Sailing SV Cordelia · video

What this video covers

The Lewmar V5 2000-watt windlass on SV Cordelia, a Venus 46 ketch, failed after 13 years of service while anchored off Soper's Hole, Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands.▶ 2:15 The motor spun but the gypsy and drum did not turn.▶ 1:57 Steve spent four days extracting the gearbox — a stainless-steel-to-aluminium bond had seized the assembly — before discovering the worm-drive gear teeth had completely stripped.▶ 5:24 A failed internal seal had allowed water, mud, and chain silt inside the gearbox, where it acted as grinding paste and destroyed the gears over time; a rusted-away circlip confirmed prolonged water ingress.▶ 10:16 The keyway Steve had hoped to replace with spare keystock was irrelevant — nothing remained to repair or bodge.▶ 10:41 Lewmar UK provided little help sourcing parts; a replacement motor-gearbox assembly was eventually located through a company called Cactus Navigation and ordered duty-free into St. Martin.▶ 11:35 With the windlass dead, Steve manually winched 40 metres of chain and a 40-kg Rocna anchor aboard using a mast-mounted Anderson winch, with Annette and Gus managing lines and the boat drifting into the fairway during the operation.▶ 14:37 The practical lesson: even a well-maintained windlass can suffer catastrophic internal gear wear if its seals fail and chain mud enters the gearbox undetected.

More from Sailing SV Cordelia

We're Not Done Yet! What's Your EXIT PLAN From Living An Alternative Life?Jul 2026This Belize Caye Stopped Us in Our Tracks — We Didn't Want to Leave!Jun 2026Our Island Paradise had a NASTY SURPRISE!Jun 2026We SOLD Our HOME to Live an Alternative Life — What We MISS & What We'd NEVER Go Back ToJun 2026

From Sailing SV Cordelia — see the channel’s boat, crew, and every analysed video.

The Sailing Directory Newsletter

One email with the fleet's best finds — the moments, boats, and stories worth your watch time. Enter your own address to get your own copy.