power winch

[bonz_d]

Re: power winch

As for getting wet while loading your boat, please take a long carefull look at your trailer, something has to be wrong or perhaps set up incorrectly. In 50 yrs of boating i have never had to get into the water to load unless something broke or went horribly wrong. Airshot

You may be correct or you may not. Please explain how to load a trailer w/o getting wet when there is no pier and a cross wind is blowing 20mph and you are unable to get the trailer deep enough to drive or pull on. Which is why I use a tiltbed trailer.

 

[dingbat]

Re: power winch

I will be the oddball here, had an electric winch and hated it. It was way to slow, I am 62 yrs old and still winch by hand a 22' Islander, I can hand winch much faster than an electric, at least the slow poke electric one I had. I have timed it many times from the time the trailer hits the water (backing in) I am usually pulling out in 5-6 minutes. It took almost 10 minutes to get the boat winched up with the electric one.

I take it you had a winch that used a double cable?

My winch pulls my #4800 boat on the trailer at 21.5 feet per minute. Hercules couldn't crank a boat on the trailer that fast.

 

[iggyw1]

Re: power winch

Airshot,

I guess the only time I get wet is when I have to walk out to the boat to put the hook into place on the eyebolt in front of the boat. I think I may just try the long pole like I described above just to do that, then I can hand crank the boat onto the trailer with no problem. I would have a very hard time doing that from inside the boat as I have a windshield across the entire boat with a covered bow on the boat, and it is not a opened bow, so I could not reach the eye bolt in front of the boat to put the hook in that is on the retrieving strap on the hand winch. I am usually alone when I go out fishing (all of my friends still work and I am retired) and I am currently stretching my strap out to the end of the trailer then having to walk out to the boat after I back the trailer into the water a long ways. The boat is out there a ways due to the shallow water right by our docks (Lk St Clair). Its o.k. during the summer, but that water gets C-O-L-D.

I am still thinking that a remote control electric winch will be needed when it is windy so I can stand on the dock and guide the sideways movements of the boat with the long pole.

 

[dingbat]

Re: power winch

I am still thinking that a remote control electric winch will be needed when it is windy so I can stand on the dock and guide the sideways movements of the boat with the long pole.

Sounds like you need a pair of guide poles on the rear of your trailer

 

[bonz_d]

Re: power winch

Sounds like you need a pair of guide poles on the rear of your trailer

That works great when one is able to get the trailer into the water that far. What do you do when you can't?
What do you do when there is no pier?

Also noticed in that picture, where is the winch/stop post on that trailer? I don't see one.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: power winch

A winch that is too slow is either over-rated (made for a much heavier boat), double line or a winch made for something else that is being used on a boat trailer. There was a previous poster who thought it was 'safer" to buy more winch than he needed and he got the intolerably slow pull. Some bumper winches are slow.

As for getting wet, and cat walks, and all that: with a power winch YOU DO NOT SINK THE TRAILER. Sorry to shout but people can't seem to get past that. Stop when the water is below the axle, in salt, or maybe go a little further, but not much. The bow of the boat will come up to, and maybe over, the first roller and the bow eye will be near the axle. Your trailer is dry. Walk on the frame, or bunks, or build a cat walk down the center on one side of the rollers. Remember, because your trailer is dry, the catwalk/frame/bunks are dry.

On a small boat or one with a low bow you can step off the bow and on to the trailer. Of course, if you have a side dock you lean over the bow, hook up, step onto the dock from the stern, go operate the winch.

Note that the winch is not over the water. Stand there comfortably dry while operating the clutch, switch, etc. it's luxurious, I tell you!

You just have to unlearn 20 years of bad habits, and then join the chorus, "I wish I'd done this a long time ago!"

 

[iggyw1]

Re: power winch

That is not a bad idea at all. I will definately be adding them guide posts as soon as the weather breaks here in Mi. Should be next week!!

 

[iggyw1]

Re: power winch

Iwill be getting a power winch for sure. Sounds like it takes a lot of work out of loading the boat. Found a few used ones for less than $100 that look and work great! I will be staying dry for sure. Thanks all for your comments and ideas. I appreciate them all.

 

[airshot]

Re: power winch

You may be correct or you may not. Please explain how to load a trailer w/o getting wet when there is no pier and a cross wind is blowing 20mph and you are unable to get the trailer deep enough to drive or pull on. Which is why I use a tiltbed trailer.

OK you got me there, I have never loaded a boat without a dock, always used a launch ramp with some form of dock. Then again I always had walk planks on the tongue to walk out on, and guides to center the boat when winching on.

 

[airshot]

Re: power winch

I take it you had a winch that used a double cable?

My winch pulls my #4800 boat on the trailer at 21.5 feet per minute. Hercules couldn't crank a boat on the trailer that fast.

The winch I had was rated at 2500 lbs and ran from a 12v battery was marine rated and used a strap, same as my hand winch. With 25 ft of strap out it would take almost 10 minutes to wind it all in. I could have my 16' alum boat hand winched by hand in about 2/3 min. Can hand winch my 22' in less than 5 min and I am 62 yrs old. I am sure by now there are newer and more efficient models than what I had but I was sure dissapointed with mine.

