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Rosalie B.

wrote:

On Sun, 13 Apr 2008 17:23:13 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

I used to see manual windlasses but not anymore. Can you still get
one of the type with a lever you push back and forth or where you use
a winch handle?

You can get a manual windlass, but the cost is pretty close to an electric that
has a manual override.

We got ours second hand from Bacons. IIRC it was about $80.00. It
was missing the handle, but Bob was able to make one pretty easily -
that also meant that he could make it the right length to be
comfortable for him. We got a second hand tape by the Pardeys, and
that showed us the efficient way to stow the handle by the windlass.
We went to a book signing and bought their books as a thank-you
because that one tip was worth it.

Bob is an electrical engineer and he has in the past converted a
diesel car to electric and drove it to work for 5 or 6 years. So he
is pretty familiar with electrical things. He thought about the
electric winch thing (We chartered two boats like ours for a week each
before we bought ours so he was able to see the advantages and
disadvantages) and decided that he did not like either of the options
for power. He didn't want to put a battery in the bow and run cables
back to the charger, nor he didn't want to run the big heavy duty
cables from the battery to the bow.

Before we decided, we asked on the live-aboard list etc, and almost
everyone said we should get an electric windlass. Except one guy, who
said his 10 year old son was strong enough to pull the anchor with a
manual windlass, and that was really all I was worried about. And I
CAN do it with the manual windlass, although it is more effort than I
normally like to make. Usually I drive the boat while Bob pulls the
anchor.