# Electric winch



## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

I'm looking to purchase an electric winch to recover my Spear that I dry launch just wondering what you guys are using on your trailers?


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## Inshore_Inc. (Sep 16, 2014)

Backcountry 16 said:


> I'm looking to purchase an electric winch to recover my Spear that I dry launch just wondering what you guys are using on your trailers?


I USE A DUTTON LAINSON #TW4000 TO DRY RECOVER A BAYCRAFT 18' WITH A FAIR AMOUNT OF WEIGHT LOADED ON SKIFF ON REGULAR BASIS AND HAVE BEEN VERY PLEASED WITH OPERATION OF THIS UNIT. THE ONLY NEGATIVES HAVE BEEN IT IS A TAD BIT SLOW FOR MY LIKING BUT, IF YOUR NOT IN A MAJOR RUSH I WOULD ASSUME YOU WOULD BE VERY PLEASED WITH THIS UNIT.


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## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

10 4 I'll check them out thanks.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

Inshore_Inc. said:


> I USE A DUTTON LAINSON #TW4000 TO DRY RECOVER A BAYCRAFT 18' WITH A FAIR AMOUNT OF WEIGHT LOADED ON SKIFF ON REGULAR BASIS AND HAVE BEEN VERY PLEASED WITH OPERATION OF THIS UNIT. THE ONLY NEGATIVES HAVE BEEN IT IS A TAD BIT SLOW FOR MY LIKING BUT, IF YOUR NOT IN A MAJOR RUSH I WOULD ASSUME YOU WOULD BE VERY PLEASED WITH THIS UNIT.


You don’t have to yell


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## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

Smackdaddy53 said:


> You don’t have to yell


He's excited maybe he works for them and that's his sales tactic.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

PowerWinch is the standard, period. I’ve been running them for years and years..


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

Every time I hand crank my Spear I think about adding a Power Winch.


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## jsnipes (May 1, 2011)

Yea, I have a powerwinch and it's awesome. Have a cool quick connect that plugs in down by my trailer lights and to the winch. Can post a picture this weekend when I am home.


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## Inshore_Inc. (Sep 16, 2014)

Smackdaddy53 said:


> You don’t have to yell


So sorry, just wanted to make sure everyone was able to hear me and excited doesnt begin to express my feelings. Honestly though.....VERY HAPPY WITH THE PRODUCT!


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## Capnredfish (Feb 1, 2012)

I use an electronically triggered manual winch. Are muscles not triggered by electrical pulses/signals transferred through our nervous system? Technically it counts right?


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## Inshore_Inc. (Sep 16, 2014)

Capnredfish said:


> I use an electronically triggered manual winch. Are muscles not triggered by electrical pulses/signals transferred through our nervous system? Technically it counts right?


Ok, this has gotten waaay out of hand at this point. LOL


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## Capnredfish (Feb 1, 2012)

If it made one person laugh it’s all good


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## matauman (Nov 4, 2014)

Power winch rebuilt 23. HALF PRICE! haha
http://www.powerwinch.com/controller?action=rebuilt
Bought a boat with one and love it, running the wires under my Denali and new Suburban was easy and the money saved by not having to replace trailer hubs makes it a wise investment.
You can get really good at doing it quick at the ramp and a walk board on the trailer is useful, especially on slimy ramps.


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## DBStoots (Jul 9, 2011)

Many of the reviews I read about PowerWinch are not so positive. Is this limited to certain models--which are the best for a light weight skiff and which ones should be avoided?


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## matauman (Nov 4, 2014)

I've had good luck and mine is ~ 14 years old. It's a beige model 712-A. The clutch system handle is complex and I could see that becoming an issue for a new user. I replaced the spring and washers and learned that you don't need to crank it to tight to work.
Mine also came with a stainless steel cable to turn on the winch on that runs along the walk board so I hook the boat, pull the switch ss cable and walk back as the boat comes up on the bunks.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Usually anyone not happy with a PowerWinch bought one too small for their application. Other brands work pretty well but don't hold up in the salt very well - and if you do a quick check on E-Bay you'll note that PowerWinch accessories (new cables, re-build kits for the roller clutch -which is the heart of the winch control... wiring harnesses, etc.) are all readily available... Once you see what I'm referring to - then check on other makes and you won't see much in the way of spare parts at all.... Unlike winches used on 4x4's, the winch on a boat trailer used in the salt has to hold up long term to a pretty harsh environment...

