12v anchor winch

[trout1105]

I have changed my mind about getting the 6.4m plate boat I was looking at because it is too big and heavy for me to launch at some of my favourite bush ramps.
The boat I have decided to buy is at least a ton lighter and a metre shorter But it doesn't have an electric anchor winch on it which is something that I really want to have fitted.
Have any of you got one fitted to your boat?
What brand is it and what do you think of it overall?
I am looking at this one at the moment.
Electric Anchor Winch DRUM WINCH Australian Made kit INC loom and anchor | eBay (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Electric-Anchor-Winch-DRUM-WINCH-Australian-Made-kit-INC-loom-and-anchor/172908467759'ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649)

I will also need to fit a new bowspit as well.
Electric Anchor SARCA Winch Bowsprit AUSTRALIAN MADE | eBay (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Electric-Anchor-SARCA-Winch-Bowsprit-AUSTRALIAN-MADE/173143482566?hash=item285027e0c6:g:LREAAOSwd0BVyVW t)

[Tombie]

I’ve got a Bell Marine winch and Sarca anchor and bowsprit.

Best things I fitted to the cat!

[trout1105]

I’ve got a Bell Marine winch and Sarca anchor and bowsprit.

Best things I fitted to the cat!

Is that the "Viper" winch?
I looked at the "Mini Me" and it looks the goods.

[Tombie]

That’s the one...

[roverrescue]

Totally depends on your style of fishing but for most bottom bashing I would seriously look into a 24V motorguide with spot lock. Way more
Accurate and versatile than an anchor winch

S

[trout1105]

Totally depends on your style of fishing but for most bottom bashing I would seriously look into a 24V motorguide with spot lock. Way more
Accurate and versatile than an anchor winch

S

I usually mainly drift fish or trawl a few lures and use the anchor for overnight stops or to moor the boat most times.
I'm also getting too long in the tooth now to be pulling up 15lb anchors and 6-8m of chain these days and my left arm is now not much good either after the head on with some dumb tourist that was on the wrong side of the road 3 years ago.
Besides why bust a gut when the technology is there to just push a rocker switch to do all the hard yakka for me [bigrolf]

[roverrescue]

Fair enough for your purposes
Personally I’d just use a float to lift the anchor, especially if it was just once a day?
Especially on a small boat - winching off your cranker places a
Big electrical load difficult to replace by motor.

S

[trout1105]

Fair enough for your purposes
Personally I’d just use a float to lift the anchor, especially if it was just once a day?
Especially on a small boat - winching off your cranker places a
Big electrical load difficult to replace by motor.

S

That's why I will be fitting a couple of solar panels and a separate battery to run the winch and the fridge, That way I won't be risking the two main batteries.

[trout1105]

I ended up fitting the "Viper" drum winch, A good solid looking bit of kit [thumbsupbig]

[Roverlord off road spares]

I use a Lone star winch, Malki the owner of the Company is a gentle man and his customer service is second to none, he bends over backwards.. there was a test done on all competitor winches and the lone star came the best.
World famous boat anchor winches & anchoring systems (http://lonestarmarine.com.au/)

[trout1105]

I got to use my anchor winch for the first time yesterday and besides the gps/sonar it has to be the most useful bit of gear i have Ever fitted to a boat.
.i had No problems whatsoever anchoring up over small patches of reef accurately and i never broke into a sweat pulling 10m of chain and 15lb of anchor off the bottom either, i Love it.

[Roverlord off road spares]

I got to use my anchor winch for the first time yesterday and besides the gps/sonar it has to be the most useful bit of gear i have Ever fitted to a boat.
.i had No problems whatsoever anchoring up over small patches of reef accurately and i never broke into a sweat pulling 10m of chain and 15lb of anchor off the bottom either, i Love it.

You really start to appreciate them when you no longer have a sore back. I used to use a float method, but you still need to haul in cold wet rope over the side and if its rough with the boat pitching still not pleasant.
Much better sitting comfortably on a seat, pressing a switch and having it raise and lower in rough seas. I once had a Blue ring occy come up with an anchor when I used to do it manually, I came within inches of grabbing it. I prefer to keep a healthy distance from those killer/

[trout1105]

Yes a fantastic bit of kit and combined with a Sarca anchor anchoring up is safe and more importantly Easy.
The only reason i had mine fitted is because it is a royal PITA accessing the anchor rope via the front hatch on the Trailcraft Sportscab but now having used it I regret not having one before on my other boats.

[Tombie]

Ours was fitted as a marriage saver [emoji41]
So much nicer and easier - and promotes moving around also - as it’s that simple to retrieve.

Harmony ensued upon its fitment. [emoji56]

[trout1105]

One thing that i have noticed is that the anchor winch will severly drain your batteries especially if you are anchoring deep, frequently or get an anchor snagged.
I recently did a long days fishing off Broome and made frequent use of the anchor and when i got home i checked the SOC on the batteries and found them to be down to 80 percent, These are brand new marine deep cells.
My last anchor point was only a mile or so from the ramp and i had trouble de snagging it so i put the loss in SOC down to that along with only a short run of the motor which didn't allow enough time to recharge the batteries.
If you are going to fit one of these winches you will need dual batteries with a marine isolater so that you can keep one in reserve and make sure that the batteries are in good order.
Also when you get back home after frequent anchoring check the SOC and recharge if necessary to avoid embarrassment or dramas when you next launch the boat.

[Tombie]

Absolutely! They’re a winch / starter style motor after all.
Something up to around 150a can be drawn whilst operating depending on what model you’re running.
Always run your motor when pulling anchor!

[Roverlord off road spares]

I have duel batteries with an isolater switch. Battery drain is an issue especially if you move a lot in deep water from spot to spot.
I have a 4 stroke fuel injected so it idles when the motor is running. Idling doesn't not charge batteries very fast unlike the old 2 strokes (and etecs I believe) that have a throttle warm up lever where in neutral you can increase revs.

[Tombie]

A nice solar panel fitted on the boat certainly helps. [emoji41]

[trout1105]

A nice solar panel fitted on the boat certainly helps. [emoji41]

I have a 120w fold out pannel strapped to the rear canopy that i use to power the fridge on the boat and I have added an anderson plug to the dual batteries in the boat so that I can charge them if necessary.
When fishing remote areas it is nice to have a backup plan[thumbsupbig]

[trout1105]

A bit of an update on the anchor winch.
I lost a $300 anchor simply because the bolt in the swivel came loose so make sure you check the bolts/screws on these regulary and I lost another $300 anchor the other day because the backing dyneema rope parted and I lost not only the anchor but 10m of chain AND the swivel as well :wallbash:

I have ordered another rope, chain and swivel But without the dyneema backing this time to replace what is left so I should be "Good to Go" soon.

Having and anchor winch is fantastic and easy on the back But at least when you have to pull the anchor by hand you can easily spot any wear or damage, Unfortunately this is not possible when using the winch.
From now on I will regularly lay out the rope, chain and swivel so that I can inspect them for damage/wear, Having to spend $900 on replacing anchors, rope, chain and swivels is pretty good incentive Not to mention the safety factor[thumbsupbig]