I'm kind of seeing a horizontal windlass mounted UP on the deck for a couple of reasons:
1. There is no motor protruding down into the V-berth below.
2. Mounting it ON deck gives you the maximum amount of drop, of which you have very little.
I feel that the 8" drop can work but you will have to keep a clear path as the locker starts to fill.
In the meantime....my wanna be engineer self is in overdrive to solve this conundrum.
Great ! ! ! I've read enough specs to last me three lifetimes so here's where you get to satisfy your engineering cravings:
- research various horizontal windlasses to see which offers the best the qualities you want.
- size that windlass size to accommodate your lode weight. This can be tricky as most manufacturers use their own nomenclature for their windlass' capabilities.
- check to see if the windlass measurements fit your boat.
- you'll need the curvature of the deck to see the maximum the windlass can be mounted on a curved surface.
I sent my guy some that I felt would be a great solution,I think.
Ask yourself if your guy and his yard are capable of:
- talking to you and respecting you as if you were a man. Most yard apes are complete idiots. It's just the sorry state of this business.
- taking measurements and discussing whether they will work with your boat.
- devising a few ideas as to reinforcing the deck and it NEEDS IT ! ! !
- coming up with ideas of his own which you can accept or reject without his getting PO'd, i.e dropping the rode into your V-berth.
If you are not able to say yes to everything listed here, I recommend you look elsewhere for help. The best you can expect for this kind of work is that 25% of workers will do a satisfactory job. 75% will do a worthless job and charge you a fortune for it.
PM me to let me know what you find as far as windlasses and what kind of a reception you get from your yard.