Winchbit driver

[Hayden Watson]

I have seen a lot of comments on using the Winch bit with a Milwaukee right-angle drill. In looking at these drills, I find them to be about $350 plus batteries. Not having any other Milwaukee cordless products makes this a big buy. I keep harbor freight Hercules tools on the boat so am set up with those batteries and chargers. I was looking at their 1/2" right angle drill and at $99, could get two spares and still be ahead. It is brushless so should take hi-amp loading reasonablely well.With the a 5-year warantee, they will replace it at the store without question in my experience. Anyone tried one?
20V Brushless Cordless 1/2 in. Variable Speed Right Angle Drill - Tool Only (harborfreight.com)

 

[Tally Ho]

I use the Milwaukee right angle drill and really like it. It is a heavy duty drill, and it reverses, which is important.

I can’t tell…does that Hercules have reverse?

It looks like you can get the Hercules, plus battery and charger for about $250 (unless there is a package price). $100 less than the Milwaukee it looks like.

I went from the bit you chuck in, to one that replaces the chuck…I had problems with breaking a pin that keeps the chuck from spinning off….the new bit totally replaces the chuck.

I say reverse is important because I have a 2-speed winch on the cabin top for the halyard…I start out in high-speed mode (I forget if it is fwd or rev on the drill), get the sail close to the top, but then the drill is starting to lug, so I switch to low gear on the winch and it easily raises the sail the rest of the way up.

I have Lazy Jacks and it is so easy to:
1) point boat into the wind and set AP to hold wind angle.
2) start cranking the sail up with the drill, while holding my other hand on the boom, and easily guiding the sail up between the jacks (you cannot do that if you are hand cranking).
3) I can raise the sail in about 1 minute (maybe less….I will have to time it).

The Hercules drill looms robust, so I don’t see why it would not work. If you only have a single speed winch, reverse may not be needed…but make sure it cranks the right way!

Greg

 

[Hayden Watson]

I use the Milwaukee right angle drill and really like it. It is a heavy duty drill, and it reverses, which is important.

I can’t tell…does that Hercules have reverse?

It looks like you can get the Hercules, plus battery and charger for about $250 (unless there is a package price). $100 less than the Milwaukee it looks like.

I went from the bit you chuck in, to one that replaces the chuck…I had problems with breaking a pin that keeps the chuck from spinning off….the new bit totally replaces the chuck.

I say reverse is important because I have a 2-speed winch on the cabin top for the halyard…I start out in high-speed mode (I forget if it is fwd or rev on the drill), get the sail close to the top, but then the drill is starting to lug, so I switch to low gear on the winch and it easily raises the sail the rest of the way up.

I have Lazy Jacks and it is so easy to:
1) point boat into the wind and set AP to hold wind angle.
2) start cranking the sail up with the drill, while holding my other hand on the boom, and easily guiding the sail up between the jacks (you cannot do that if you are hand cranking).
3) I can raise the sail in about 1 minute (maybe less….I will have to time it).

The Hercules drill looms robust, so I don’t see why it would not work. If you only have a single speed winch, reverse may not be needed…but make sure it cranks the right way!

Greg

Thanks for the reply. It is reversible and variable speed but does not have a two-speed gearbox which is unfortunate.
I do not have any problems with having a clear hoist other than the interference of the dodger which prevents a full 360º turn of the handle. I need to ratchet it through about 180º. The cabin top winch is a single speed ST-16 which hauls the main up fairly well but is too light for my wife to haul me up the mast. She can manage to crank the ST40 primaries, and I can run the main halyard to them with some inventive routing. The problem with her cranking me up is the number of turns and endurance.

The hope would be that a power drill would work for hoisting me on the ST40.

I have a stack pac that we designed that allows the jacklines to be dropped and the cloth to be rolled alongside the boom so there is nothing to snag the sail as it goes up.

