Mainsail hoist - winch or electric?

[KenF]

I never thought it would happen but now it is too much to raise my main all the way manually, (it is raised from the cockpit) I don't want to downsize and I have thought about alternatives such as ewincher, electric winch, karver etc. - but I wonder what has worked best for other mature scuttlebutters?

 

[scottie]

Electric winch specified from new worked for us
may be worth checking if you can upgrade

 

[Rappey]

Presuming all your lines lead to cockpit so why not a nice electric winch to replace your manual one ?

 

[mjcoon]

Can the sail be raised from the mast? Is it still too hard done there (meaning less friction might delay the upgrade)?

 

[TernVI]

Just how big is the main?
The biggest boat I sail on, the main is very easy to hoist at the mast, the halyard comes out of a slot about 2.5 m above the deck and you pull down and temporarily cleat on a Harken cleat.
There is much more friction working from the cockpit.

A friend has a biggish catamaran with a heavy main, lots of battens in it. That's quite easy to hoist due to a 2:1 halyard.

Sorting out the friction is the bast place to start.

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

If you've done all you can to reduce friction and it's really about the weight of the sail, then how about a 2:1 purchase. Tie it off at the masthead, down to a block on the sail and back up to the sheave.

As far as friction goes, washing the existing or replacing with a thinner Dyneema halyard would help a lot. Stuff like McLube can make a huge difference in the mast groove too.

 

[Bobc]

I never thought it would happen but now it is too much to raise my main all the way manually, (it is raised from the cockpit) I don't want to downsize and I have thought about alternatives such as ewincher, electric winch, karver etc. - but I wonder what has worked best for other mature scuttlebutters?

What size boat? Winchrite may help, or if a big(ish) boat, go for a single electric winch.

 

[pvb]

What size boat? Winchrite may help, or if a big(ish) boat, go for a single electric winch.

The OP's profile says it's an Omega 34.

 

[KenF]

It's an Omega 34 and the main area is ca: 28 sq.m. but the weight is considerable, I don't think friction is an issue as before mounting the sail I clean everything and use a dry spray lube.
I am looking at a thing called a 'winch bit' that fits into the chuck of an electric drill - does anybody have experience with this?

 

[capnsensible]

Electric can be great, but it comes with its problems. Can give the batteries a good kicking. Plus if you don't stop the very instant you get resistance to the hoist, you can damage the mast.

Had the battery problem on a Beneteau 50. Seen track damage on a Hanse 45 and a Lagoon 421. Bigger boats obviously but full length battens make the sail heavy. A moment of Inattention caused damage.

My own boat is much smaller and I like the look of the winch rite. But still care needs to be taken, I reckon.

 

[laika]

On the "friction" theme...if you have regular mast sliders, might ball bearing batten cars like the harken battcar system be worth a look?

 

[Deleted member 36384]

The eWincher came out very well in real life, long term use and testing at Attainable Adventure Cruising Attainable Adventure Cruising It is a subscription service so you will have to pay to view.

They tested it on a 50' yacht. For your use, age related weaknesses, they do make some comments, basically the device produces a lot of torque and that still has to be resisted by the human being, but at 30' LOA you would expect much smaller loads. I would recommend that you read up their 3 x articles on the eWincher.

 

[TernVI]

It's an Omega 34 and the main area is ca: 28 sq.m. but the weight is considerable, I don't think friction is an issue as before mounting the sail I clean everything and use a dry spray lube.
I am looking at a thing called a 'winch bit' that fits into the chuck of an electric drill - does anybody have experience with this?

28sqm main weighs what?
20kg would be 'heavy'.
If you let go the halyard, does it quickly fall to the deck?

I think it's reasonable to expect to use the winch for the last bit, as you take the weight of the boom etc. But up to that point, I think friction still needs looking at. Very often there is a lot of friction from deck organisers, clutches, halyards touching the deck. Hoisting from the mast will often show you that.
The other thing is multiple halyards etc touching or worse inside the mast. That can be a tough job to sort, but well worth checking out.

A bit in a drill will need a lot of reaction, but presumably you use the winch in low gear and let the drill run fast? The winch may need servicing more often as the gears see a lot of fast use?

 

[capnsensible]

The eWincher came out very well in real life, long term use and testing at Attainable Adventure Cruising Attainable Adventure Cruising It is a subscription service so you will have to pay to view.

They tested it on a 50' yacht. For your use, age related weaknesses, they do make some comments, basically the device produces a lot of torque and that still has to be resisted by the human being, but at 30' LOA you would expect much smaller loads. I would recommend that you read up their 3 x articles on the eWincher.

Dogs doodahs....and only 1900 quid. ?

 

[Norman_E]

I had an electric winch on a 45 foot boat, I would pull the sail up by hand as far as I could, usually to a foot or so above the second spreaders. If I could not get it that far I would check to see what caused the extra friction. Usually it was bacause the sail had been dropped with a reef in, and releasing the reef clutches would sort it. After that I used the electric winch, watching it closely and stopping once there was a bit of luff tension. I did not have a cunningham. If you have one it is a good idea to winch to a mark on the mast and then use the cunningham to apply the right luff tension. What I found very useful was a mark quite low down on the sail and a corresponding mark (a piece of sticky tape) on the mast to tell me when to release the winch button. I would stop a bit short, then a brief push on the button would put the tension on.

 

[doris]

My last main was 53sq m laminate and bloody heavy but I could get it 2/3 of the way up by hauling at the mast. Having a clutch on the mast helped enormously. I would then scamper back to the cockpit and winch it up the last bit.
Deffo would have thought that an electric winch for a 26sq m main seems a bit OTT but they are always nice it you’re sending someone up the stick!

 

[Bobc]

It's an Omega 34 and the main area is ca: 28 sq.m. but the weight is considerable, I don't think friction is an issue as before mounting the sail I clean everything and use a dry spray lube.
I am looking at a thing called a 'winch bit' that fits into the chuck of an electric drill - does anybody have experience with this?

In your shoes, I would get a Winchrite handle.

 

[ditchcrawler]

Using a bit in a drill doesn’t work. Most do not have enough torque. The big Milwaukee right angled one will work but heavy to handle and expensive. I have had a Winchrite for some years and it is very good. Used on a 31 ft boat. Some friends scoffed when I bought it. They tried it and bought one. One had a 36 ft Hunter Legend.

 

[Daydream believer]

My fully battened sail, with decent batten cars, is 30 M2. I have an 8mm dynema halyard worked from the cockpit. I can pull by hand 50% of the way. I used to do 80% but at 74 years old that has gradually become less. I make sure that i am dead to wind & my winches are well serviced. My halyard is run on the easiest route to the cockpit & I have done all I can to avoid friction. Blocks at the mast base are large & organisers are checked to run free.
I would respectfully suggest that if you are having problems then you might look at the set up before worrying about going electric.
Then, although it should not be necessary, perhaps look at a 2:1 halyard . Lots more line but it just means a few more coils hanging up in the cockpit. Can make dropping more difficult though as kinks can occur due to lots of coils & sail will have more friction when dropping. My sail drops a bit too quick sometimes if I release before I go forward

 

[Rappey]

Using a bit in a drill doesn’t work

I have the line topping makita drill with a crazy amount of torque.. I would never use it on a winch as your likely to break your wrist or similar ! The kickback is extremely fierce.. More than enough to throw you off your feet.
I have an old scholl stainless halyard onto a winch drum at the mast base.. Its quite quick but more importantly pretty effortless as its not going around lots of pulleys .
One hand on the cap shroud for stability, the other on the winch handle.. Im about 30 square metres.