Electric Winch Handle???

[PeterOHutchison]

Originally Posted by Viking Sailor

Peter,

The chuck mount on the Ryobi p240 should be 3/8 inch with a 24 tpi thread. Home Depot has a Jacobs 1/2 inch upgrade keyless chuck (model 31037) with that mounting for $26.

Hi Viking.
This is most useful. Many thanks.
I'll get onto Home Depot and ask them to export to me in the UK. I tried Ryobi and got no answer. Without your kind help I'd have thrown the drills and batteries and chargers in a cupboard and pretended I never bought them.
The winch electric drill is solely for raising and reefing the main. It's pure lazyness. 2 batteries and 2 drills should ensure I have the juice if I need it. For the genoa and main sheets I will use elbow power.
Again many thanks.
Regards.
Peter

[roverhi]

If the batteries for the drill are NiCad, they need to be discharged fully. If you only partially discharge them and then recharge, the batteries develop a 'memory'. Do a partial discharge/recharge more than a couple of times and you ruin the batteries capacity.

The newest drills come with NiMH batteries that hold more juice and don't have the memory problems of NiCad. They require a different charge voltage, thus a different charger. Don't know if they are available for retro-fit into older NiCad batteried tools.

Aloha
Peter O.

[PeterOHutchison]

Originally Posted by roverhi

If the batteries for the drill are NiCad, they need to be discharged fully. If you only partially discharge them and then recharge, the batteries develop a 'memory'. Do a partial discharge/recharge more than a couple of times and you ruin the batteries capacity.

The newest drills come with NiMH batteries that hold more juice and don't have the memory problems of NiCad. They require a different charge voltage, thus a different charger. Don't know if they are available for retro-fit into older NiCad batteried tools.

Aloha
Peter O.

Thanks very much for the tip. Will wind sheets a few times for complete discharge.
Cheers.
Peter

[JiffyLube]

Originally Posted by Pblais

You really need all the power of this drill. Anything else and you won't have enough power to last through any period of time where you need to tack and work the jib sheets many times. On cruising sized boats I really think anything less is a waste of money unless you just need the drill for drilling.

You also have to hold on to the drill. A small person would need to lean into it just as you need to plant your body to hand crank a winch. The ability to not have to crank the winch does reduce the total effort greatly but not totally. You also just as with a real power winch have to closely watch for a snag in the luff when raising sails. The torque is strong enough that you can overlook something and do damage with that much power.

I tend to agree with you on having all the power you can get, and I wouldn't get a drill less than 1/2". What about the idea of using a regular drill plugged into the boat using an inverter?

[Charlie]

Originally Posted by JiffyLube

I tend to agree with you on having all the power you can get, and I wouldn't get a drill less than 1/2". What about the idea of using a regular drill plugged into the boat using an inverter?

Sounds kind of dangerous with the proximity to water and such.

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by PeterOHutchison

Thanks very much for the tip. Will wind sheets a few times for complete discharge.
Cheers.
Peter

Let it cool and discharge again.

[Pelagic]

FWIW I second Paul's warnings. Seems to me a busy kind of solution that could predicate real damages at sea

[Pblais]

What about the idea of using a regular drill plugged into the boat using an inverter?

One dose of sea water might explain it. AC amps are also ten times DC amps and you really can't afford that kind of power. The cord is another place where bad things can happen. It wraps around who knows what and it's an accident, at a time you can't afford any foul ups.

Cranking a winch is serious torque. We all know how hard it is but try it in 40 knots or better and let me know. You can't get by with a poor assault weapon when it's crunch time. It's easy to think something cheaper will work but I would not want to be in a place and time that mattered with less. If you can't operate a manual winch you don't need less than a full effort when you do need it. Real power winches are made to do the job 100% if there are batteries to back them up. It's not an argument to make. If you rely on equipment then you are indeed reliant upon it. There is no in between or good enough if you end up short of the mark. Personally, I would have thought 18 volts was enough but it seems clear less is not enough.

