Lewmar V-1 Vertical Windlass Installation on 1990 Catalina 34

Vertical Windlass Installation Guide

By Rick Johnson Godspeed #1110 1990

After 4 years of assigning unsuspecting newbie crew members the task of hauling up the anchor, I was beginning to run out of victims. Since the captain of S/V Godspeed (1990 Catalina 34 #1110) is just over a ½ century in age and with a 35lbs CQR anchor, I decide that installing a windlass might be a valuable improvement.

The Project

When I noticed that the Lewmar V-1 windlass was being discontinued and the discounted price was as low as $420 for a new windlass, I decided it was time to pry open my wallet.

The original concept was to construct a fiberglass box that would fit into the recessed portion of the aft bulkhead of the anchor well (see photo below). This box would allow me to mount a vertical windlass without cutting holes in the deck or the anchor well hatch. I did realize that a hole would need to be cut in the bulkhead for the windlass motor, but felt it might be similar to how the factory installed windlass is mounted. Since the windlass would be entirely within the anchor well and the hatch was still intact, I felt the windlass would be protected from the elements. The other consideration was that I would not have issues with the windlass snagging jib sheets or other lines. It all sounded good to me in the planning stages.

Windlass Concept

Note: The picture is not my anchor well. My C34 never had a windlass installed. One issue that became apparent right away was that if the top of the fiberglass box was the same height as the surrounding fiberglass structure the top of the windlass would block the anchor well hatch from closing. The first modification was to drop the top of the fiberglass box to provide clearance. The finished dimensions were calculated to be 9" wide x 6" deep x 11" tall. Since I had the "finished” dimensions, I decided to construct a female mold and work from that. For construction I decided that the box should be alternating layers of fiberglass cloth and fiberglass bi-axel cloth. To save a little money, I used MAS epoxy resin which costs slightly less than West Systems. One “failure to notice” at this point was that the recess in the anchor well is not by any means “square”!

Windlass Concept

BOX I used 3/4" birch plywood from Home Depot for the mold. The sections were clamped together and the inside coated with a heavy layer of Johnson's paste wax as a release agent.

(article in progress - 7/24/09)