Winch maintenance, the first in many years

The winches felt abnormally stiff when rotating them. It wasn’t the usual fast, reassuring rattle – it was more like a sloth trying to play a bass guitar. Very slow, very off. After a full season of sailing, I decided to take one of the winches apart, clean it up, and make it nice again. I purchased the proper oils and grease and got to work.

The first obstacle: the winch bolt was impossible to unscrew. It was seriously stuck. I did a bit of a MacGyver move and worked around the issue. Once the core was exposed, the reason for the stiffness was obvious: it was literally packed with grease. Opening it felt like a grease-filled piñata exploding, leaving me to excavate the pawls like an archaeological dig. I used more rags to clean it out than I normally use in an entire season on the rest of the boat. To progress, I had to soak and scrub the parts in diesel. You get the picture – it was full of grease.

During disassembly, I also discovered why the winch didn’t lock into place every time. The pawl springs were deformed and stuck in a strange way. Once freed, I realised I needed to buy new springs too. Eventually, everything was back in order.

I managed to service one more winch before other tasks took over. The remaining four winches are scheduled for winter maintenance at the end of 2025. Truth is, this should really be done every year. Clearly, the previous owner hadn’t done it either – at all. Ever.

Remembering the previous winches I have maintained, it seems fairly common for owners to grease everything in the winch and using a huge amount of grease – thinking that it’s the best way forward. However remember to use a moderate amount of grease, preferably with a brush everywhere where moving parts are meeting, and do not let grease come in contact with the moving parts of the pawls. Only oil should be used there. Next time when the Winches will be picked apart – you will see that the little amount was more than enough.