Windlass Repaired and Working

In preparation of the reinstatement of the electric anchor windlass I decided to clean all of the connections of the windlass, which were corroded to the point that they were beginning to resemble lumps of green.  I worked carefully and patiently, using the assistance of WD-40 in loosening each nut.  I would then use sandpaper to clean all of the contact surfaces until I saw bright metal.

Unfortunately I wasn't patient enough because I sheared off the last bolt.  I removed the motor housing and saw that because the bolt was soldered to various internal connections the repair job was beyond my competence.  Through a local chandlery I contacted someone who I will call MR X, who ran a mobile marine electrical business.

Windlass at installation in 2008 (Note jumper cable)

The project became an example of what happens when the tradesman will not listen to the customer and the customer is not assertive enough.

After repairing the broken connection bolt Mr X fitted the motor case upside down even though I insisted that was 180 degrees out.  He spun the case around several times and insisted that it would click into position only his way.  What saved the day was that the connection bolts were so close to the ceiling that he could not fit the nuts, forcing him to have a really close look and getting it right.

Mexico 2012 (Note black cable to top of windlass)

Then he insisted that the wiring sketch that I provided must be incorrect because there was no connection post at the top of the case.  The mention of "post" threw me off the scent and I relented because I could find no post at the top of the case and was puzzled because I NEVER make mistakes with basic sketches.  Mr X got the winch working after two short circuits resulting in major flashes and one half success where the winch was going, but backwards.  Oh, and he replaced the short jumper cable that had broken off at one of the connectors with a longer one that would reach the windlass case, never wondering how the original shorter cable could have spanned that distance.

My fundamental mistake was that I expected a marine electrician to know how to connect a windlass from experience.  This man acted as though he had never seen a windlass before. 

To avoid having to do some re-typing, here is a slightly edited version of the message that I sent to MR X:

Wiring by the Expert

Hello ,

You will recall that I had misgivings about the connection last Friday of the Orca VE2000 windlass on my boat Pachuca that you repaired.  Yes, I know that the windlass seemed to be working fine, but I was particularly concerned about the grounding cable from the motor to the gear housing, something that I knew was not as before.

I spent some time locating photos of the windlass to confirm that the diagram that I had sketched and presented to you was correct. 

Have a look the attached photos.

One photo shows the Orca at installation time in New Zealand in 2008.  The battery cables have not been connected, but you can clearly see the short jumper cable as sent from the factory.

Another photo shows the windlass in Mexico in 2012, which I took while painting the forward section of the boat.  You can  see the black battery negative cable passing to the top of the unit.

Wiring by the Owner

Also attached are photos of the cabling as you left it on Friday, to be compared with the photo as the cabling as I left it yesterday.

The mystery of the lack of post at the top of the motor case was simple to solve.  I felt along the top of the case and immediately felt a bolt hole. The bolt that you used to connect the black jumper cable to the windlass was in fact the bolt for connecting the black negative battery cable to the top of the motor case.

Why did the wiring work both ways?  I found the wiring diagram for the Orca VE2000 and working with a friend we concluded that the unit is capable of lowering as well as raising the anchor.  Mine is set up for raising only.  Because of the complex internal wiring it is possible to get the same result several connection paths.
Having said that, you'll understand why I prefer the connection as before.  It looks like the jumper cable connects F1 and F2 (F for "Field"), which are used for raising and lowering the anchor.  This was probably done because the windlass was shipped for "raise only" as the default.  The red positive battery cable is connected to "A" (for "Armature").  The black positive battery cable is connected to the top of the case.

Regards,

Robert