Winch Maintenance

[CalypsoP35]

Anybody have any secrets for cleaning the crud out of the gears and bearings in your winches?

Historically I've just wiped the old grease/crud out of the gears and re-lubed them. Removing the old crud out of the gears is always a pain. Anybody have any secrets? (My winches (manual Lewmar winches) have what I think are bronze gears and stainless bearings held in place by a plastic donut like holder.

Thanks in advance for any insights!

[ardoin]

Solvent in a bucket and an old tooth brush. I use diesel in a bucket since I have plenty of diesel on the boat and most marinas have a place to dump/recycle old diesel and oil.

[Minnewaska]

Mineral spirits

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by Minnewaska

Mineral spirits

Amen... In an old plastic wash basin. Soak overnight and hit with a small wire brush the following morning. Do you winches at least bi-annually and you won't have a problem.

[CalypsoP35]

Thanks for the info, sounds like a great solution.

[labatt]

And just for those reading this thread wondering about how to do winch maintenance - pulling my winches apart used to scare the crap out of me. I then did it for the first time and found that it's quite easy. The most complex part was making sure I didn't lose any pieces overboard during disassembly (it's recommended you cut a hole in a box and put it over the top of the winch during work - I was adventurous and just took my winches apart commando). Oh - and ditto on the mineral spirits.

[Minnewaska]

Another trick. Pull the barrel off the opposite winch but leave gears in place and use as a guide for reassembly. You do need to disassemble to clean properly.

[nickmerc]

I use terps which I can find cheap at the local hardware store. I use a firm toothbrush for the gears and very fine emery cloth for the pall seats. I find sometimes there is some stubborn oil and corrosion that needs persuasion. Be careful to not remove any metal when doing this.
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