Hope this helps


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## FishyGunner81 (May 9, 2018)

We've had ours (RC23) since around 2008, with no real issues with it and we use it to pull on a 2007 18' Beavertail Osprey. I can tell it's time to replace the clutch spring and washers since I was over tightening the clutch. The cable has a few broken wires so I will probably replace that very soon as well. 

I will say its very nice not having to hand crank the boat on every single time.


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## ek02 (May 8, 2012)

Power Winch with remote control works really well if you are loading by yourself. I put the remote on a lanyard and put it around my neck. Drive the boat or pull it up to the trailer and hook up the cable then pull you and the boat or just the boat on the trailer.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Part of a standard PowerWinch installation is to run a pull cord from the spring loaded switch down your trailer frame to the rear - and the wiring kit even comes with a cord for that purpose.. Since I'm in hard commercial service I replaced the first pull cord with 150 or 200lb mono...

To get the most out of your setup you also need a walkboard that comes all the way to the rear of your trailer... Here's how I actually use mine day after day. The boat is moored as close to where the end of my trailer is going to be. The trailer is backed into position - then the short cable plug in from my bumper to the winch is set into place... I step onto my skiff then push the bow away from the dock right at the rear of my trailer, hook the winch cable into place - then start the hull onto the first roller (10" wide on the rear cross member of the trailer) - using the pull cord to power the winch... At that point I verify my motor's been raised and step down onto the walkboard and use it to get to the ramp where I use the winch to complete the task of loading....

With a self-centering all roller trailer (pretty old-fashioned, you don't see many of them around these days...) I can load my rig by myself at 3Am in a forty mile an hour crosswind every time. All of this while never getting my feet wet... Works like a charm and for someone that's towing his skiff 20,000 miles a year (or more) - very handy. Here's a pic of my trailer just after launching at the start of my day...









Note where the wheels are in relation to the water.... If I can get to the water - I don't need a ramp at all...


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## Inshore_Inc. (Sep 16, 2014)

Capnredfish said:


> If it made one person laugh it’s all good


It did!


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## No Bait / Lures Only (Apr 10, 2011)

Capnredfish said:


> I use an electronically triggered manual winch. Are muscles not triggered by electrical pulses/signals transferred through our nervous system? Technically it counts right?


Drove my glades x on
Come on the boat weight n motor maybe 500# and a electric winch?


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

The winch is useful if you dry launch frequently.

If you are driving on, you're not dry launching.


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## permitchaser (Aug 26, 2013)

I don't know if i could use a wench. I don't have rollers on my trailer. But I'd like to not dunk my hubs


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## matauman (Nov 4, 2014)

My waterman 16 has carpet bunks and its easy to push off with the hubs out of the water. When it gets a little tough I carry bunk spray and give the bunks a quick spray.


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## No Bait / Lures Only (Apr 10, 2011)

matauman said:


> My waterman 16 has carpet bunks and its easy to push off with the hubs out of the water. When it gets a little tough I carry bunk spray and give the bunks a quick spray.


I added plastic bunk covers to the new trailer n spray silicon n push off my 18x60 1000# flat boat off or drive it on.


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## sjrobin (Jul 13, 2015)

crboggs said:


> The winch is useful if you dry launch frequently.
> 
> If you are driving on, you're not dry launching.


If you need an electric winch for a poling skiff, dry launch or not, you are not using a properly maintained Ramlin trailer. I have seen people in their seventies use the manual winch on the Ramlin in dry load mode. Also you may reconsider climbing on to the poling platform if using the manual winch is difficult for you.


