Andersen winches

[keepondancin]

Anyone have any experience with Andersen winches? I am going to be having a Leisure Furl boom installed, and because of headroom constaints, I am thinking about an Andersen Electric Winch with the motor that is directly under the winch, not extending through the cabin roof.

[Euro Cruiser]

Keep, you're really asking two Q's: what do we think about Anderson winches (performance, ease of disassembly for cleaning, quality of build, support after sales - all of which I would rate very highly) and the specific winch/motor arrangement on the Andersen product for the application you plan, which might include consideration for seals, wiring specs, access to the motor armature, etc. I'm sorry but I can't help you with those latter considerations...and any motor, case, switches, etc. I put above decks, I'd be very concerned about re: longevity & service access.

Jack

[rtbates]

I have a pair of ST12's as sheets winches. Wonderful pieces. Very simple and built like a tank.

randy cape dory 25D

[svHyLyte]

Anderson winches are certainly good equipment but I question the merit of spending so much on electric drives and the attendent wiring issues et al. Consider another alternative...

After suffering a rather serious injury on July 10, 2004, I pretty much lost the use of my left arm, and would have the arm entirely save for the skills of a Dr. Barry Sanders at Florida Orthopeadic Institute When he and pals were discussing how to put me back together (a pardon me guys, but I'm a person laying here!), the only thing I insisted on was non-ferous materials in my arm (stump) as I didn't want to screw up my own steering compass. (I'm good--they used titanium!) Next was the issue of cranking the winches on our rather large Beneteau which I had no intention of giving up, damaged arm or no! Although I investigated electric drives, even for us the cost of that self indulgence was rather much. Then I discovered a piece of gear called a "Winch Buddy" which further investigation revealed to be nothing more than a battery powered Milwaukee Right Angle Drill fitted with a winch bit.

At an overall cost of about $500 on Toolup.com and eBay-- including the Milwaukee RAD, the bitt, two batteries that charge up on a 12v charger fitted with a cigarette lighter adapter in less than 2 hours--we have Electric primaries, secondaries, halyard winches and furling winches that even my 4'-11", 105 lb, wife handles easily. The Anderson winches, complimented by the Milwaukee RAD--which you can take home, or to another boat--will be more than adaquate for your application!

Cheers, s/v HyLyte!!