Electric Winch Question

[shout]

Wondering if anyone is using an ATV winch instead of a purpose built trailer winch? We just bought a 23' bow rider, moving up from a 20' boat, and after hand winching onto the trailer yesterday we are thinking about an electric winch to ease the process. Any suggestions/experience with electric winches would be helpful

Thanks, shout

 

[tazrig]

Re: Electric Winch Question

With a purpose built winch the bolt patterns will match up winch to trailer and your strap or cable will be dead center over the trailer which is right where you want it. If you use an ATV winch you may be pulling the boat up the trailer at an angle as the strap or cable will not be centered.

 

[alldodge]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Agree with taz

Add, if it's fairly difficult to load the boat using the current winch maybe look at your trailer or why it is so difficult. Putting my 27 cruiser on the trailer is my most difficult but still not that hard. If the trailer is position deep enough to allow the boat to drive on the trailer, but not to deep to float off, I just attach the hook and snug it up.

My 23 footer is a snap, position the same way respectively with the cruiser. Drive the boat on the trailer up to the bow stop roller, hook the hook on and snug it up. Neither take much cranking.

 

[bigdee]

Re: Electric Winch Question

I not all that familiar with boat winches but the ones I have seen were painfully slow. Something to think about if you use busy ramps. I agree with AllDodge, adjust your loading technique so you can drive on even if it means getting your feet wet.

 

[Redfred1]

Re: Electric Winch Question

I installed one on the trailer of my first boat (20' Cobia). Had to off set the winch to make it work. Also had to add a snatch pulley at the hook. And then had to run the wire from the truck battery back to the trailer; (had to use bigger wire). It worked; but it pulled the boat up very slow. Took it back off. Thought and design was good; performance was poor. RF

 

[tazrig]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Agree with taz

Add, if it's fairly difficult to load the boat using the current winch maybe look at your trailer or why it is so difficult.

Good point. If you have bunks you should be able to just float it on and if you have rollers you should be able to float it or drive it at least most of the way on.

 

[JimS123]

Re: Electric Winch Question

I always had little outboards and had no issues winching them up the full length of the trailer. Boating has to be fun and for me getting my feet wet is NO fun.

When I got my current I/O I only winched it up once. That was all it took - I bought a PowerWinch and haven't looked back. I realize there are more expensive ones around, and some will say mine is junk, but its served me well for 29 years now. Its a single line pull and it retreves the boat faster than I can hand crank it. I don't understand the other "slow" comments here.

A buddy of mine went the cheep route and used a non-marine ATV winch and complained forever and ever. He always said electric winches were stoopid, until I took him fishing once and he saw mine. He bought one just like it a week later.

I put the trailer in so the last roller is just at water level. The PowerWinch pulls the boat all the way up. Whenever I use it the people power loading, backing in till the tailpipe is bubbling, and / or cursing because their boat is on crooked, all stop, look at me then scratch their head wondering how I can get the boat loaded straight, with no effort at all.

 

[alldodge]

Re: Electric Winch Question

It's all in technic and knowing what works and what doesn't. As mentioned previous, never had to crank hardly any once I figured how to position the trailer for loading. Since then it was all child's play, even let my grand child tighten up the winch on the cruiser.

 

[shout]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Thanks for the suggestions, I now suspect the trailer is part of the problem, greatly appreciate the help

--shout

 

[oldandintheway]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Check out Powerwinch RC23.

 

[Redfred1]

Re: Electric Winch Question

I agree with Dodge; all in the technique and knowing what works. Boats; weight; ramps; they are never the same. RF

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Electric Winch Question

jim explains it well. A power winch made for boats works great on boats; other winches, from tales told here and in previous posts, don't work well if at all. For salt water roller trailers we keep out of the water, the power winch is the way to go. Dry axles means dry feet, too. And many boats straighten themselves with a power winch and a trailer that isn't sunk too deep.

Speed? it's all the same, just seems longer (excluding the swim-to-retrieve folks) although there was a post here about a guy who thought it was a good idea to get a too-big winch and it was real slow. Also many non-boat winches are too slow. 10' a minute is less than 2 minutes for a 25' boat.

 

[Maclin]

Re: Electric Winch Question

I always think of the "dry feet" feature, then read HC's post just now, good take on the advantages. One's boating season can be extended where cold water retrieving is an issue.

An ATV or OffRoad type winch has to be extra heavy duty because it never really knows what it is going to have to do. They are geared way down (slooowwww) usually by design so they can perform in unforeseen circumstances.

A boat winch has one job and it is always the same. The pulling load is eased by rollers, water-lubed bunks, etc, so it does not have to be super geared down, thus the speed can be faster than a generic all purpose type winch. Just my opinion. The only reason I have not gone to electric winch is cost, mainly because I still have a couple of winch-motors (teenage kids!) I can enlist for hand cranking duties. We still have the issue of wet feet though, but I can always make them ride in the bed of the truck. J/K

 

[dingbat]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Speed? it's all the same, just seems longer (excluding the swim-to-retrieve folks) although there was a post here about a guy who thought it was a good idea to get a too-big winch and it was real slow. Also many non-boat winches are too slow. 10' a minute is less than 2 minutes for a 25' boat.

