Lewmar windlass question

[gravygraham]

We had a good afternoon today, finally getting our autopilot calibrated. So much sun it was rude. Anyway to the point - on the photo below you'll see a red plastic switch cum clip thingy on the side of the winch. It appears to lock the ratchet bit in the open position, presumably to allow free-fall of the chain in certain circumstances. The manual I've got is scant in detail and can any folks enlighten me as to when (or if) I should be playing with this little switch?

 

[cobolt]

Hi Graham,

This is the "fall-safe pawl". It's designed to prevent the gypsy from spooling chain out should the friction brake (controlled with a winch handle in the big top cap) become loose.

It should stop your anchor flying off the bow in such a circumstance. It's also used if you have the warping drum version to allow the gypsy to remain locked if you're using the drum.

It is NOT a chain stopper and should never be used to hold any real load.

Ben