Removing Chrome from Lewmar 30 Winches

[keneasley]

The jib sheet winches are Lewmar 30 Two Speed.

They work well but the chrome plating is coming off in. Kind of tearing off and leaving sharp edges.

I'm thinking of removing the chrome plating and leaving them bare bronze.

I'm thinking of taking them to a chrome plating shop to get an estimate on stripping them.
I'd ask them to not smooth out the roughened surface where the jib sheet contacts the winch.

I welcome your thoughts and opinions on this.

If I go ahead with this I'll post some more pictures as the work progresses.

Here are the before pictures.

Winch_5.JPG (2.31 MiB) Viewed 1044 times

Winch_6.JPG (2.81 MiB) Viewed 1044 times

[Jim Walsh]

A plating shop will have no problem stripping your drum and the top cap. Just disassemble it yourself and bring them only those items you want stripped. The stripping process uses harsh chemicals but the stippling on the I.D. of the drum should not be affected by the stripping process.

[keneasley]

Thanks Jim.

I've got the drums off. The only moving parts attached to the drums are the pawls near the top.

I'm guessing that they will not be harmed by the chemicals?

Yah, they look pretty dirty/greasy. I've had the boat 4 years and this will be my first try at cleaning them.

pawls.JPG (2.98 MiB) Viewed 1035 times

[Jim Walsh]

You want to remove the pawls and springs. Small parts will not be welcome at the plating shop. They are easily misplaced and they can contaminate a tank.

[John Stone]

Concur with Jim. The pawls and springs come out easily. When you reinstall do not grease the pawls and springs. Just light machine oil for them. The bearings of course get greased.

[keneasley]

Thanks Jim and thanks John,

I removed the prawls and springs and cleaned off the grease.

Brought them to the plating shop today to have the chrome removed.
They said the top plate was stainless so that won't get stripped.
Will post some pictures after I get them back and polish them up.

[keneasley]

I got the winches back from the plating shop today.
I did not ask them to polish them but they did that anyway.
They came out very nice.

Winch_7.JPG (1.95 MiB) Viewed 984 times

Next I plan to put the pawls and springs back in and oil them with 3-in-1 oil
and clean the bearings with mineral spirits and grease them with Lewmar Winch grease.

[John Stone]

Very nice. Going to look great on your boat.

[Jim Walsh]

They look great! Springs should be replaced and the pawls inspected for wear as edges get rounded with use. A worn pawl can allow the drum to slip and the resulting injuries can be devastating. Once you have completed the service you’ll have a wonderful set of winches ready for duty.
I usually perform my winch maintenance in the fall after haul out. It’s easier to pick an errant component up off the ground then to suffer the mental anguish associated with a splash.

[Frenchy]

I had my Lewmar winches rechromed about 10 years ago and they're starting to look like yours did. I should
have just stripped them. The bronze looks great and is more in keeping with the other Cape Dory hardware. -
Jean

[Steve Laume]

Putting chrome over bronze, seems like painting a really nice piece of wood. Those are not polished. If they were, they would be shiny enough to see your reflection.
Those stripped winches look beautiful.

[keneasley]

Thanks all for the tips.
I cleaned, regreased/oiled and reassembled onto the boat.
New pawls and springs have been ordered and will be installed soon.

They do look great back on the boat. It's nice to have a cover with a big zipper to allow for winter projects.

Winch_8.JPG (1.2 MiB) Viewed 939 times

[Jim Walsh]

Looks great. Now you have to decide whether you will keep them polished or allow them to acquire the verdigris patina over time.