My primary winches are old (~1978) Lewmar 40s. To service them, it is necessary to remove the winch from the boat. After removing the drum, the service instructions say to use “a flat ended drift to tap out the bearing spindle DOWNWARD.” The bearing spindle is a SS pin that holds the rachet assembly in position; the top of the bearing spindle is visible in the photo. The rachet assembly has to be removed before the center spindle can be removed. (The center spindle is locked in by a circlip on the underside of the center stem and located above the rachet assembly.)

I’ve tapped (and pounded) downward on the bearing spindle and it will not budge. I’m afraid that if I pound too hard that I’ll mushroom the top of the spindle or damage the center spindle.

There were indentations on the top of the bearing spindle before I made my attempt to remove it. My guess is that the previous owners tried to remove the spindle and couldn’t (and perhaps mushroomed the top in the process) and corrosion has now “cemented” the spindle in place.

I found some newer (~1983) Lewmar 40s locally that are in good shape and can be serviced from the top. I’ll be installing them sometime in the next couple of days so I can get on the water. (Launching May 13.)

That means time is not critical. Is there something I can soak the bearing spindle in that might free it? I don’t want to use heat because of all the plastic. Worse case, I’ll drill out the spindle and get/make a new one. But I’d like to avoid that if possible. Any suggestions welcome.