ladies explained that they were having problems with their windlass and did we have any tools on board.
I grabbed the toolbox whilst my Son lowered the dinghy and fired up the outboard and we nipped across. We went aboard and went up to the bow with the toolbox. When I saw the Dufour anchor chain routing I was gobsmacked!
The chain (certainly 10mm like ours and possibly 12 mm) comes over the bow roller and stretched horizontally to a pulley mounted on the side of the locker. It goes over and around the top of the pulley and heads back to the bow at about 45 degrees where it engages with the windlass gypsy which had a vertical spindle. Yes, that's right, the approach angle to the gypsy is unfair by 45 degrees.
The chain then goes right around the gypsy 360 degrees and drops down into a hole into the chain locker. On top of this windlass in a metal plate casting which cover the run of the chain round the front edge of the gypsy and extends aft beyond the hole which the chain drops down.
This metal plate is completely detached and is in the hands of the Guy sitting at the bow. I take a look at the plate and it is bolted down onto the windlass with two Allen machine screws which have both sheared flush with the casing. I take one look and say that unfortunately the tools are not going to help but what happens if you run the windlass without the plate. The Guy explains that without the plate the chain pushes upwards and the whole thing jams. However, his English is not great and I realise that it's going to be very difficult to explain that I think the chain is forming a pyramid in the locker and that appears to have sheared the bolts and forced off the top plate.
I'm not even sure where access is to the chain locker and I think that "pushing over the pyramid" is going to required some serious translation so I say that we have to keep the plate in place whilst the windlass operates and the Guy suggests that he stands on the plate whilst someone operates the windlass. As his toes are right above the chain where it enters the gypsy, in fact because of the entry angle, it is rubbing on the sole of his shoe, I suggest that he operates the windlass control.
He does this and is being shaken up and down as the chain rattles in until the anchor appears and they are off back to the charter company. I think that it is their last day anyway. They offer us a bottle of wine which we try and refuse as we didn't actually do anything but they insist.
They were lovely people but whoever from Dufour designed that convoluted chain routing should be taken out and shot. :ambivalence:
Richard
I grabbed the toolbox whilst my Son lowered the dinghy and fired up the outboard and we nipped across. We went aboard and went up to the bow with the toolbox. When I saw the Dufour anchor chain routing I was gobsmacked!
The chain (certainly 10mm like ours and possibly 12 mm) comes over the bow roller and stretched horizontally to a pulley mounted on the side of the locker. It goes over and around the top of the pulley and heads back to the bow at about 45 degrees where it engages with the windlass gypsy which had a vertical spindle. Yes, that's right, the approach angle to the gypsy is unfair by 45 degrees.
The chain then goes right around the gypsy 360 degrees and drops down into a hole into the chain locker. On top of this windlass in a metal plate casting which cover the run of the chain round the front edge of the gypsy and extends aft beyond the hole which the chain drops down.
This metal plate is completely detached and is in the hands of the Guy sitting at the bow. I take a look at the plate and it is bolted down onto the windlass with two Allen machine screws which have both sheared flush with the casing. I take one look and say that unfortunately the tools are not going to help but what happens if you run the windlass without the plate. The Guy explains that without the plate the chain pushes upwards and the whole thing jams. However, his English is not great and I realise that it's going to be very difficult to explain that I think the chain is forming a pyramid in the locker and that appears to have sheared the bolts and forced off the top plate.
I'm not even sure where access is to the chain locker and I think that "pushing over the pyramid" is going to required some serious translation so I say that we have to keep the plate in place whilst the windlass operates and the Guy suggests that he stands on the plate whilst someone operates the windlass. As his toes are right above the chain where it enters the gypsy, in fact because of the entry angle, it is rubbing on the sole of his shoe, I suggest that he operates the windlass control.
He does this and is being shaken up and down as the chain rattles in until the anchor appears and they are off back to the charter company. I think that it is their last day anyway. They offer us a bottle of wine which we try and refuse as we didn't actually do anything but they insist.
They were lovely people but whoever from Dufour designed that convoluted chain routing should be taken out and shot. :ambivalence:
Richard
