Cruising Sailors Forum Archive

Doesn't your windless have a chain stripper?
In Response To: too well!! ()

That's the little bar that sticks up into the gypsy to keep the chain from rolling all the way around and causes it to fall off into the hole in the deck. A chain stripper should peal the line out as well as the chain. On some windless types it's built in and on some it's added by screwing it to the deck. If your windless was bought second hand you might not have gotten the stripper. If new, it might have just been over looked. ??? I've seen them made as after market as well. They look like an inverted T with 4 holes for 12 screws in the bottom to screw it to the deck. The upright part is cut to a length that puts it right up into the slot in the gypsy as far as it will go just missing contacting it. The base of the "T" is about 2 inches square with the upright 1 by 1/4 inch by how ever long it needs to be made of SS flat stock. The end that sticks into the gypsy is usually cut off on a 45 degree angle or even tighter to get it up higher and closer up into the grove. That way it strips the chain and line sooner. The aim is to strip the line right at the spot that it will fall off the gypsy and into the deck hole. You might have to experiment with it mounting location.

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