Thanks for your kind words, Gene. It hurt like nobody's business and bled a lot at the time. The swelling in my hand is gone now but the middle knuckle on my bird finger is still stiff and a little swollen. I changed back to the original winch thinking it wouldn't allow the same thing to happen. But it looks like I'm still stuck being careful next time.
Brett,
Don't kid yourself, the pawl or the engaged teeth can and will break if enough stress is placed on them. I had a brand new 2500lb winch fail last fall while hauling. There's a lot of force on the winch as the boat settles on the trailer.
I prefer to have a safety chain on the bow with about 18" of slack. I leave the winch attached but back it off to the point where the chain would take any tension if the boat should slip.
Thanks Bud. Perfect solution. And I might already leave the chain on. I honestly never really stopped to make a mental note. My almost-healed finger should remind me. Seriously, there's still something going on with that finger.
Just a little incident of having forgotten that I sprayed the trailer bunks with silicon before loading the boat. Then backing down the ramp a bit too quickly only to slow a bit too fast before wetting the bottom sufficiently. Boat slid back onto the rudder brackets as it tried to make its own way to the water. The winch or a safety strap now stays connected until I see the stern float up.
