Help choosing an Electric Anchor Windlass

[cpedw]

I'm looking for a windlass to replace the manual Lofrans Royal on my Nordship 35 DS (35' 6 tons sloop, cruising West Scotland). The chain passes through a hawse pipe that slopes at a shallow angle into the chain locker where there's a big shelf with the Royal on it. I plan to put the electric windlass on that shelf.

I think a horizontal windlass is preferred because the motor needs to be enclosed, not exposed in the chain locker.

I don't have any use for a warping drum but I would like to have the option of manual operation and of taking the chain completely off the windlass. Some of the modern ones like Lofrans Atlas or Maxwell HRC 8 seem to completely enclose the chain. That doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

The hawse pipe is offset to starboard so keeping the chain line straight means there's not much space to the right of the windlass in the chain locker. That's where the manual operation happens on most of the windlasses I've looked at. The locker extends about 150mm under the deck to the right of the hatch opening.

I've looked at Lofrans Atlas, Cayman (tight fit in the space and pricey), Lewmar Pro 1000, H2, Maxwell HRC 8, Quick Genius GP2, Hector HC3 (another tight fit and pricey) and South Pacific 900m.

Apart from the South Pacific, these are either without manual operation or it's hard to access in my chain locker. The South Pacific seems to have non-credible performance (25A at 12V = 300W?) and limited information on the web. I haven't found any user reports either.

Can you suggest a windlass to match my requirements? Or are some of my specifications unreasonable or unnecessary? All non-libellous comments welcome.

Derek

 

[Tranona]

Lofrans Cayman 88 would be a very good choice. Just makes sure that you take all the screws out and re-insert them with Duralec (They are stainless in aluminium) and paint the bottom of the housing before installing. Lofrans have come down in price recently as they are re-establishing themselves in the market after changes in ownership.

This is the windlass of choice for charter fleets in the med where they get more use in a year than you will give it in a lifetime.

Be aware that although most windlasses have manual operation, even the Lofrans which is one of the better ones is not very practical.

You don't make it clear what sort of drop there is below the windlass into the chain locker. This is the weak point of many installations as there is often not enough depth in the bows for the chain to fall without bunching.

 

[Robin]

wE installed a Lofrans Cayman on our W33 many years back and it was excellent and much better than the Lewmar Horizon we inherited on our next boat. the Lofrans was faster hauling chain in or lowering it, never had a battery problem with either however.

 

[Johntheyachty]

I replaced a Lofrans Royal several years ago with a Lofrans Kobra, which has the same footprint as the Royal. It has only one manual lever bar hole on the left for manual operation, but otherwise has given excellent service.

 

[cpedw]

The Cayman won't (just) allow the chain locker lid to close. I fitted one in our previous boat using tons of Duralac but the case rotted in several parts of the base. I had to use a thread insert on one stud hole.

Choosing a Kobra (the bolt holes aren't all in quite the same places as the Royal, according to the Deck Templates) would expose the motor in the chain locker. Going that way, I could choose a vertical axis windlass and life would be much simpler, except for protecting the motor from salt and water!

Derek

 

[Tranona]

The rotting on the base can be avoided, or at least minimised by painting the bottom and replacing the rubber gasket with a piece of plastic kitchen board. Then following the instructions in the manual to remove from the base once a year to clean.

Small price to pay for arguably the best windlass in its price range - but won't help with closing the lid! Moulding a hump in the lid might be possible.

ps I have an old Cayman in my garage with one stud hole completely missing and all the screws seized solid, all due to poor maintenance by the folks who looked after the boat in Greece.

 

[Robin]

we inherited a Lemar horizon on the Sun Legende 41we owned in the UK and it was mounted on a shelf in the anchor locker. It worked but the lack of 'drop for the chain allowed volcanoing that needed an ever present watch to move during anchor recovery. I knew one boat owner that glassed the anchor locker lid closed and mounted the windlass on the 'new' deck, with a bigger fall for the chain. Our current boat windlass (Maxwell) is on deck and the chain does pile up in the locker. I have a telecopic fishing gaff hook thingy to snag it with the chain locker lid open and pull the chain forward away from the deck hole and to a deeper part of the locker every so often. This allows me to do it without kneeling or bending double, better still is to get SWMBO to do it whilst I work the windlass from ts 'up/down' control at the wheel whilst she whispers sweet nothings ( mostly) over the 2 -way handsfree radio headsets we use for ease of communication and to avoid turning the air blue.

 

[West Coast]

I replaced a lofrans royal with a Lewmar pro 1000 a couple of years ago. Boat is a Sadler starlight 35, with a anchor Locker shelf just big enough for the Royal. Had a similar shopping list as you, looked at lofrans Kobra, with the idea of protecting the motor somehow. But had bad experiences with the lofrans Royal with its mix of stainless steel and alloy which put me off the kobra, not personally convinced about all the hype regarding lofrans kit. Of the remaining available possibilities, only the Lewmar would fit into the shelf profile, and also offered a manual backup. The Lewmar has been great so far, powerful enough for 8mm chain and a 20 kg delta anchor in even deeper parts of the Scottish west coast.