Windlass going up not down ?

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Jobs a good un

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Hi all

Seem to have a problem with my windlass going down ? It makes a knocking noise instead of going down ? To bring it up is ok .
My 1st thoughts were gear box , it's a Lofrans 1000 about 10 years old

Thanks in advance

Mark
 
I don't know about a knocking noise but when my Lofrans wouldn't go down I found one of the cable terminals had parted and needed repair.
 
Jobs a good un said:
Hi all

Seem to have a problem with my windlass going down ? It makes a knocking noise instead of going down ? To bring it up is ok .
My 1st thoughts were gear box , it's a Lofrans 1000 about 10 years old

Thanks in advance

Mark
Click to expand...

Some of the windlasses have a two pole motor whilst others have 3 poles.
In the case of the former the solenoid is such that the direction of the current is just swapped around.
Where there are 3 poles the centre pole is common earth and 12V is applied to one of the other two poles.
To diagnose you could just swap around the two wires where there are two poles. If it now goes down but not up then it is a solenoid issue.
Where there are 3 poles swap over the outer two cables. If it now goes down but not up it is a solenoid issue. If it doesn't go down or up it is a motor issue.
The above assumes it was previously working and no work has been carried out. On the other hand. If there was some recent work where cables were disconnected and reconnected I would question if things were wired back correctly.
If the solenoid is at fault you can get new non-Lofrans relatively cheap off ebay.

Another quick diagnosis is to take jump leads and car battery on to foredeck. Test directly both up and down operation.
Should you be in the position where you are thinking of replacing the Lofrans windlass altogether be aware the hole through the deck between old and new models is not the same.
 
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My Lofrans has a little latch that can turn the gypsy into a ratchet when engaged, letting it go up but not down. Did you check that this latch didn't simply get flicked on (see attached).

On the upside, down (hah) is not the important direction and a waste of power in most situations (unless you're not at the bow). You can just use the included lever to loosen the 3-pronged brake wheel and let the chain out in a controlled fashion that way, by gravity alone. That's what it's designed to do. Nonetheless, if it isn't the ratchet, time for a servicing.

windlass_latch.jpg
 
Won't seem to move either way when I unlock the lock bolt , the motor makes the correct noise after one light push on the down button but then the loud clunking begins , the up button works fine ?
 
Jobs a good un said:
It starts to go down about 10 cm then a loud knocking noise comes from inside the housing ?
Click to expand...

Difficult to see what could be wrong with the gears as there is usually a worm drive on the motor and a large cog on the gypsy shaft. If it works one way it should presumably work the other?

I therefore wonder if it is the solenoid which is pulsing on and off in one direction and making a clunking noise as the motor engages and disengages. My solenoid went in the up direction last year so I changed the connections around on the solenoid so I then had up but not down which was OK until I could get a new solenoid.

Try the connection change as suggested above or use some jump leads. If the windlass then works correctly in the other direction it is an intermittent solenoid contact.

I stripped my solenoid down and you might be able to do that and clean the contacts. In my case the contacts in one direction were burned away.

Richard
 
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Yngmar said:
My Lofrans has a little latch that can turn the gypsy into a ratchet when engaged, letting it go up but not down. Did you check that this latch didn't simply get flicked on (see attached).

On the upside, down (hah) is not the important direction and a waste of power in most situations (unless you're not at the bow). You can just use the included lever to loosen the 3-pronged brake wheel and let the chain out in a controlled fashion that way, by gravity alone. That's what it's designed to do. Nonetheless, if it isn't the ratchet, time for a servicing.

View attachment 53553
Click to expand...

He has a Lofrans 1000. Google for images.
 
I had the same issue but the chain had just jammed in the anchor locker so the motor was stalling. Make sure the chain will flow freely - could be as simple as that.....
 
Jobs a good un said:
Hi all

Seem to have a problem with my windlass going down ? It makes a knocking noise instead of going down ? To bring it up is ok .
My 1st thoughts were gear box , it's a Lofrans 1000 about 10 years old

Thanks in advance

Mark
Click to expand...

i have exactly the same problem with my Lewmar concept 1. It’s not an electrical issue like most people default to in the comments. It’s definitely the cog slipping. I disassembled the whole gearbox and it’s clear what’s making the clunking sound. For some reason, it’s getting physical resistance and the clunking sound is a safety feature to prevent tearing out what I “thinks” it’s stuck on. Did you ever figure out the problem?
 
Tony Ocean 46 said:
i have exactly the same problem with my Lewmar concept 1. It’s not an electrical issue like most people default to in the comments. It’s definitely the cog slipping. I disassembled the whole gearbox and it’s clear what’s making the clunking sound. For some reason, it’s getting physical resistance and the clunking sound is a safety feature to prevent tearing out what I “thinks” it’s stuck on. Did you ever figure out the problem?
Click to expand...
Hi I did , it was a wiring problem , loose wire
 
Had a similar problem with a Simpson Lawrence. Totally disassembled it as grease was bone dry and certain parts were locked together. Worked well since.
 
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