Has anyone out there used one of those gas powered capstan winchs as seen on the Nova Jack site. Looks like a good setup for us small guys.
Any comments
Quebecnewf
I saw one at a demo last fall, and thought it worked well for dragging (winching in) logs up to the trail. Didn't move too fast, and gave time for a helper to roll the log over to miss roots and obstructions. More to pack in, but for hung trees and being careful of the forest floor it seems workable and trouble free if the engine doesn't quit functioning. I liked it because the rope was only loose on the capstan, so when the log was in, just carrying the rope back to the next log was all that was involved. No un-winding the cable from a drum.
I plan to get one to hang on my old Stihl 041 saw. Haven't decided how to set the throttle on the saw to have a 'hands-off' operation except for keeping tension pressure on the rope. Looking at the rope threads for information now. A lot of capstans used in sailing ships large and small.
I don't have one yet, maybe this Spring.
I've tried to buy one twice now and the dealer messed up the order.
They are slow but now have an optional drum that speeds things up for lighter pulls.
Diameter: 3-3/8" (85mm)
Drum weight: 1.7lb (770g)
Max. line speed: 60 ft/min (18 m/min)
Speed at max. torque: 37 ft/min (11 m/min)
Max. line pull: 1350 lb (614 kg)
I'd like to get one through a sponsor here. Been looking and waiting.
Kevin
What brand are those specs for? (PM would be fine for that info. )
Much problem or time in changing drums?
Portable winch.
http://www.portablewinch.com/
I have one and have used it some, not a lot. It does very well. It is real handy with multipal snatch blocks.
What I like most is that you are not limited by the distance of your pull line.
The salmon and steelhead fishermen out here use them to get their boats off the gravel bars. :D :D
I have one that attaches to a small saw motor, it works good, but they are slow. nice though if you need to pull some thing that you can only walk to.
I have two different gas powered winches. A Rule winch sold by northern tool
Note:Please read the Forestry Forum's postion on this company and a Lewis winch which you connect to one of your chainsaws to power it. The Lewis winch comes with 150' of 3/16" aircraft cable. I cut the cable down to about 75' for my needs. The Rule gas powered winch uses a small echo chainsaw motor to power it. It comes with 75' of 3/16" aircraft cable. It's rated at 1800lb single line pull, 3500lb double line pull. dave
dave
Those two sound like they are not capstan winches, or are they?
No they are not capstan winches. I just wanted to mention that I was pleased with them. The Rule winch has some good pulling power for being in such a small size and at around 32lbs. dave
They make a capstan for a chain saw.
Yeah,
That's what I have, a capstan that is powered by a chain saw power head,
but like I have mentioned before they pull real slow.
Found a 12V capstan winch on Surplus Center (http://www.surpluscenter.com/Item.asp?UID=2006033111425738&catname=winches&item=374-A) for rope to 1" and cable speed of 70 fpm. Very interesting for trailers and trucks and tractors.
I like the idea of the capstan style, as there is no wait to unwind the cable and slack can be immediately taken up to quicken the pulls. Tying off a load would probably be the biggest loss over a drum winch with a brake. Plus the lighter weight of the rope vs cable.