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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.Quote:
Originally Posted by trout1105
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/
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.
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]
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.
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!
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.
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.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tombie
When fishing remote areas it is nice to have a backup plan[thumbsupbig]
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]