Automatic, Self Tailing, or Good Ole Winches?

[Simon Sexton]

Hey Everyone,

Good morning! I was sailing last Sunday on a C&C 57 center-cockpit racer/cruiser; she was quick in a stiff breeze, but I found the automatic self-tailing winches confusing and a bit slow to use. I'm not sure if this is the case with all automatic wenches, but I, myself, am used to just cranking the sucker with a handle and cleating it off (preferably with a cam cleat), or hauling the sheet with five other people to the belaying pin on the Tall Ship ...what do you prefer, and why?

 

[justsomeguy]

what do you prefer, and why?

Manually, to watch tension.

 

[Jackdaw]

Automatic? Surly you mean 'powered'.

Powered winches come in two forms. Most are powered in retrieve mode, and are designed for halyards. Used for sheets they are a PITA.

Bi-directional powered winches are very nice. A button for in, a button for out. Only downside is that they do not have a 'fast' mode.

Lots of boats have powered halyard winches on their sheets. Not smart.

 

[Justin_NSA]

I enjoy our self-tailing winches once the crew gets the hang of them. I had the same ?? about "automatic". I wouldn't want powered winches for sheets but it sure would have been nice raising that big heavy main on the cat in the BVIs.

 

[DArcy]

I'm not sure if this is the case with all automatic wenches,

I like the idea of an automatic wench but when it comes to winches I like manual. Self tailing is a huge advantage, the tailer is essentially a round jam cleat which is easy to release but allows one person to grind two handed. I switched my boat from basic winches to self tailing several years ago and it was the single best improvement I have made.
I race on a boat with an electric winch which is nice for raising the main but not much good for anything else. It has tones of torque but isn't terribly fast and can do a lot of damage if you're not careful.

 

[Michael Davis]

all automatic wenches

Would they be like the "Stepford Wives"?
Seriously, I like self-tailing because sometimes I need both hands.

 

[Justin_NSA]

Would they be like the "Stepford Wives"?
Seriously, I like self-tailing because sometimes I need both hands.

are you still talking about winches?

 

[Michael Davis]

are you still talking about winches?

Winches I think. Never had a self-tailing wench!

 

[Simon Sexton]

I enjoy our self-tailing winches once the crew gets the hang of them. I had the same ?? about "automatic". I wouldn't want powered winches for sheets but it sure would have been nice raising that big heavy main on the cat in the BVIs.

I've heard them called "automatic", "motorized", and "powered". After all, I am from Texas.

 

[Ted]

My boat came with Harken electric self tailing, two speed winches. It wasn't something I was looking for nor were they something I intended to add in the future. After using them as main halyard and sheet winches I love them more than expected, especially when single handing. They can also be used in the manual mode with a standard winch handle when I want some exercise. The electric mode is faster than the manual mode especially when they get loaded up. There are two buttons for each winch, one for high gear and one for low. I bring in the unloaded sheet by hand then use the high speed to get the genoa to a coarse trim point and finish trimming in low speed. Very small trim tweaks can be made wth a quick tap of the switch or with the winch handle. Pretty easy to use. When used properly they are fantastic and are powerful enough to do damage when not. Manual winches, hydraulic systems, propane stoves and drunk boaters can cause damage too.

 

[Jackdaw]

I've heard them called "automatic", "motorized", and "powered". After all, I am from Texas.

If you heard 'automatic' stop saying it. Automatic implies an action taken without human intervention... ie the winch would 'automatically' trim. They don't do that, so they are not automatic.

 

[Simon Sexton]

If you heard 'automatic' stop saying it. Automatic implies an action taken without human intervention... ie the winch would 'automatically' trim. They don't do that, so they are not automatic.

I understand. That would be interesting to see, but at the same time, I also hope technology would never come to that sort of laziness...

 

[Justin_NSA]

do they have bluetooth? Is there an app for trimming?

 

[Simon Sexton]

do they have bluetooth? Is there an app for trimming?

Like I said, I REALLY hope technology never gets there XD.

 

[Charlie Jones s/v Tehani]

as an old fart, I'll stick with what I've got Almost never use the handle either- i just head up a tad-

 

[Jackdaw]

as an old fart, I'll stick with what I've got Almost never use the handle either- i just head up a tad-

I think you mean fall off..... ;^)

 

[shemandr]

Yeah but, a 57' C&C with overlapping headsails is a different thing than a 26' Rhodes. If you want me to crank in those huge sails you'd better have O2 available and a defibrillator on hand. I see numbers of that era (Error?) boat owned by older folks transitioning to powered winches.
On the 23' Seafarer I frequent we rarely use a winch handle.

 

[Jackdaw]

Yeah but, a 57' C&C with overlapping headsails is a different thing than a 26' Rhodes. If you want me to crank in those huge sails you'd better have O2 available and a defibrillator on hand. I see numbers of that era (Error?) boat owned by older folks transitioning to powered winches.
On the 23' Seafarer I frequent we rarely use a winch handle.

Exactly. You cannot look at this question in isolation. What kind of boat you have, what crew you have, racing or cruising all factor. Depending on the circumstance I could see any of the winch options being best suited.

 

[Joe]

I upgraded my standard halyard and primary winches to self tailing a year or so past, I found them very convenient for halyard control... I like 'em. If I were racing this boat I'd stick with Standard primaries... I think they're faster for sail handling.

 

[Capt jgw]

Self tailing winches weren't invented yet when my boat was built in 1969 and they've not been upgraded. That's about item number 900 on the wish list.