Posted by dave horvath on Tuesday, November 16, 2004 at 7:57PM :
In Reply to: Grease recommendation for MU-2 Winch posted by Northern Calif Dave on Tuesday, November 16, 2004 at 11:57AM :
I just opened up my first winch to rebuild. I was really intimidated at first, but with the advice from Todd S. and the drawings in the parts book, I figured could rebuild it myself. I'm really glad I did, too.
The drum was full of dirt and old deteriorated (dry) grease. The drum shaft is VERY badly pitted with some metal loss to rust from water infiltration or condensation inside the drum. The wearing surfaces and the bronze bushings at each end look fine. Needless to say, I will coat the shaft liberally with grease before reassembly.
The ring gear, worm gear, and bushings in the worm housing all look fine. However, the oil seals on the worm shaft were both shot. This let oil get into the safety brake housing and thoroughly contaminate the brake lining. It will need to be relined and the oil seals and gaskets replaced. The bearings are reuseable.
If you plan to use the winch and have any doubts about its condition, I recommend you tear it apart. VPWs has all the parts you need. At least pull the safety brake housing cover off and see if your lining is dry. If it's wet with oil, you need to replace the seals and the lining.
Happy winching!
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