http://m.mickswinch.com.au/?url=http...com.au%2F#2739
Have a look at micks winch. Put one on my last boat and found it good. I went with his because i could get the most length of rode on it. But i would go freefall next time.
I have a SAW free fall with a cheap BCG plough anchor ($70)
liked my old ball use it for years ...... but i dont think i'll be going back to the old ball any time soon. i love the winch especially on slow days when you need to find the fish and do lots of spots.
BigE
http://m.mickswinch.com.au/?url=http...com.au%2F#2739
Have a look at micks winch. Put one on my last boat and found it good. I went with his because i could get the most length of rode on it. But i would go freefall next time.
I use the Stressfree with free fall, love it but I still carry the ball with a clip instead of the ring and had to use it once when the pick got really stuck, winches will cut out if anchor is stuck fast. The beauty of the ball is that as it travels down its bouyancy is trying to force it upwards and as it travels over the chain the lift upwards directly over the anchor is greater than most winches can produce.
I have lost a few anchors overy time, one year there, although securing the chain to the head and zippy tying to the heel of the anchors overy comes the heel caught in the reef scentric sometimes the chain wraps around a bommie esepically if there's been a wind change if anchored for any length of time and it can be a bugger to get off no matter what you do, best to keep pulling it in until directly over it and you might have a chance,
I'm not advocating for the gypsy over the drum, either will save you a lot of work at not necessarily a great outlay. Drums just don't suit all boats, just as gypsys dont. I've seen a drum installation of a lonestar on my particular boat cost over $4000 due to the aforementioned extra glassing work needed. I just wanted to set down some facts which can get overlooked in the general ra-ra of this debate.
I'm considering buying a brand new boat next year, and it will certainly have a winch. After looking at the well, I'd say I'll be going for a drum type, just because the well/foredeck arrangement doesn't look suited to a gypsy, and I know a drum does fit them without any cutting.
Any one of you install a rope counter to see how much rope has been put out? Thanks
I will be putting different colours of heat shrink every 10 metres on mine and black every five if I can get some spare time in the next month
Had zip ties on my old anchor rope worked fine
Strong believer in KISS less to go wrong that way
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You can fit a chain counter to the Maxwells, as it just counts the links, don't know about a rope counter? Like others said, just splice some coloured rope rovings through it or something if it bothers you. You'll find you really won't notice them after a while anyway, you just get used to putting out the right amount for a given depth, by feel. That being said, it is essential to have some really visible markers towards the free end if you are using a gypsy style with plaited nylon--the stuff sinks so you REALLY need to have a couple of good marks a good 10 metres before the free end, and keep an eye on it. I can hear people saying to tie off the end in the anchor well, but I retain the option to let the whole lot go if someone is in danger of being spooled, by clipping my old polyform float ( used to use it for the clip retrieve) onto the rope then just dropping the whole lot, come back and pick it up later.
Last edited by ranmar850; 27-11-2017 at 08:31 AM. Reason: typo
Hey mate I was just researching and came along your post from awhile ago,I’m just about to strengthen the rear anchor well wall to take a lonestar gx3 I purchased off moose but instead I’m going to glass in 12mm ply from the cabin side instead as it’s easily accessed and to also save space within the anchor well, how is yours still holding up?
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Mercury 115ct going strong😁
Here is some utube tests
That Video was enough to sway me to purchase a Lone Star
The chain counters are essentially counting rotations of the gypsy - they use a reed switch and magnet. Pretty sure you had to program them for number of links per rotation but it's been a long while since I installed one. In theory they would work fine with rope provided there was no slippage. Certainly with my Muir I suspect they would be inaccurate after a while and need zeroing periodically.