 

[Tally Ho]

Thanks for the reply. It is reversible and variable speed but does not have a two-speed gearbox which is unfortunate.
I do not have any problems with having a clear hoist other than the interference of the dodger which prevents a full 360º turn of the handle. I need to ratchet it through about 180º. The cabin top winch is a single speed ST-16 which hauls the main up fairly well but is too light for my wife to haul me up the mast. She can manage to crank the ST40 primaries, and I can run the main halyard to them with some inventive routing. The problem with her cranking me up is the number of turns and endurance.

The hope would be that a power drill would work for hoisting me on the ST40.

I have a stack pac that we designed that allows the jacklines to be dropped and the cloth to be rolled alongside the boom so there is nothing to snag the sail as it goes up.

My wife bought me the Milwaukee drill originally for getting up the mast…I had this obsession to get up by myself…or with limited help. I am 207#.
i first tried it on a single speed cabin top winch…no bueno. Not enough power to raise me.
Then I rerouted the halyard to a 2-speed primary…no bueno.
Then I replaced the primaries with some oversized winches I picked up (Barlow 29’s)…beefy 2 speed.
A friend who is 165# volunteered to go up, and I ran the drill. We got him up about 1/2 way, but the drill died…burned up the electronic switch inside….so, no bueno.

I now use the winch just for raising the main, which it does very well…for climbing the mast, i have switched to using 2 ascenders, a chair and foot loops. I can now climb the mast even if I don’t have help.

Greg

 

[Ward H]

Greg, When the main reaches full height does the drill try to twist out of your hand or does it just bog down? I'm use to the feel of the increased tension when my main reaches full height when using the winch. Any danger of pulling the top out of the main?

 

[Tally Ho]

Greg, When the main reaches full height does the drill try to twist out of your hand or does it just bog down? I'm use to the feel of the increased tension when my main reaches full height when using the winch. Any danger of pulling the top out of the main?

Both…bogs down, but when in low gear direction, it will pull your arm over a bit. You can leave the sail a little loose and hand crank the last few inches to your “feel for tension”. The Milwaukee drill is pretty long, so you have a little leverage (maybe more than the Harbor Freight drill). You can feel when s tight though, and can certainly let off the trigger.

I don’t think you could pull the headboard off.

I did use it to raise my spinnaker last week…I had replaced the old crusty halyard, so it went up a lot easier…too easy maybe as I pulled the shackle over the sheave…and had to climb the mast to get it down. (Those ascenders come in handy).

I am going to add a sheet stopper on the spin halyard to keep that from happening again.

Greg

 

[Tally Ho]

Someone posted this drill as a beast (also expensive) that he says can crank 220# up his 65' mast...

DEWALT FLEXVOLT 60V MAX VSR Stud and Joist Drill Kit with E-Clutch System

DEWALT FLEXVOLT 60V MAX VSR Stud and Joist Drill Kit with E-Clutch System - DCD460T1

www.acmetools.com

Here is the post...scroll down to #18...

Tools that changed your life - Page 2 - Cruisers & Sailing Forums

I got this light which straps around your head . It has 4 LED lights which feed off a tiny battery . For work on the engine or any other nook and cranny, it throws out an amazing amount of light and

www.cruisersforum.com

Greg

 

[Ward H]

Just ordered the WinchBit driver. When it comes in I'll run over to Harbor Freight and pick up the drill and batteries @Hayden Watson mentioned above.
I wasn't really planning on ordering that set up because I just installed a Strong Track and Stack Pack back in May. With the Strong Track it is a bit easier to raise the main hand over hand up to the last 1' to 1.5', then switch to the winch handle to tension.
But recently I'm getting some pain in my shoulder after doing so. With my shoulders getting older my wife suggested to get the WinchBit to save wear and possibly tear on them.

 

[jviss]

One of these days...

A super DIY project would be to convert a manual winch to electric using a starter motor. I know, sounds wacky, but I've been known to do crazier things.

