Minn Kota Deckhand DH 40 Electronic Anchor Winch

Jan 1st and a beautiful day so I installed the Deckhand 40 on my small pontoon boat. It is very quiet and has good power. I plan to order a remote switch now. The reason it requires a minimum 20lb anchor is it's freefall drop capability. It will not drop freely with less weight and they really don't explain this feature in the sales literature. I didn't know it even had that feature. I have a 20lb anchor and it worked great, sitting on the trailer, in January. It freely drops the anchor and pulls it up and parks it horizontally. Optimum anchor weight is probably 30lbs. I bought this needing a 20lb anchor but the Deckhand 25 didn't seem as nice. My guess is from testing it today that if you are using the maximum anchor weight or even greater it may bind the rewind spool tight which explains the negative reviews. The same thing happens on my SxS when I pull excessive weight on its winch. If your boat is big enough that you need a minimum 40lb anchor then don't buy a winch that has a 40lb max capability.

I have two of these on my lake boat, forward and aft. I fish in lakes that can be quite deep and manual anchor deployment and retrieval is out of the question. These wenches take all of the work out of it and allow me to move around and re-anchor with little effort. No issues with operation so far. Installation was a bit of a chore but nothing that a handy DIYer can't handle.

I installed the MinnKota Deckhand 40 on my Tracker ProGuide V175 with remote switch and 30lb anchor. This gives me an extra option over the position (anchor) lock I have with my trolling motor and a ProNav setup. The ProNav is great but if you really want to hold a position in wind and waves you need a real anchor. I have a bad shoulder so I needed something that would deploy and retrieve at a touch of a button.The installation was challenging but not the fault of the winch itself. The deck at the bow of my boat has limited room and I had to build a platform for the winch. This required me to move my navigation light and remove a cup-holder and tool caddy (never used them anyway). Since removing these items from the deck left large holes I added an aluminum plate under the deck for added strength. Otherwise, the winch would have just been mounted to marine grade plywood and I wasn't sure the deck would hold up to the repeated stress.I found it easier to remove the cover and motor assembly from the frame for the install. This required unplugging the wires for the load sensing switch and the motor. I removed the motor from the unit which can be done by removing a c-clip and carefully rotating the motor assembly out of the unit. Just be sure not to lose the spring and plastic block at the end of the motor shaft. These parts act as part of the load sensing mechanism in conjuction with the switch. After the removal of the cover and motor you will have complete access to the mounting plate and holes for drilling and mounting the plate. Re-assembly was quite easy. The connectors on the circuit board are marked M+ and M- for proper orientation of the motor wires. The switch wires can be put on either way. The hardest part was getting the motor positioned properly to slide back into the frame. After the motor is in place you can re-install the spring, block, and c-clip. Re-attach the wires and cover and you are good to go.The main electrical connection wires are quite short. I was able to splice these directly into the trolling motor power as both would not be used at the same time. If your power source (battery) is not within a few feet plan on picking up some heavy gauge wire and good splice connectors.If you are not comfortable with altering and drilling holes in your boat and making electrical connections / splices I would suggest you have the winch installed by someone who is.Overall I am very satisfied with my purchase and I am considering a second winch for the aft of my boat.

I got the remote switch. Not very useful. You have to be able to see the unit when operating, so you know the status of the anchor at all times.

Wow the perfect life saving anchor system. No more getting up and walking to the bow and pulling in the anchor. It is a safety feature I love. No more back straining either. No more tipping the boat or falling over from that experience. I mounted it to the bow of my alumacraft 12 foot row boat with stainless steel bolts, lock washers, & nuts.. It took some figuring out, drilling, and bolting the base plate to the bow. Then I just slip on the MinnKota Deckhand 40 electric anchor winch and lock it in place. I then hook up my 25 pound anchor. In the Fall I just remove the anchor & the winch and leave the base plate bolted on. I flip my boat over onto the boat trailer and strap it down for the winter after removing the stuff from the boat. When I tow the boat I have a 5 gallon plastic bucket in the bow for stowing the anchor. One is not to let it hang while hauling the boat per MinnKota's instructions. The 5 gallon bucket keeps the anchor in place while hauling and prevents it from beating up the boat. It takes a minimum of 25 pounds up to a max of 40 pound for anchors to work. I discovered my 15 pound anchor was too light for this system. I had to use a minimum of 25 pounds. I have had this system on my boat for at least three years. The two: MinnKota 55 pound thrust electric tiller motor and MinnKota power winch are a great combo with my Sears 12 volt marine deep cycle battery. I can go fishing with ease for hours. I usually only go for up to 3 hours with power to spare. Keep in mind weather, wind, and distances are important factors to keep tract of. Plus does the boat launch have a port jon or better? LOL. I have a set of oars in case. I do row a lot too.