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## mwolaver (Feb 6, 2014)

sjrobin said:


> If you need an electric winch for a poling skiff, dry launch or not, you are not using a properly maintained Ramlin trailer. I have seen people in their seventies use the manual winch on the Ramlin in dry load mode. Also you may reconsider climbing on to the poling platform if using the manual winch is difficult for you.


Interested in your comment about "properly maintained". My experience with two 16' watermans and 2 ramlin trailers says using the manual winch is pretty difficult. I'm currently doing it, so I know how hard it is. I using a brand new Fulton in "low gear". Are you referring to the amount of bunk spray used? Waxing? Something else? 

Need? No, but I will be getting back into an electric winch for my rig. Single handed loading is much easier and more controlled with the electric....you can get the boat started and under positive control before heading to the winch for the rest of the operation.


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## sjrobin (Jul 13, 2015)

Ok, no matter the trailer manufacturer, bunk spacing, height, length, carpet condition, and spray silicone on the carpet every ten launches or so.


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

sjrobin said:


> if using the manual winch is difficult for you.


It has nothing to do with "difficult". For some folks its more a question of efficiency and reducing the amount of time it takes to recover.


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## jhreels (Apr 20, 2017)

I need to take pictures of my rig, I use a double receiver hitch, the lower being the boat trailer, the upper being a receiver mounted offroad winch. Combined with a good roller on the back of the trailer, I can launch and load my boat on flat ground (I tried it in the grass, totally works).


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## Bruce J (Mar 4, 2018)

I'm in the distinct minority on this one, but tried and eventually discarded the electric winch and went back to manual. I still dry launch my boat since that doesn't need the winch anyway, but I dunk the trailer on the recovery. To me the extra electrical and mechanical issues and the greater time at the ramp just made the whole process more complicated and trouble-prone than I was willing to put up with, so I ditched it. Since I dunk only on the recovery, I go straight from there to the boat wash and can spray it all down well so there's very little time that it sits with saltwater on it.

It's fair to say that if I worked at it more and did it more often, I might have improved my technique and solved a few issues. But I ran out of patience on that one and haven't looked back.


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## No Bait / Lures Only (Apr 10, 2011)

sjrobin said:


> Ok, no matter the trailer manufacturer, bunk spacing, height, length, carpet condition, and spray silicone on the carpet every ten launches or so.


Me too!


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Dunk your hubs to re-load your trailer... and you're in the annual bearing replacement business (and if not annual - good luck...). Most times when you see a trailer rig broken down by the side of the road it's either a flat tire (easily fixed) or a bad hub (not so easily fixed at all....).

My old all-roller trailer never requires me to dunk the hubs... and I recently replaced an axle - last year with nearly 300,000 miles on it - the axle was beginning to sag a bit - the bearings? they were the original ones that came with the trailer in 2005....

I note that some folks have exceedingly nice trailers ( Ramlins, etc.) and take very good care of them - while only using them sparingly... Great if you can afford it. Show me one that's clocking 20,000 to 22,000 miles a year (year in and year out)... That's one that I'd like to see and get a look at whatever maintenance records they have... 

No you don't need an electric winch with a small skiff, but if you're handling your rig solo at all kinds of ramps in all kinds of weather conditions - and intend to keep your feet dry (and not have to work up a sweat...) a PowerWinch might just come in handy. The PowerWinch alone isn't the end setup - you need a proper walkboard on your trailer so that after you hook up your winch cable and start the hull up on the first roller with the pull cord (attached to your winch switch at one end and tied to the rear of the trailer at the other end). You can pull start the winch cord from the back of your trailer (a very old-fashioned setup - but very effective..) and simply walk down the trailer to the ramp - then complete the loading using your winch.

One other minor advantage with an electric winch - is when you're dropping your hull in the water at a very crowded ramp... That winch also acts as a brake for launching and you can stop your hull right at the rear of your trailer to keep from bumping any other boats (very nice when you're by yourself...). At that point it's your choice whether to use a dock line to maneuver your hull to the dock - or walk down your walkboard, step onto the bow of your boat, start it up and drive it to the nearest free pier.. 

