Power winch for Hunter 38

[NZhunter]

Can any one advise me on how to retro-fit a power winch to my Hunter 38?
I have slab reefing and a heavy cruising dacron mainsail. Hard to haul up for single handing avoiding the lazy jacks. Specific questions:
Which side does it go?
Will the motor fit under the normal headliner or do I need a custom cover?
Is it pre-wired? (can't find it in the H38 wiring diagram but it is shown as an option in the old H38 brochure).
What brand/model winch to use?
How much power does it need (would I need to have the motor running)?
Anyone done it? Would you do it again?

Thanks in advance

Rob

 

[seadaddler]

Hunter

Contact Hunter Eddie B most likely can give you info and maybe eveen photo's,he has always been very helpful.
nick

 

[quadrille38]

I would think it has to be on starboard side as that is where the main halyard runs on my 38. Problem is that from everything I've seen on power winches that the motor unit is going to hang down quite far below the roof, and that would put it smack in the area of the galley / door to the aft cabin where it is going to be a head knocker.

An alternative that isn't quite as elegant that I've seen many people use it to buy a powerful cordless electric drill, you can get a driver that will fit the winch and use that to run the sail up. Had a 70s+ friend that used that mechanism and has allowed him to continue sailing well in to his 80s.

 

[NZhunter]

Nice

Thanks guys - others have said how helpful Eddie is. Agree with Quad it would protrude into the main cabin by the galley. Love the idea of the drill though - found a few on-line references to converting a 12volt drill to run off a 12v cord for supply. Would 12V be powerful enough? Thanks guys.

 

[quadrille38]

Get a drill that has higher voltage in the 17 or 18 range. They are standard at Sears or any of the home improvement stores. The battery pack that comes with it will run your main up many many times before it needs to b recharged so you won't need a power cord.

They almost always come with two battery packs so you can go a long time between charging the batteries.

 

[Scott B]

There's always the option of a Winchrite

http://forums.hunter.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=147608&#post979013

http://shop.hunterowners.com/prod.php?52007

 

[NZhunter]

Good input

Thanks again - hadn't seen the WinchRite but interesting that it uses 18V batteries - that probably answers my question about 12 vs 18V. Toss up between purpose built (expensive unit) that my wife could easily manage and an "all purpose" but slightly unwieldy drill - there must be quite a bit of torque to control. I wonder how easy it would be for my wife to use?

Alternative is to suggest we need to buy a new performance mainsail that will be half the weight!

 

[ms-card@cox.com]

Rob,

There is a power winch on the market that is portable. It is pretty compact. Just drop it in like a winch handle an flip the thumb switch. The torque must be handled, but I think that is fairly easy. I'll likely get one soon.

Mike

 

[NZhunter]

Thanks Mike - is this the WinchRite referred to by Scott (see above)?

 

[Hoomalie]

I converted a halyard winch to electric on my H376. It also was offered as an option from the factory. I used a Lewmar upgrade kit, and the installation was pretty straight forward. It did require running some large cables for power and a special wrench which I got from sears. The motor hangs down in the aft cabin but is out of the way, I made a teak cover for it and if you didn't know it was there you would never notice it. Would I do it again, in a heartbeat, it not only makes raising the main a snap but when someone needs to go aloft the winch handles the job with ease. Pics available upon request. Tom Clark ph 808/927-5753 email tomclarkg50@gmail.com

 

[NZhunter]

Nice

Thanks Tom, unfortunately the winch is right in the passageway between the aft cabin and galley and there may not be the headroom. How much did the electric motor protrude under the deck? Cheers

Rob

 

[Hoomalie]

Power Winch

Thanks Tom, unfortunately the winch is right in the passageway between the aft cabin and galley and there may not be the headroom. How much did the electric motor protrude under the deck? Cheers

Rob

I believe our hulls are essentually the same, the motor protrudes approx 6-8 inches and even with the cover it does not interfere with passage to the aft cabin. ALOHA Tom