Meanwhile, saving my pennies for a "HARKEN #35 2 SPEED ELECTRIC SELF-TAILING RADIAL WINCH."

I actually got the main working well enough this year that I can crank it to the top and tight with the manual 32.2 ST winch, but it takes a while, and I had to take two short breaks. Plus, I did it head to wind, at the mooring. Otherwise, I don't know what would happen.

 

[Hayden Watson]

If money wasn't an issue, I would grab one of these so quick!
Seldén E40i Electric Winch on Vimeo

 

[jviss]

If money wasn't an issue, I would grab one of these so quick!
Seldén E40i Electric Winch on Vimeo

Oh, that's cool! Harken has a winch with the motor partially embedded, but it still projects 4"+ into the cabin. The Selden one is cool, and not much more dough!

 

[Hayden Watson]

Oh, that's cool! Harken has a winch with the motor partially embedded, but it still projects 4"+ into the cabin. The Selden one is cool, and not much more dough!

It is interesting in that it uses 42dcv to run which is produces by a small boost converter so that the motor and wires are smaller due to the lower amps needed to get the desired wattage output. The only drawback is that I see is it is electric only with no manual backup. On my boat, that would not cause a problem because I would just cross sheet to the other cabin top winch which is an ST16.

 

[jviss]

It is interesting in that it uses 42dcv to run which is produces by a small boost converter so that the motor and wires are smaller due to the lower amps needed to get the desired wattage output. The only drawback is that I see is it is electric only with no manual backup. On my boat, that would not cause a problem because I would just cross sheet to the other cabin top winch which is an ST16.

That's a show stopper for me, no manual operation. I didn't even notice that!

 

[Hayden Watson]

That's a show stopper for me, no manual operation. I didn't even notice that!

It was originally developed for their synchronized main sail furling system where two electric winches talk to each other to perfectly deploy and furl the main.

 

[fred1diver]

I have a stack pac that we designed that allows the jacklines to be dropped and the cloth to be rolled alongside the boom so there is nothing to snag the sail as it goes up.

Could you please send me more pictures of the sail pack, designing mine at the moment, looking for ideas

 

[Hayden Watson]

Could you please send me more pictures of the sail pack, designing mine at the moment, looking for ideas?

Here is a thread that Ward started on the pack that he built based on the design and drawings I sent him on mine. Post #8 shows the Pap-Pac rolled up alongside the boom with the jack lines in the stowed position. Post #9 shows a bunch of photos showing the details of how it works.

Home Built Stack Pack

I thought I’d share an upgrade recently made to Sun Dog, our C30. Along with a new main sail and Tides Marine Strong Track we built and installed a Stack Pack. I've heard and read good things about the Strong Track and Stack Pack combination including in posts and in chat with @Tally Ho so I...

forums.sailboatowners.com

 

[Hayden Watson]

That's a show stopper for me, no manual operation. I didn't even notice that!

I am not so proud of my winching prowess to spurn using one finger to raise a sail or someone up the mast.
Like I said, if it goes south, I could just take a turn on the drum and send the line to the other side of the cabin where I have an ST16. If that is not strong enough, I can also run it to the turning block and to the ST40 primaries.

 

[Tally Ho]

Here is a short video I tried to make of raising my sail with my drill…

Not the best video, but you can see how fast I can raise the main sail with one hand, and how I can use the other hand to “guide” the sail between the lazy jacks with the other hand….

Greg

 

[stageboss]

If money wasn't an issue, I would grab one of these so quick!
Seldén E40i Electric Winch on Vimeo

Has anyone tried installing one of these? My Catalina 310 has limited access to the area above the salon so even getting some wiring in there would be a challenge.

 

[Davidasailor26]

Has anyone tried installing one of these? My Catalina 310 has limited access to the area above the salon so even getting some wiring in there would be a challenge.

These might give some idea on what’s involved. The conversion to higher voltage for smaller wiring is clever.