Winch Perfect
‘The genoa is usually the most demanding sail in terms of the force it puts on the winch’
Among the most stalwart and least loved pieces of kit on any boat must be the winch. If you’re like me, then servicing is a rare event, discouraged by the quantity of grease involved and the propensity of small parts to leap over the side in protest. Fortunately, winches are built to withstand harsh punishment and will keep going for 10 or even 20 years.
At some point, however, the time will come to replace the winches. Even if they’re not worn out, you might want to compensate for waning muscle power by up-rating them. Or perhaps you’d like to cut out the elbow-grease altogether by switching to a powered system.
When sizing a new winch, the number is a measure of its power ratio. So, a 56 winch will apply 56kg of force to the rope for every 1kg of force that you apply in its final gear. This
