Bill wrote:

I have what I call a ratchet winch - a very old small bulbous casting
with a handle and chains coming out each side. I've used it in the
past for lifting the engine out of a boat. I'd forgotten I had it but
found it today when looking for parts of a scaffolding tower in the
garage (poss question about that coming up later!).

I've been dithering about buying a high lift farm jack type device
for a couple of jobs, one of which is pulling a boat upright on a
trailer but I think this winch would probably do that job.. In the
past we might have attached a rope to the Land Rover in low range,
but the "children" are telling me we shouldn't be doing things like
that these days and I need them to help as a second pair of
hands/eyes.

My question is which device would give least danger and most
precision in use. I've never used a farm jack, so I don't know
anything about them. Are the cheap ones from ebay like


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3503326732...X:IT&_trksid=p
3984.m1423.l2649

any good. Would that also work as a jack for a Mk 1 Disco, or would
it need attachments for that job?

I have a hi-lift for the Disco, we off-road a lot .. you can see it on
the back at 30 secs+ http://youtu.be/vX6EkDuYYOg

It's use as a winch is only 'cos we can't afford a proper winch, or
decent tackle. Winching is a long process and you need a set of
chains/hooks to hold the load while you re-jig the pull.

It's use as a Jack is useful, it's got me out of three situations,
twice when alone, and has paid for itself many times over. It's a jack
of all trades but not great at any of them singly but completely useful
when you need it. It's so adaptable it's used for loads of things, not
just off-roading related. I've used it to Jack fence posts out of the
ground at school, spread/tension wire fencing around a pasture, hold a
roof up for a while, like an Akro-prop, squeezed chassis rails together
while a tightly fitting steering guard was bolted on, broke open
(legally) a small safe by jacking the exposed hinges off ..

I find it pretty safe to use, but I take precautions, and make sure it
works before I need it to, IYSWIM! If used wrongly they can be
incredibly unsafe, but overall I like 'em.

When we do get a winch I'll still take it off-roading .. it's use to
spread tree-branches or pull dead-weights away across lanes, where the
vehicles and winches can't get, is ideal.

For pulling a boat onto a trailer though, I'd suggest your existing
winch/tackle would probably be easier, safer and faster.

--
Paul - xxx
"You know, all I wanna do is race .. and all I wanna do is win"
Mark Cavendish, World Champion 2011
BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2011