My Lewmar #7's are starting to bind up a little. Has anyone had any luck lubing them with white lithium? I was planning on taking them off the boat and lubing them at home. Is there anything I should be careful about when taking them apart? Thanks in advance.
- Status
Get a Copy of their Service Manual
It will show all of the steps and the location of the springs and pawls. The winch can be serviced on the boat if you are careful. Take a cardboard box and cut a circle in the bottom and place it over the winch. Now as you take it apart and drop something, it will not go overboard. Clean all the old grease off with varsol and regrease everything as you put it back together. The old grease gets gummy do to the dirt and sun action. Buy a tube of winch grease.
It will show all of the steps and the location of the springs and pawls. The winch can be serviced on the boat if you are careful. Take a cardboard box and cut a circle in the bottom and place it over the winch. Now as you take it apart and drop something, it will not go overboard. Clean all the old grease off with varsol and regrease everything as you put it back together. The old grease gets gummy do to the dirt and sun action. Buy a tube of winch grease.
winches
A few tips for the first timer. Jim's use of the box is an excellent recommendation. Since the winch is bolted to the deck, you will have to disassemble it. When you do, Count and catalog the parts, so you can insure you have all of them before reassembly, especially if you don't have a manual. If it is your first time, do only one winch at a time, so if you get confused during reassembly, you can use the other winch as a guide, and you won't get winch parts mixed up. For actual cleaning, mineral spirits works very well to disolve grease and gunk. It's cheap and cleans up easily, and does not smell as bad as some other solvents. An old tooth brush works well to get in between the gear teeth and other places. Then use dish soap and water to finish cleaning the parts, and set on paper or a towel to dry. White lithium will work just fine for the Bearings, gears and shaft. Use a light oil, like 3 in 1, for the pawls and springs. Grease on the pawls and springs can get gummy and cause the pawls to stick eventually. Lubricate the parts as you reassemble the winch. Take your time. There is nothing like a well serviced winch. Good Luck.
A few tips for the first timer. Jim's use of the box is an excellent recommendation. Since the winch is bolted to the deck, you will have to disassemble it. When you do, Count and catalog the parts, so you can insure you have all of them before reassembly, especially if you don't have a manual. If it is your first time, do only one winch at a time, so if you get confused during reassembly, you can use the other winch as a guide, and you won't get winch parts mixed up. For actual cleaning, mineral spirits works very well to disolve grease and gunk. It's cheap and cleans up easily, and does not smell as bad as some other solvents. An old tooth brush works well to get in between the gear teeth and other places. Then use dish soap and water to finish cleaning the parts, and set on paper or a towel to dry. White lithium will work just fine for the Bearings, gears and shaft. Use a light oil, like 3 in 1, for the pawls and springs. Grease on the pawls and springs can get gummy and cause the pawls to stick eventually. Lubricate the parts as you reassemble the winch. Take your time. There is nothing like a well serviced winch. Good Luck.
Lewmar On-Line
Lewmar has some information available on-line about their winches. Go to http://www.lewmar.com/support/support_dloads.asp and select "winches" which takes you to a section with a number of options. This booklet tells you how to give your Lewmar winches the care and attention they need to ensure that whether you sail for results, records or pleasure, your winches will contribute that extra level of performance. Select "How To Service Your Ocean Winch". A Lewmar note says "This guide is applies to servicing the current range of Lewmar winches. The same overall servicing principles may be used for earlier versions, although the detailed construction of the winches may be different." If your model is older and pre-dates this guide maybe someone would have something they could share.
Lewmar has some information available on-line about their winches. Go to http://www.lewmar.com/support/support_dloads.asp and select "winches" which takes you to a section with a number of options. This booklet tells you how to give your Lewmar winches the care and attention they need to ensure that whether you sail for results, records or pleasure, your winches will contribute that extra level of performance. Select "How To Service Your Ocean Winch". A Lewmar note says "This guide is applies to servicing the current range of Lewmar winches. The same overall servicing principles may be used for earlier versions, although the detailed construction of the winches may be different." If your model is older and pre-dates this guide maybe someone would have something they could share.
- Status