Fitting a manual vertical windlass

[evansc]

Hi any advice on fitting a manual vertical windlass. Interested in location in plan and also height so that it drops down the hawse pipe. thanks

 

[Tranona]

welcome

What windlass are you fitting? - they usually come with instructions on where to locate, but the important things are to have a fair lead for the chin to bow roller which might requite it to be offset from the centreline, attached to a solid area of the deck and as big a fall as possible to the chain locker. When I installed one this meant having a chute below decks to take the chain further aft.

 

[Graham_Wright]

Very recently, I spotted an arrangement where the actual windlass was alongside the cockpit. The lead(s) to it were well contrived and the arrangement meant the chain locker ws well aft (rather than weighting down the bow).
Good arrangement for a single hander I guess.

 

[Neeves]

I supplied a 6mm high tensile chain for a couple who anchor (10kg Spade) by hand. The 6mm HT chain allowed them to dispense with the 8mm chain. They stored the chain in a big plastic bucket, with drain holes, in the transom and routed the run of the chain through plastic conduit along the toe rail.

Jonathan

 

[graham]

I just fitted a second hand simpson lawrence anchorman vertical windlass. The metal plate that pushes the chain off the gypsy must be at the front.Mount the windlass so its aft of your hawse pipe and close as possible to it.

On my boat there is about 4 inches of chain showing between gypsy and hawse pipe and it rattles down the hole ok.I fitted it so the chain comes off the gypsy same height as the horizontal opening in my existing 90 degree hawse pipe fitting .the drop in the locker is about 30 inches reducing to about 18 inches as the loc ker fills.

.get someone to hold it in your chosen position and check the chain goes down before drilling any holes.remember that as the anchor locker fills theres less drop to pull it in.

Check you wont be bashing your knuckles on the pulpit stantions on your chosen position.

I mounted it on a half inch bit of wood slightly bigger than the base and spread the load under the deck with plywood and large washers.

I am amazed how much easier it is to pull up the 8mm chain and 10kg bruce.

The anchorman has a rope drum above the gypsy may come in handy one day.

 

[Neeves]

I just fitted a second hand simpson lawrence anchorman vertical windlass. The metal plate that pushes the chain off the gypsy must be at the front.Mount the windlass so its aft of your hawse pipe and close as possible to it.

On my boat there is about 4 inches of chain showing between gypsy and hawse pipe and it rattles down the hole ok.I fitted it so the chain comes off the gypsy same height as the horizontal opening in my existing 90 degree hawse pipe fitting .the drop in the locker is about 30 inches reducing to about 18 inches as the loc ker fills.

.get someone to hold it in your chosen position and check the chain goes down before drilling any holes.remember that as the anchor locker fills theres less drop to pull it in.

Check you wont be bashing your knuckles on the pulpit stantions on your chosen position.

I mounted it on a half inch bit of wood slightly bigger than the base and spread the load under the deck with plywood and large washers.

I am amazed how much easier it is to pull up the 8mm chain and 10kg bruce.

The anchorman has a rope drum above the gypsy may come in handy one day.

I. really do have to wonder about the combination of 8mm chain and 10kg Bruce, particularly hand retrieved.

 

[graham]

Neeves can you elaborate on that? The boat is a 26 ft Centaur heavy bilge keeler.

 

[Neeves]

Neeves can you elaborate on that? The boat is a 26 ft Centaur heavy bilge keeler.

Either the anchor is too small or the chain too big - they do not match. If you used 6mm chain you would not need a windlass at all. 6mm chain would have been plenty strong enough, it will take up less room and/or you could have had more chain (have cost less) and be easier to retrieve by hand. I suspect you could retrieve 6mm more quickly by hand than you will be able to retrieve using a manual windlass.

You will counter and say but with 6mm you lose catenary - and I'd suggest all you need is a decent snubber it will replace the benefits of catenary (and be cheaper).

But you have the windlass, it matches the chain - you are committed.

We use 6mm and I have retrieved the original 8mm by hand and the newer 6mm - its chalk and cheese.

Jonathan

 

[graham]

I agree with you that horizontal windlass can make weighing the anchor very slow but a vertical windlass is way faster . I know the discussion rages on but personally I wouldnt go down to 6mm chain on my boat despite the obvious advantages.

 

[Tranona]

I had an Anchorman for years on a similar size boat with 6mm chain and 25lb CQR - in fact it is still on the boat with a new owner. No need for 8mm chain from the strength point of view and the extra bulk and weight when stowed is a real negative.