I am considering converting the manual lifting systems on my 850 to an electric one. The manual keel lift is worn and damaged, and having new parts made is difficult to impossible. I would like to know the make of the motor and drive systems used on Parker yachts for raising the keel.

David

Sea Lady Seal 850

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Hi David.

I would not bother with the electric keel lift system used on the 275/285s as they don't appear to have a very long life and wear out quite quickly (ask Peter Lowry and Ken Surplice). A better system would be a hydraulic system. I have devised a system which i have successfully fitted to my P27 and which uses easily available Barton blocks, a very efficient and small self contained hydraulic pump and reservoir and a quite simple stainless steel cage which i had fabricated to carry the blocks (1:4 purchase) and hydraulic ram. It cost about £600 which is not a lot more than the electric winch system and is far superior and should last many more years than the electric winch. It is also far easier to replace parts than the electric winch system. The most expensive part was the hydraulic pump which was £289 followed by the ram which was £85. The stainless fabrication was also about £85 and the blocks, 6 in total were about £80 and the 10mm dyneema line was £27. There is also a double relay switch which is available from the USA for £28. It works a treat, raising the keel in 40 seconds and lowering it in 30 seconds and using about 1/2 amp in the process. If you want more info, give me a call on my mobile 07711185124.

Martin Watson - FRITH

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I agree with the comments about the electric lift system Parker fitted to the P275 & P285.

However, the P27 keel weighs about 100kg, the P275/285 about 320kg, and from the S850 details on this website its lifting keel weighs about 450kg. Hence a system that works well on a P27 may run into some problems with the heavier keels. I have replaced the hoisting system on my P275 with a 4:1 system that may be similar in concept to the one described by Martin Watson, but works with the weight of the P275/285 keel. There's a thread on this forum about it, search for "Parker 275 - New keel hoist system" this gives a lot of details and pictures, together with the sources I used for the various components.

I did visit an S28 called Aztec a while ago - she has an electric keel hoist system that the owner had developed and fitted. She is in the PSSA handbook with contact details for the owner - it may be worth you getting in touch with him.

I look forward to hearing how you get on, and the solution you arrive at.

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David

did you know most if not all information on Aztec lifting keel are on this web site under Fleet / Seal 28 / information it's at the bottom of the page.

If you are unable to find it let me know and i'll sort get the info better.

Ray