Cheers Cisco thanks for that , always good to get reports / opinions ,etc on stuff like that.
Regards James

I just purchased a pair of Hutton (Arco) ST40 winches last week. we did a heap of research - looking at Harken, lewmar etc. we were replacing a pair of Barlows. they also gave us a trade in on the old ones, so the nett price was best of the lot as well. I must say the new Huttons are sensational !!!

Ramona said...

mike_e said...

I just purchased a pair of Hutton (Arco) ST40 winches last week. we did a heap of research - looking at Harken, lewmar etc. we were replacing a pair of Barlows. they also gave us a trade in on the old ones, so the nett price was best of the lot as well. I must say the new Huttons are sensational !!!

My "new" yacht has these, size 40 two speed self tailers. The boat has done 5 Hobarts, 3 Lord Howe and 2 Southport races plus plenty of other races with the previous owners. The winches feel like class pieces of equipment compared to the Barlows on my other yacht.

Thats interesting , sounds like a option , what size genoas have you guys cranked in with the hutton st 40 #1 ? and if so ,are you able to flatten it in a 15knt + breeze ?

Also that conversion thing that Cisco mentioned may be a option also ,has any one done that and been happy with the results??

Cheers and Regards James

"Thats interesting , sounds like a option , what size genoas have you guys cranked in with the hutton st 40 #1 ? and if so ,are you able to flatten it in a 15knt + breeze ?"

James, as i have only had them a week or so, we havent been out when things are pressed. -i was using #2 in about 15kts and compared to the old barlows, it felt effortless - but the barlows were smaller, werent self tailing & had a weaker power ratio anyway.
According to our sailmaker, our #1 is 24m2. if anything, we have probably overspecked with the 40, but good for when we are out with wives & kids who arent as strong.
I am not sure that the cost of doing the conversion on the old ones is worthwhile, when at the end of it, you still have the old gearbox & ratchet etc. - I had a couple of conversations with Alan Hutton, he comes across as quite unbiased & i am sure he could talk you through the conversion thing.
The engineering of the hutton looks & feels pretty solid. this is evident in the weight of the things compared to say the harken (less than half). although we have gone for the chrome bronze drums.
i have done a fair bit of offshore racing on boats with lewmar & harken, the aluminium construction of the harken needs regular servicing (up to monthly depending on how hard they are used) to keep clean because the use of dissimilar metals and plastics. The lewmars are pretty solid, but in the end it was price & lifetime g'tee that got us - plus the time that Alan was prepared to spend sorting out what we needed.
hope this helps. cheers.

Ramona talks about the lenght of winch handles !!!!

went and had a look on boat and all are same length except one !! about 100mm longer!! ....never noticed this before, we have two steel ones that never get used and two plastic ones .. I always grab the red one and swap it from side to side.
But the green one is the monster handle !!!! Tried it today in light winds but I,ll try it next time the breeze is up !!!! Its gotta be heaps better!

cheers Ramona ,.........gota love this forum !!!!

regards James

frant said...

I have just by coincidence ordered a pair of Hutton 20-1St winches with a trade for the old Barlow #16 cabin top halyard winches. I like what I am reading...hope to be able to confirm quality and service within the week.

Have returned the Hutton Winches to manufacturer for a full cash refund, now waiting on a pair of Harken ST-20A winches. I don't think that the Hutton rope grips are designed for small diameter high tech (slippery) ropes.

t03y said...

I haven't read all of the posts, so sorry if I am repeating or something like that...

Harken by far is the best I have used. I sailed on a sydney38 with lewmar and trimming was ok, now I sail on another sydney38 with harken winches and it is so much easier to trim on

Interesting , good test conditions ..same boat !

I have ended up ordering Andersen 40 st ,s .

so Ill, let you know how they go .

Have you used Andersen winches ,on a similar boat / headsail to the syd 38 ??

Regards and cheers

Hey Cisco , yeah hopefully my winch fitting skills will arrive as required .

I,ll keep you posted.

cheers and regards James