On a nice summer day a decent 12 year old can crank a winch and take all day to do it. Those are not the times you need to consider. On a good day I can crank in low speed winch with one hand and obviously good enough for a low powered drill. When it's not enough and you can't come up with it by hand power what tool would you want? If you need it then you really do need it. I'm not against using them at all but why go with less than a full effort? Forces increase by power of 2 not linear when computing wind forces vs wind speed. With gale force winds that power goes to extreme levels. I've never chose to be in a gale but I have been. That is how it happens if you even try to avoid it. Trouble can find you.

[OverboardDavid]

I've used the Milwaukee right angle drill pictured earlier with the winch bit for 2 years in all kinds of conditions and couldn't be happier. I bought a second lithium ion battery to make certain I was never without an adequate charge. The batteries will recharge in less than a half an hour and deliver full power until discharged.

[donradcliffe]

I bought the Milwaukee drill and the winch bit last summer, and was impressed with the drill and the original power, but not impressed with the V28 battery life. I think I have put about 10 discharge cycles on the battery, and its my impression that its capacity is only about half what is was when it was new. That's still enough power to help with reefing and hoisting the mainsail, but it no longer has enough grunt to get the genoa in all the way.

I looked for a new V28 battery pack in the Caribbean, but they are not widely available--if you buy the drill, its probably best to buy an extra battery pack.

[JiffyLube]

Originally Posted by Charlie

Sounds kind of dangerous with the proximity to water and such.

It was just a thought...maybe not a very good one...but a thought

[corbin39sailor]

Take a look at The Cranker. The Cranker - a S.S. Sailboat Winch Drill Adapter Bit This $20.00 bit will do what you want. Smooth sailing, Bill

[Oldexpat]

Originally Posted by Pblais

Cranking a winch is serious torque. We all know how hard it is but try it in 40 knots or better and let me know. You can't get by with a poor assault weapon when it's crunch time. It's easy to think something cheaper will work but I would not want to be in a place and time that mattered with less. If you can't operate a manual winch you don't need less than a full effort when you do need it. Real power winches are made to do the job 100% if there are batteries to back them up. It's not an argument to make. If you rely on equipment then you are indeed reliant upon it. There is no in between or good enough if you end up short of the mark. Personally, I would have thought 18 volts was enough but it seems clear less is not enough.

On a nice summer day a decent 12 year old can crank a winch and take all day to do it. Those are not the times you need to consider. On a good day I can crank in low speed winch with one hand and obviously good enough for a low powered drill. When it's not enough and you can't come up with it by hand power what tool would you want? If you need it then you really do need it. I'm not against using them at all but why go with less than a full effort? Forces increase by power of 2 not linear when computing wind forces vs wind speed. With gale force winds that power goes to extreme levels. I've never chose to be in a gale but I have been. That is how it happens if you even try to avoid it. Trouble can find you.

I hate to bring up an old post that's been pretty beat to death but....I just got lucky and found a new condition "WinchMaster" which ceased production in 2009. Plugged into my the engine battery on my boat and this thing will raise the dead all day in any condition. Has anyone had any experience with this hand held electric winch handle?? Just curious as these things appear to be rare and I wonder if there's a dark secret to why that is.

[Jolly Roger]

I saw the "Winchrite" at the Annapolis boat show, a specially made cordless electric winch handle. It looked substantial, but no interchangeable batteries. Anyone any experience of this product over the longer term? Sorry, no website on the leaflet.

[Oldexpat]

Originally Posted by Jolly Roger

I saw the "Winchrite" at the Annapolis boat show, a specially made cordless electric winch handle. It looked substantial, but no interchangeable batteries. Anyone any experience of this product over the longer term? Sorry, no website on the leaflet.

Thanks JR on the Winchrite idea. I'd looked at these and the right angle drill idea. Failure of both those is the batteries need recharging and do wareout quickly under use. I'm going cruising and needed something that allows me to work my sails repeatedly over days AND has lots of torque. My main is huge and is one bear to get up, ergo the WinchMaster looks best. Now to find a manual and/or wiring diagram.