Winch cover useful?

[jkindredpdx]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Yeah, it's amazing where all that black dust comes from.

For us I think it comes from the Airplanes flying over... unbelievable how fast it accumulates.

[Jim Cate]

Black dust is an eyesore on your decks and canvas for sure. Not for sure that it harms winches, even if it gets inside them.

So far, I've not seen any evidence that winches are actually harmed by stuff that would get blocked by a canvas winch cover such as are sold by WM and others. Claims that grease is made runny by sun heating, and that this harms winches are not supported by my observations of 40+ years of winch ownership.

As far as I can see realistically, the only benefit from covers is protecting against UV damage of plastic parts. If your winches have such, then by all means protect the plastic bits. Otherwise, I reckon covers are a waste of time and money. YMMV.

jim

[UNCIVILIZED]

One obvious, & apparent trend about winch covers is that they're rarely (never) seen or used on racing boats. And such boats do tend to clean & re-lube their winches a lot more often.

[jkindredpdx]

could it be that winch covers and other doo-dads come from canvas shops having left over material so they make a superfluous canvas thing-a-ma-jigs...

My PO left me many nice covers. I do miss the windlass cover... it was purdy. Don't know if it blew off or if someone thought they needed it more than I did.

[Jim Cate]

My PO left me many nice covers. I do miss the windlass cover... it was purdy. Don't know if it blew off or if someone thought they needed it more than I did.

Ahhh, windlass covers.... now that's a different matter!!

On our previous boat we had a horizontal axis manual windlass that had a BIG spurling pipe for the chain to descend through. Even with its clever little chrome cover plate, a lot of water would get in during rough wx. The chain locker drained into the bilge... not a good combo! So we designed a fairly tightly fitted canvas cover for it, not to keep dirt from its innards, but to keep water from the boat's innards. Wasn't perfect, but did help a lot. And we only fitted it when going to sea...

Jim

[ramblinrod]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Black dust is an eyesore on your decks and canvas for sure. Not for sure that it harms winches, even if it gets inside them.

So far, I've not seen any evidence that winches are actually harmed by stuff that would get blocked by a canvas winch cover such as are sold by WM and others. Claims that grease is made runny by sun heating, and that this harms winches are not supported by my observations of 40+ years of winch ownership.

As far as I can see realistically, the only benefit from covers is protecting against UV damage of plastic parts. If your winches have such, then by all means protect the plastic bits. Otherwise, I reckon covers are a waste of time and money. YMMV.

jim

If one is predisposed to believe something, it takes a lot of very compelling evidence to change their perception. If one is open-minded, not so much.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by ramblinrod

If one is predisposed to believe something, it takes a lot of very compelling evidence to change their perception. If one is open-minded, not so much.

Are you speaking of yourself, sir?

My point of view is based on owning, using and servicing winches for over 40 years. This is much more compelling evidence that lots of internet experts who repeat what they read in the west marine catalog, winch cover section.

So far, no one has even posted happenstance, second hand reports of actual damage resulting from not covering winches. Even the posters who live in areas where Sahara sand storms add to the problem have not documented damage attributed to not covering their winches. My opinion continues to be that if winches are serviced on the manufacturer's schedule, covers will not benefit them beyond protecting plastic parts.

Frankly, I don't much care if folks cover their winches. The OP was asking if it was necessary or desirable, and I have given my opinion. He is welcome to pay attention or not.

Jim

[rognvald]

I have used winch covers on all my boats for over 30 years. They have elastic sewn on the inside(secures under the winch head) that prevents them from being blown away in a storm. I have only lost one which was not properly secured. I am not certain that there would be a marked difference in cleanliness of well-maintained winches(with/without covers) in general sea conditions as Jim has stated, but there certainly would be a difference in dusty areas as UC and others have mentioned. From a personal perspective, I like the look of a tidy, clean, boat with enough "aesthetics" to separate it from a common workboat. I also use a helm cover and secure and cover my mainsail whenever we are not sailing. I think, perhaps, it's all a matter of personality. I vote for winch covers. Good luck and safe sailing.