For sailors, utility is sexy. What’s better than something that performs without fail? Or better yet, something that helps win the big race? Enter the Pontos line of sailing winches. Pontos’ high-end sailing winches include the four-speed Trimmer, the four-speed Grinder, and the two-speed Compact. Each of the three aluminum, self-tailing winches are designed for different applications.
The Grinder is a beast with a mission: to pull line in fast. The Grinder features four speeds where two of them are normal gears for a winch this size. The two additional speeds engage earlier and are geared higher than normal so that the drum makes multiple rotations with each turn of the winch handle. This means that each rotation can bring in over two feet of line for fast tacking on the racecourse or cruise.
The four-speed Trimmer focuses more on the realities of everyday sailing to allow incremental tensioning and adjustment of lines under high loads but with purportedly one third the effort. The two-speed Compact is more basic, but is also an effective option for smaller boats as it has a first gear with high retrieval speed and a second gear with higher pulling power. Gybe on!
If you’re in the market for new winches, Pontos offers plenty of compact, powerful, and speed-efficient winches for just about any application out there. The two-speed Compact 35 is $1,100 and the four-speed Trimmer comes in different sizes that range from $1,525 – $3,520.01 apiece. The four-speed Grinder is priced the same as the Trimmer. They are available at Fisheries Supply.
