I'll see you a Lewmar and raise you one anchor....
Barrie, I have a 1997 40.5 that I installed a Lewmar Anchorman 1000 windlass. It is one of the best upgrades that I have done. Regardless of the manufacturer of the windlass that you choose, I can offer the following: Use all chain for your rode. I initially went with 40' 5/16" HT chain and 140' of 9/16 line spliced together. Although the gypsy on the windlass was designed to handle this combo, I found that the line would slip and often release if not under a moderate load. Since you are supposed to just use the windlass to haul up the rode and anchor and not pull the boat up to the anchor, the load required to keep the line in the gypsy was too excessive IMO. The second year I added another 120' of chain (with a quick link) to my existing 40' and that total 160' is more than I ever need. I tied the140' of line in a coil and left it off to the side in my anchor locker. Use your house batteries for the power. Don't place a dedicated battery in the bow for the windlass. Placement of a bow battery will present severe mounting problems and if a flooded cell battery is used the danger of spilled acid in heavy seas is too great IMO. Also the cable for recharging the battery is still going to be fairly large. Your house batteries are probably more robust and would give better performance than a single dedicated battery anyway. Use a bi-directional windlass. It is valuable to be able to pay out the chain under power as well as haul-in. This keeps your hands completely off the tackle. Use 2/0 battery cable for the run from your batteries to the windlass. This is big stuff, but you need it. Don't skimp with a smaller size. The best price I've found is from Jamestown Distributors - 25' for $77. They are on the web at www.jamestowndistributors.com Crimp and solder all connections and then use shrink tubing over the lug and wire to seal out moisture. When you are drawing 150+ amps, you don't want any extra resistance. I used a hand control at the bow for the up/down control. I thought it would be easier to use than foot switches on a wet and possibly slippery deck. Make up a 10-12' piece of 5/8-3/4" nylon line with a chain hook. When anchored, hook onto the chain and tie off the line to your cleat. This takes the strain off the windlass and its clutches and also gives some stretch to the all-chain rode. It is much quieter too. Hope this helps. Rich