 

[dingbat]

Re: power winch

The winch I had was rated at 2500 lbs and ran from a 12v battery was marine rated and used a strap, same as my hand winch. With 25 ft of strap out it would take almost 10 minutes to wind it all in. I could have my 16' alum boat hand winched by hand in about 2/3 min. Can hand winch my 22' in less than 5 min and I am 62 yrs old. I am sure by now there are newer and more efficient models than what I had but I was sure dissapointed with mine.

Most people do not understand performance specifications and buy on price and rating, unaware of the consequences. The rated pull is a combination of HP and the gear ratio. A ? HP motor with a 100:1 gear ratio (double cable) and a ? HP motor with a 50:1 gear ratio (single cable) have the same rated pull. The difference, the costs and the retrieval speed. The 1/2 HP unit will retrieve cable twice as fast as the 1/4 HP unit.

When buying an electric winch, check the retrieval speed at the rated output. Chances are, going from a smaller; double cable setup to a larger, single cable setup will cut your retrieval time significantly.

You make 62 sound old.........I have five grand kids and one great-grand kid. If there is one thing I've learned over the years it's to work smarter, not harder. Not becouse I have too, becouse I can

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: power winch

another thing is that since you aren't lifting your boat, you don't need a winch that can. So you don't need a 2500# winch for a 2500# boat. the nice thing about buying a marine branded Power Winch is that they have done the math for you and you can safely buy based on their recommendations, based on the boat size. But their charts also show speed. I can't imagine 2.5 feet/minute.

 

[Dodger1234]

Re: power winch

I was thinking of getting an electric winch but instead of hard wiring or hauling an extra battery I was thinking of using a 1500 amp booster pack. I don't have to worry about spills and there designed to carry around. Anyone have any ideas regarding this not working??

Thanks, Dodger1234.

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: power winch

Don't let advertising over rule your common sense.

The "1500 Amp Booster Pack" is going to deliver 1500amps (Peak) for about 1 second.
It is only 400 cranking amps, weighs 19 lbs. and costs $160 on sale.

You are just carrying around a spare battery, and a small one at that.
Hard wiring is the most economical and practical way to do it.

It will help to give a "Boost" to a marginal battery for a few seconds.
But don't rely on it for the whole enchilada!

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: power winch

Power winches come with a wiring harness than can either be hard wired on the vehicle, or used like long jumper cables. Hard wiring is convenient, but keeping the wiring harness loose with clips means you can use different tow vehicles (ie make your friends drive).

I have a harness hardwired but have a loose set, too. Watch the yard sales. For a shared boat we have, we keep the wires in the boat so it can hook to any car.

battery pack is a bad idea. Seperate battery mounted on the trailer is unnecessary and goes in the 'something else to go wrong" file.

 

[Dodger1234]

Re: power winch

Being in Canada I go to lakes where I do not see a person all day. My concern about hard wiring is hooking something up to my truck that could cause problems. I know I should have the truck running so I do not drain the battery. But this opens up the possibility of ( thou slim ) causing an electrical issue.

I would love to build a battery box on the trailer and somehow charge the battery in it while traveling to the lake ( usually 1.5 hours ). Also while driving back I am charging again for what was lost during winching my boat. I have searched for this info but I can not find any info to run trailer lights and charge a separate battery.

Dodger1234.

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: power winch

... My concern about hard wiring is hooking something up to my truck that could cause problems. I know I should have the truck running so I do not drain the battery. But this opens up the possibility of ( thou slim ) causing an electrical issue. ... I have searched for this info but I can not find any info to run trailer lights and charge a separate battery.

Dodger1234.

Home Cookin's idea of a winch power cable with battery clips on it sound like your solution.

Otherwise Pin#4 on the standard 7-Pin trailer connector is Battery 12v Hot and will charge any battery connected to it.

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: power winch

I simply have a 20 foot length of #10 speaker wire with alligator clips on one end and the winch plug on the other. (#10 is good for about 30 amps draw) It is no trouble to pop the hood on the ramp and connect the alligator clips to the truck battery. Then I leave the engine running and winch up the boat. Disconnect everything and drive away. No permanent wiring to worry about, no separate battery to keep charged, I can put a fuse in line, and if the assembly gets damaged, I can replace it for a couple of bucks.

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: power winch



Couple of photos. Hmmmm! Doesn't work with your finger over the lens! LOL

 

[iggyw1]

Re: power winch

Frank, in the top left photo, it looks like it plugs into a cigerette lighter. Even if it doesn't, it gave me the idea to set mine up with a cigerette lighter at the battery end. I have a cigerette lighter/supply plug at the very back inside my SUV. If it does not have a big enough fuse on it, I will run a seperate line and install an additional cigerette lighter in the same area just for the winch. All I have to do is open my back window or door to get to the recepticle to plug the winch in, and I'm in business. As I winch the boat in, I will keep the truck running and it will charge the battery in the truck as I use the juice for awhile!! thanks for the idea.