Testing Pawl Oil For Winches

[thinwater]

I will be testing...

• Harken pawl oil
• Lewmar pawl oil

... for corrosion, wash-off, and oxidation stability.



But while I'm at it, what else would be worth testing?

• Passenger car motor oil, if only to confirm it washes off too fast.
• Several bicycle chain oils.
• Chain saw bar oil.
• Lower unit oil. This is too thick (manufacturers generally spec 100-150 ISO), but I'm curious just as a comparison point.
• Other?

I'm open to suggestions. The problem, as I see it, is that manufacturers recommend servicing winches 1-5 times per season, which just sn't going to happen for most people. Modern greases can easily go 5 years, for most people, but the oil can't, and as a result, the pawls and their seats go first. Certainly there must be modern lubricants capable of longer intervals?

[Sailmonkey]

I think some of the dry Lube varieties would be interesting as well. Like the blaster Teflon lube or super lube dry lube. Maybe even throw in a silicon spray lube

[Vasco]

Have always used 3in1 oil.

[Wotname]

ATF
WD-40
???

Not suggesting these should be used but if you are testing - why not...

[a64pilot]

How about something like Corrosion -X ? Meant of course not to be a lubricant, but as a Corrosion preventative, I’m using it now on my winches and so far, so good. It should of course do a better than average job of preventing Corrosion.

[Bill Seal]

WD40 Specialist products, like lube gel

[Colin A]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

I think some of the dry Lube varieties would be interesting as well. Like the blaster Teflon lube or super lube dry lube. Maybe even throw in a silicon spray lube

Maybe even regular super lube.

[Jim Cate]

How about McLube sail coat as a dry lube? Sure works well on some things!

Jim

[savoir]

Just use regular old machine oil every 6 months.

[thinwater]

I will add 3-in-1 oil. It is just a light machine oil. I believe I also have Singer oil.

ATF is probably in the same catagory as motor oil (easy wash-off), but I will add it.

Motor oil will be marine type--it is rated for better corrosion protection.

WD40 is not a lubricant and does not really prevent wear. Even the winch makers advise against it. Same with dry lubes.

Standard Super Lube has been unimpressive in wash-off and corrosion tests. There are better products.

As for machine oil every 6 months, well, we're trying to extend intervals. I'm sure that works, but it is not what we are studying.

[savoir]

Every 6 months is too often ? Tough crowd here today.

OK then. Use chainsaw oil once a year. It comes in an aerosol can so it costs more.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by savoir

Every 6 months is too often ? Tough crowd here today.

OK then. Use chainsaw oil once a year. It comes in an aerosol can so it costs more.

You're not understanding my point.

When I started driving oil changes were 1500 miles and cars didn't last long. Now they are 6000-10,000 miles and cars last perhaps 30% longer on the average. Engineering has improved and lubricants have improved by leaps and bounds. If you tried to sell a car now with a 1500-miles change interval, grease fittings all around the chassis, and a 100,000 mile life expectancy, you'd hear crickets.

Most sailors NEVER service the winches. Some service the winches when they buy the boat, but never again. Most go about 5 years. Many of the readers of this thread beat their chests (just chuckle--I'm not insulting you) about how frequently they service their winches, but I assure you, you are the exception.

So I'm guessing that the winch manufacturers simply haven't thought too much about this. Winches are almost universally built very, very well, and so they survive the neglect, some better than others.

I'm sayin', that if 1 once a year with old school machine oil and waterproof grease was good enough 30 years ago, modern lubes should increase that by 3-6 times. I think we're seeing that with quality synthetic greases. So could the same be true of pawls, that with the right product, they would be safe for at least a few years, and probably 5 years, the same as the synthetic grease? Since I began monitoring winches that I personally serviced over the past 10 years, I think this makes sense for even pretty dedicated weekend sailors. Dedicated racers and full time cruisers are different matter, but they are currently advised to service many times each season, so all things remain in proportion.

----

And what the heck bar lube comes in a spray can? Are you sure about that? Please share. I am interested. Every bar lube I have seen is dispensed by the saw continuously and is ~ 50W.

[Benz]

Lotsa people just use white lithium grease on their pawls. Maybe they're on to something.

[savoir]

I understand everything. You want to know what works and I am telling you. I have been servicing every kind of winch you can name since 1978 on boats from 28 - 80 ft so I do know what works. There is no point in looking at what will last 5 years on pawls because no such product exists.

The problem with the grease on the roller bearings is not caused by the quality of the lubricant but by the evil combination of salt and heat which over time sends the lubricant dry and crumbly. If you could arrange to do all your sailing in Finland the winch grease would last years longer because it is not very hot and the water is not very salty.

The most durable winch grease I know of is Super Lube. It will give you two years on your primaries and four or five years on the halyard winches, assuming you use furlers. It can be used for longer but the needles will incur salt damage.

[savoir]

Here is an aerosol chain lubricant. I have been using it on my bicycle chain for five years and can attest that it works well. The bike lives on the boat and cops a lot of salt.

https://www.amazon.com/CRC-Adhesive-...ords=crc+tac+2