Best Horizontal Windlass?

[Trim50]

I will need to buy a new windlass in the next couple weeks. I have been looking very seriously at the Lighthouse 1501. I even went out to their facility to check things out.

http://www.lighthouse-mfg-usa.com/

I need a horizontal windlass and would like to have at least 3000 lbs continuous pull with clutch payout capability. The Lighthouse has all this, but it costs over $4400...

Does anybody have any experience with the Lighthouse 1501?...or something they think is better?

[GordMay]

Doesn't Lighthouse specify the 1501 @ 1000 lbs. pull @ 37 fpm ?

[Cheechako]

Lofrans are very fine windlasses. That's a lot of continuous pull......

[Microship]

Does anyone have experience with Lighthouse tech support? The site looks pretty stale, and I wrote a couple of days ago regarding my recent clutch failure and the broken manual (winch handle) interface. I think I need a rebuild and a few extras (like a remote).

Steve

[Microship]

Hmmm... getting concerned here. I was happy to see a Lighthouse 1501 when I bought my boat, but now I have problems and am starting to wonder if they still exist. No email reply, their web presence is a bit of a cobwebsite, and the published phone number only yields a "mailbox full" message. Is this as bad as it sounds?

Steve

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Microship

Hmmm... getting concerned here. I was happy to see a Lighthouse 1501 when I bought my boat, but now I have problems and am starting to wonder if they still exist. No email reply, their web presence is a bit of a cobwebsite, and the published phone number only yields a "mailbox full" message. Is this as bad as it sounds?
Steve

Having been to the Lighthouse Mfg. Co. website, I’m sure you noticed that their last published testimonial was dated 1997.
FWIW:
Lighthouse Mfg. Co.
2944 Rubidoux Blvd.
Riverside, CA 92509
Tel: 951-683-5078
Fax: 951-683-4191
Email: info@lighthouse-mfg-usa.com

[Microship]

Not a good sign. At best: company with no tech support. At worst: no company. A new windlass is not in my budget, so I guess I'll haul it to the lab and see what I can do. Probably some independent windlass-rebuilders out there, given how many of these were made.

Steve

[Paul Elliott]

I have a Lighthouse 1501. It works well, but I have had one motor fail because salt water got past the improperly sealed vertical stainless tube that carries the motor. The bad sealing was not the fault of Lighthouse.

As for service, I was able to phone them last year to purchase a new motor, and have my old one rebuilt.

My sense is that they are a low-volume shop with zero web-presence. It did take a few tries before I was able to speak to a real person on the phone, so keep trying.

[Microship]

I'll stay on 'em, Paul - thanks. This is a real hazard of a declining economy - loss of tech support for existing products and declining budgets to replace them with new ones. There's a niche for enterprising freelancers here (not just windlasses; I mean that in general terms).

Cheers,
Steve