Winches are not slow, the marketing department makes them that way.

Marketing departments do consumers a great disservice when they advertise winches by pulling power w/o giving a speed. With the proper gear ratio, I can lift a house of it's foundation with a 1/4 HP electric motor. It might take me a day because of the tremendous gear reductions required, but it can be done. If I replaced the 1/4 HP motor with a 1/2 HP, I could cut the gear ratio in half and lift the house in half the time. Of course, the 1/2 hp motor cost more so the incentive is to use the 1/4 HP and slower speeds to maximize profits at the expense of speed.

They also forget to mention that the maximum pulling power is only obtainable with all the cable off the winch. With each rotation of the drum, the pulling power is decreased to the point that the actual pulling power is about 1/2 the advertised value by the time the all the cable is back on the spool. Ever find yourself cranking harder and harder the more cable/strap you wind back on the drum?

Bottom line, if the winch uses a double line and pulley system......run. It will be slower than molasses in January.

FWIW: My #4200 winch retrieves at 21.6' per minute. That's roughly minute for a 25' boat. I drive partially on the trailer. My winch time is generally less than 15 seconds

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Electric Winch Question

All true--but the Power Winch brand gives you the retrieve time. They also tell you what size boat the winch is suited for, since the base line "lifting capacity" is irrelevant for a trailer application. They also don't worry about the differential in either power needed (irrelevant) or speed (negligable) as the cable wraps around the drum.

All reasons to buy a winch made for boat trailers by a company that knows what it is doing.

And as for "dry feet": is there any other way?

 

[agallant80]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Have you tried bunk lube? I have a 25 foot cruiser that clocks in at 6800Lbs dry. Bunk lube makes it a non issue to crank her on the trailer. Also finding the sweet spot of how deep to put the trailer helps. Too shallow and the boat is a mother to drag across the bunks, to deep and the boat does not sit on the trailer properly. I noticed there is one depth to get the boat off and another depth to get her back on. I suspect if you figure that part out your trailer loading will be much easier.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Electric Winch Question

People generally DRAMATICALLY underestimate the size of power cable needed to run a winch the way it was meant to. If someone complains that a winch is too slow, first thing to look at is the size and length of the power cable.

Just a quick check on the iboats store, a relatively small 2400# marine winch has a circuit breaker at 60 amps. Lets say it draws 50 amps max during pulling. For a 25ft run to the battery (remember, need to ground it also to the truck frame, that distance counts), you are between 4 gauge and 2 gauge wire! (8 gauge would drop 2 volts in that run, 4 gauge is .7, and 2 gauge is .5)

I've seen people plug a winch into an adapter for the lighting harness! At best, that is going to be 12 gauge. If you don't pop the fuse, the voltage drop is going to be over 5 volts.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Electric Winch Question

All true--but the Power Winch brand gives you the retrieve time. They also tell you what size boat the winch is suited for, since the base line "lifting capacity" is irrelevant for a trailer application. They also don't worry about the differential in either power needed (irrelevant) or speed (negligable) as the cable wraps around the drum.

All reasons to buy a winch made for boat trailers by a company that knows what it is doing.

Funny you mention Power winch.....

Perfect example of what I'm talking about. Winch for my 22' Grady ~#5000 w/fuel

Power Winch 712:
Max pull, "double line" (big red light,...run) #4300 (720 VA) at 7' per minute using double line operation.

Rule 42R (currently in use)
Max pull, single line,#4200 (960 VA) at 21' per minute

What do the numbers tell me...... The PW is a dog..... the Rule has 33% more power and retrieves the load 3 times faster

 

[shout]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Thanks for all of the info, I will look at the trailer, rollers, depth of trailer and watch for sales on electric winches. You've provided a ton of information here, thanks.

-- shout

 

[JimS123]

Re: Electric Winch Question

Have you tried bunk lube? I have a 25 foot cruiser that clocks in at 6800Lbs dry. Bunk lube makes it a non issue to crank her on the trailer. Also finding the sweet spot of how deep to put the trailer helps. Too shallow and the boat is a mother to drag across the bunks, to deep and the boat does not sit on the trailer properly. I noticed there is one depth to get the boat off and another depth to get her back on. I suspect if you figure that part out your trailer loading will be much easier.

I don't need lube...mine sits on an all roller trailer. She rolls off like greased lightnin. But I don't need the aggravation of working up a sweat cranking it back up. Maybe I'm just lazy, but as I get older my back bothers me more. So, a few hundred bucks for a winch is just pocket change. Allowing me to relax at the end of a day on the water - priceless. Heck, I may even buy one for my 14' tinnny just for the fun of it....LOL.