Want to Replace Maxwell 17 Winches

[rkahan]

On my 1984 Hunter 25.5, both the self tailing Maxwell 17 winches (for jib sheets) are frozen and will not disassemble (retaining cap is frozen to the pedestal extension). Plus the Maxwell halyard winch is also a frozen mess.
Would like to replace with some used ones that work or can be disassembled and cleaned/greased. Open to suggestions...would like to have working winches by the July 4th holiday. Thanks.

 

[Eric M]

Have you yet tried to remove the current winches? Usually the drum has to be removed to get to one end of the bolts which are used to attach the winches to your boat. I guess you may be able to cut away the nuts on the back side and pull the whole assembly off the boat but even then it might not pull free.
The winches on an old J/24 I purchased were pretty much frozen up also. Soaking in a good solvent (I used gas) for a few days and the old greese was pretty much disolved to the point I could get them apart. A half hour brushing with a tooth brush and gas on the bearings and gears and they were ready to go back together. 6 years later when I sold the boat they were still working fine. Just trying to save you some boat $$$ for the next project.
Are you certain you have removed the retaining feature on the top of the winch that holds the top retaining cap in place? Usually it is either a bolt, a series of bolts, or a snap ring of sorts right on the top of the winch. A photo might help if you are still stuck.
Good luck

 

[Warren Milberg]

I'd give it another try to take them apart and clean them properly. The retaining ring is probably the same screw type on the larger Maxwells. Should have a slot on either side of the pedestal into which you can put a large flat bladed screwdriver and tap counterclockwise to loosen. Use some PB Blaster, Liquid Wrench, etc, first if need be. Once the ring is off, just lift the drum and remove the needle bearing. From there you should be able to remove and clean all the parts. There is a basic diagram on the HBO or Hunter 285 websites. Maxwell made some good winches and my guess is that you can restore yours to good working condition.