Anchor chain sticking into windlass chain wheel

[UFO]

Originally Posted by sailormed

Or tired chain stripper, the fork forcing the chain out of the gypsy.

Yep install a chain stripper

[rbk]

Does the chain fall directly into the locker or is there a slide? Being wood the finished wood can wear and cause the chain to stack up on the slide and bind in the gypsie. I would also install the stripper as well.

[Cynara]

If it was twisting That would be a problem. We had a big swivel (I think there is another thread about swivels) we would let the anchor and chain down so it would untwist. Our chain was old and had rust but never had an issue not fitting after many years. I know this is not an answer or a solution, just commenting.

[Britboater]

Hmmm, interesting thread, not to mention timely. I have this problem also. Suddenly started. Had the boat 6 years, no problems Before. Gypsy has stripper. I am at a loss. The chain is looking a bit 'powdery', and I’m wondering if it is this that’s causing the chain to hang on to the gypsy, and then jam.

Another thought is that the chain may have become 'twisted' and is feeding in with a desire to 'untwist' and is therefore not acting normally.

Next plan is to unload all chain on pontoon (dock) to see if it’s become 'twisted', then give the chain a light wire brush. Plan D new chain!

TIA for any thoughts.

[Searles]

Strongly recommend the fitting of a stripper ,this will stop the chain hanging up ,up or down ,also recommend the end for ending of the chain every slipping,even on the big ships we only dry docked every 5 yrs ,both anchor chains ran right out cleaned and end for ended ,this was 88 tons of chain a side ,only lost one anchor and chain at sea ,to much load going astern ,ripped the bitter end out of the locker .🤬⚓️⛵️

[Kettlewell]

Not helpful, but I have tried the idea of taking a short length of chain and testing the gypsy on a new windlass and it told me nothing. I purchased the exact chain recommended by the manufacturer, tested a short length, seemed to fit perfectly, and yet the chain slipped a lot when under typical loads. Frankly, I think there are good and bad gypsies, and the designs that are good have very subtle differences. If eventually you can find someone with the same exact windlass ask them what they are using for chain.

[Shrew]

Originally Posted by gabilo

It is either:
1. ) Wrong chain for chain wheel
2.) Worn chain wheel

You will need to find the matching setup....

#1 often causes #2. When I bought my current boat it came with 3/8" chain on a 5/16" gypsy. It skipped periodically, but over time had beat the poor gypsy half to death.

I ended up replacing the gypsy and chain (5/16") to fix the issue.

[My Wind Lass]

I am getting ready to launch our new to us boat and I dropped all of our chain out to measure and check for wear. I had to cut off significant chunks of what was probably 300' of chain and I now have about 200' of what appears to be decent chain. I was wondering if there are reliable ways to add links to join existing bits of chain. I found a connecting link at West marine for 3/8 BBB chain that has a working load (SWL) of 2750 lb. Does anyone have experience using connecting links and/or should this be avoided totally? I can probably work with 200' of chain while on the US east coast and in the Chesapeake but I will likely need more chain once we get into the Caribbean and beyond.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by My Wind Lass

I am getting ready to launch our new to us boat and I dropped all of our chain out to measure and check for wear. I had to cut off significant chunks of what was probably 300' of chain and I now have about 200' of what appears to be decent chain. I was wondering if there are reliable ways to add links to join existing bits of chain. I found a connecting link at West marine for 3/8 BBB chain that has a working load (SWL) of 2750 lb. Does anyone have experience using connecting links and/or should this be avoided totally? I can probably work with 200' of chain while on the US east coast and in the Chesapeake but I will likely need more chain once we get into the Caribbean and beyond.

There have been a few threads on this but I cant point you to them. I know searching can be difficult at times. The CF search just plain doesn't work well. Google your question and then look at CF threads from there.

I found most of the E Caribe to need very little scope. Both boats I used there had 200 ft chain and a backup of 150 ft of rope rode on the chain. It was unusual to have over 100-120 ft or so of chain out from Florida to Trinidad and often I was in 15-20 ft of water anchoring.

From a Google, "combining chain, sailboat" search:

Can I extend my anchor chain? - Cruisers & Sailing Forums
Cruisers Forum
https://www.cruisersforum.com › forums › can-i-extend-...
Dec 12, 2015 — Dyneema or other high tech line can be used to tie chain together. The line is very resistant to chafe and stronger than the chain. Would want ...
Joining Anchor Chain - How? - Cruisers & Sailing Forums
Apr 14, 2009 Can I Mix Types Of Chain? - Cruisers & Sailing Forums
Aug 21, 2017 Newbie anchor to chain to rope connection question
Aug 4, 2018 Storing Chain / Rope Combo Rode - Cruisers & Sailing Forums
Mar 9, 2011 More results from www.cruisersforum.com

[noelex 77]

Originally Posted by My Wind Lass

I am getting ready to launch our new to us boat and I dropped all of our chain out to measure and check for wear.

Many of the cheap no name brand "C" links are poor quality, but there are good products such as the Crosby G-335 that is stronger than grade 30 chain (but slightly weaker than grade 40 chain). The other option is a double clevis link. These are available in grade 70 steel and are generally (you need to check the specifications) the strongest and easiest solution, but they do not always pass seamlessly through the gypsy so you need to trial them on your windlass.

One caution is 3/8 inch chain is on the small side for a 49 foot solid cruising boat so you need a link that does not weaken things further.

You can certainly manage with quite small lengths of chain in the Caribbean, but occasionally, even here, it is helpful to have the option to use deeper water. If you can retain the option to use close to 300 feet it is worthwhile in my view, especially given the low cost of these connecting links.

[Fuss]

as others said… you need a chain stripper, nothing works really reliably without one.
it could be wrong chain, wrong gypsy , worn gypsy , xxxx on chain but this is not as important as having a stripper.
otherwise it’s working on the basis of everything being brand new and not worn… a completely unrealistic expectation on a boat.