Like I said - very handy... particularly when you're solo.


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

lemaymiami said:


> Most times when you see a trailer rig broken down by the side of the road it's either a flat tire (easily fixed) *or a bad hub* (not so easily fixed at all....)


Yup. I've blown a hub running 60 mph down I-275. Only the fender on the trailer kept the wheel from flying off. And it happened within two years of a complete hub replacement that I did prior to a trip to the Keys. So they weren't exceedingly old hubs...

I think the worst thing is backing hot hubs down into salt water after trailering to a ramp. The temp changes mess with the grease and break it down IMHO. Probably not any better leaving a ramp as cool hubs heat up a mixture of salt water and grease as soon as you get up to any sort of sustained speeds.

There's no reason to get your hubs wet if you don't have to...


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## Bruce J (Mar 4, 2018)

I understand that "all else being equal" it's better not to dunk your hubs. But since I dunk them only on recovery, they're not hot at all since they've only traversed a parking lot, and then I rinse off the exterior a few minutes later. Like I said, I'm a minority opinion, but also haven't had a hub failure ever in about 30 years. Well - now I'm doomed of course!

I also mentioned that I probably didn't have the best process. One thing that bugged me about the dry recovery was that the stern could swing around in the wind or tide while I was hooking up the cable and starting the winch. It's no big deal on a single lane ramp, but in the middle of a multi-lane ramp on a busy, windy day...that was another matter. I preferred the "security" of being able to drive the bow up onto the bunks at least enough to hold the boat in place while I hooked up the manual winch.

I don't mean to side track the thread so much, but just wanted to point out there is another side to the issue anyone might want to consider before dropping the bucks on an electric winch.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Well said... cost is a consideration. What most find is that PowerWinch builds a very sturdy product (and parts are always available). They last for years and years -until they get flat ugly on the outside while still performing the way they're supposed to. I've actually had winch cables break on me three times over the years (I tend to use something forever if possible) and I've had to re-build the roller clutch system on one winch or other at least a half dozen times over the years. In each case the parts are readily available - and when you're done the thing performs the way it's supposed to...

By the way for anyone that's had the wire cable break on them (they will rust out eventually if used in the salt).... for an emergency "get me home" fix that winch cable can actually be tied onto the hook if necessary - just use a "figure eight" knot. I once used that on my winch cable for half a year so I know the knot holds up. Probably a much better practice to replace the winch cable...


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## mwolaver (Feb 6, 2014)

Bruce J said:


> I'm in the distinct minority on this one, but tried and eventually discarded the electric winch and went back to manual. I still dry launch my boat since that doesn't need the winch anyway, but I dunk the trailer on the recovery. To me the extra electrical and mechanical issues and the greater time at the ramp just made the whole process more complicated and trouble-prone than I was willing to put up with, so I ditched it. Since I dunk only on the recovery, I go straight from there to the boat wash and can spray it all down well so there's very little time that it sits with saltwater on it.
> 
> It's fair to say that if I worked at it more and did it more often, I might have improved my technique and solved a few issues. But I ran out of patience on that one and haven't looked back.


The bonefish guide we used recently in the Abacos has the answer to your dreams.... After power-loading his skiff, which required the hubs to be just wetted, we all loaded up in his truck to be taken back to our apartment. About 2 minutes down the main highway, he swerved off on a small tangent road, pulled to a stop, and commenced to backing his skiff off the road... to turn around, I assumed. No sir... he just backed his skiff right down into a little freshwater pond on the side of the road, let it soak for a minute, pulled out and hit it! lol


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## DBStoots (Jul 9, 2011)

I used to do the same thing after leaving the 10K Islands--stopping at one of the Recreation Areas off of Alligator Alley to dunk the trailer and flush the motor. But that was a previous rig that did not have a dry launch trailer.


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