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LAGUNA WINDROSE 25 SWING KEEL QUESTIONS

9K views 9 replies 7 participants last post by  puddle pirate 
#1 ·
HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN THE KEEL IS AS FAR UP AS IT CAN GO; OR WHEN IT IS ALL THE WAY DOWN. THE KEEL IS ON A WINCH WITH A CABLE AND CRANK HANDLE. THERE ARE TWO BOLTS THAT GO THROUGH THE KEEL WALL UNDER THE ARMREST IN THE INSIDE. ARE THESE LOCK BOLTS, AND DO THEY NEED TO BE USED. ANY INFORMATION ON THIS BOAT WOULD HELP.
THANKYOU
 
#2 ·
My previous boat was a 23'' Balboa/Laguna Windrose. They changed the name somewhere along the way, but am sure they are quite similiar.
On my boat, the winch/cable allowed the swing keel to swing down until it was fully extended. You knew it was all the way down as the cable would go slack.(i.e. no more weight on the cable). However there was a position just before the keel was fully extended, that would allow you to slip a bolt through the keel trunk into the keel and out the other side to lock the keel in position. It was my understanding that this was important as if the boat was hit by a heavy gust or large wave, the keel could swing up which would exacerbate the loss of stability.

Also, without the pin in position, the cable would "sing" when the boat got up some speed.

When retracting the keel just crank it up until you can''t crank it anymore...it''s up!

It''s important to inspect the cable as if it deteriorate''s and breaks it''s almost impossible to get your boat back on the trailer with 600 lbs of iron hanging 5'' below your hull.

Hope this helps.

Jim
 
#9 ·
My previous boat was a 23'' Balboa/Laguna Windrose. They changed the name somewhere along the way, but am sure they are quite similiar.
On my boat, the winch/cable allowed the swing keel to swing down until it was fully extended. You knew it was all the way down as the cable would go slack.(i.e. no more weight on the cable). However there was a position just before the keel was fully extended, that would allow you to slip a bolt through the keel trunk into the keel and out the other side to lock the keel in position. It was my understanding that this was important as if the boat was hit by a heavy gust or large wave, the keel could swing up which would exacerbate the loss of stability.

Also, without the pin in position, the cable would "sing" when the boat got up some speed.

When retracting the keel just crank it up until you can''t crank it anymore...it''s up!

It''s important to inspect the cable as if it deteriorate''s and breaks it''s almost impossible to get your boat back on the trailer with 600 lbs of iron hanging 5'' below your hull.

Hope this helps.

Jim
I can confirm this from a 22' Windrose. The keel is supposed to be locked down to keep it from swinging back up into the keel trunk if healed over too far. I wasn't too worried about locking it in the up position. I miss the sound of the singing cable. You could tell how fast you were going by the pitch!
 
#3 ·
I had to do a winch-ectomy on my boat. The thing had rusted solid and no amount of work could get it loose. But Mr. Friendly Sawzall sure did.

Now it''s time to choose a replacement. I''m thinking of getting a compact electric winch, so I can raise or lower my keel from the cockpit instead of having to jump into my cabin.

Is that a good idea or not?

In addition, all the fittings for my pop top were removed, and my mainsail sheet is rigged to the aft of the boom. How do the lines work with that kind of sheet, and what''s the best way to rerig a pop top?
 
#4 ·
My boat didn''t have an electrical system so an electric winch wouldn''t have been a good idea. Actually, it wasn''t really a problem to crank the keel up and down.

As I recall the mainsheet was rigged as follows: A block with a becket and a cam cleat was mounted far aft on the starboard cockpit coaming. The mainsheet was rove from the becket up through a double block on the end of the boom, down to a single block on the aft end of the port coaming, back up through the block on the boom and then down through the block on the starboard side. The cam cleat held the mainsheet. The mainsheet formed an inverted vee and provided good control of the boom.

Hope this helps.

Jim
 
#8 ·
My boat didn''t have an electrical system so an electric winch wouldn''t have been a good idea. Actually, it wasn''t really a problem to crank the keel up and down.

As I recall the mainsheet was rigged as follows: A block with a becket and a cam cleat was mounted far aft on the starboard cockpit coaming. The mainsheet was rove from the becket up through a double block on the end of the boom, down to a single block on the aft end of the port coaming, back up through the block on the boom and then down through the block on the starboard side. The cam cleat held the mainsheet. The mainsheet formed an inverted vee and provided good control of the boom.

Hope this helps.

Jim
That is correct. I have a Windrose 22 and that is how she is configured.
 
#5 ·
Hey, we just picked up a Laguna 24 and it might be missing the keel winch handle - there are only 6 tons of stuff in the boat and the hull seems great, the hatches in need of spot repair and gaskets, rebuild galley, replace table top, etc. If the winch doesn't turn up, are there any pics of other people's layout?
Where did you choose to put batteries and why? Wiring control, water tanks, bilge pumps and water tanks, etc?
Have ideas, but reinventing the wheel isn't always the best routine.

Thanks
 
#6 ·
I chose to put the batteries under the cockpit just by the cabin entrance. I chose this place because it allowed me to place them as close to the center line as possible. I chose to use an electric motor instead of gas, so I have two batteries on one side for it, and two on the other for everything else.

I still need to redo things for better wiring control, but locating the batteries there also made it convenient to locate the switches for lights, etc. on the wood panel facing into the cabin.
 
#10 ·
I recently picked up a Windrose 25 that has been sitting in the High Desert of Idaho baking in the sun for 15 years. There is no documentation with this boat. I was able to download a PDF of the owners manual. My question is exactly that of this thread. As I was gutting the interior hull I found up under the arm rest going forward two access ports on each side of the armrest. The high one seems to be a straight nut and bolt and it is in tight and will require a wrench to remove. The lower bolt is large and has a wing nut that is on only finger tight.
Can someone please tell me what these are and what they do? Do I pull wing nut bolt prior to lowering the centerboard via the wench system?
 
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