Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

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Vento Solare
Posts: 393
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 1969 8:00 pm
Location: Newport, RI

Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by Vento Solare »

This post is to let people know that the Harken winch drums may be resurfaced when they wear and become "slippery". I contacted the local Harken folks in Newport, RI and the cost is about $100 per winch. The winch drums should be removed, all connected pieces on the drum disassembled (self tailer, stripping arm, red trim ring and composite cover press-fit at the bottom of the drum). The drums should be degreased before return. I used a citrus degreaser and warm water - it worked fine.

The resurfaced drums were sent to the Harken factory in Wisconsin and returned to me in 3 weeks, so this is a good off season project. It is a great time to totally disassemble, clean and service your winches too. The returned drums have a newly restored gripping surface that works well with the lines.

Contact Harken to schedule your winch drums for resurfacing. The Newport office is (401) 849-8278
Dan Corcoran
Posts: 278
Joined: Sun Jan 29, 2017 4:32 pm

Re: Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by Dan Corcoran »

When investigating this, I learned that Harken has stopped on these drum jobs through Harken. I can get a recommendation to an outside machinist to rough them up but they do not have a small anodizer to do the recoating.

Anyone know of other options?
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Vento Solare
Posts: 393
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 1969 8:00 pm
Location: Newport, RI

Re: Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by Vento Solare »

Try Bam Miller at Oyster Bay Boat Shop in Glen Cove.
Dan Corcoran
Posts: 278
Joined: Sun Jan 29, 2017 4:32 pm

Re: Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by Dan Corcoran »

1) I have the 40.2 harken winches and wondering if it would be a good investment rather than resurfacing the original drums.

I have the winch you can service from above, so that would not be a benefit of upgrading. Do the new winches match the hole pattern?

Thanks!
Dan
TSweather
Posts: 40
Joined: Thu Aug 03, 2017 9:24 pm

Re: Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by TSweather »

We went down this road a couple years back while Harken was still offering that reconditioning service. Even at that point it was a 6 month turnaround, so was not worth it. Also, keep in mind that even if you can get the drum resurfaced, those old winches are no longer supported by Harken, so the ONLY parts still available for them are the pawls and springs.

Ended up replacing our primaries with Harken Performa and they are well worth it. It now only takes 3 wraps for a loaded jib sheet, even in breeze, which helps for both racing and shorthanded sailing. Added bonus is that the old winches can draw a decent premium on ebay, even just for parts.
I have the winch you can service from above, so that would not be a benefit of upgrading. Do the new winches match the hole pattern?
The new winches will not match the old bolt pattern. I was able to re-use one of the holes to get the new winch seated in the original footprint, which helps keep the winch exactly in alignment when drilling the new bolt holes. All others were slightly over drilled and filled with white tinted epoxy. This was also a great time to replace the old fasteners.
Dan Corcoran
Posts: 278
Joined: Sun Jan 29, 2017 4:32 pm

Re: Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by Dan Corcoran »

Thank you!

I see there is a difference between the Radial 40 and the Proforma 40, for 20% higher price.
https://info.upffront.com/en-gb/blog/th ... ma-winches

Looks like the Proforma is tougher on the lines with higher Abrasion but fewer wraps. Any regrets or reason to stand strong behind Performa version?
TSweather
Posts: 40
Joined: Thu Aug 03, 2017 9:24 pm

Re: Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by TSweather »

That is a good write-up on the differences between two similarly suitable Harken winches.
Any regrets or reason to stand strong behind Performa version?


If I had the chance to do it all over again, I would still stick with the Performa winches. While they do have a bit more aggressive texture on the drums, the only reason we even considered the upgrade was that the old ones had become worn and slippery. The texture is progressive from bottom to top meaning that it is smoother at the bottom of the drum for easing sheets under load and line handling in lighter air while having a more aggressive texture towards the top for when the self tailer is engaged.

We have found them to be a fantastic all around design. There are less parts requiring grease than the older models, so less to clean in yearly service and while our jib sheets are showing some minor abrasion after 3 years of use, newer cordage offerings tend to have tougher covers that hold up well to the drum surface texture. They are also lighter than the previous models and whether you are cruising or racing, the option to have less wraps is always a positive in my opinion.
Dan Corcoran
Posts: 278
Joined: Sun Jan 29, 2017 4:32 pm

Re: Harken Winch Drum Resurfacing

Post by Dan Corcoran »

Thank you so much for posting!
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