Minn Kota Deckhand Electronic Anchor Winch, DH 40

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 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 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.

Just finished my first fishing trip with the Deckhand and love it. Won't be without it again. Would have given it five stars but it would not deploy all the way with a 20lb anchor. Had to pull out rope twice to get it to the bottom. Also the plug for the remote switch wire plug needs a 1 inch hole which I thought could have been designed smaller. I put the switch in the rear of the boat which made running the wire through 2 bulkheads, drilling 1 inch holes in each, in not user friendly locations. I did read one review about the anchor not going down all the way and will add weight to correct that.I was in the wind yesterday and it held great, could deploy and then pull out more rope with the trolling motor to get in the right position then hit the lock switch. It has plenty of torque and speed when coming up. I'm using one group 24 battery and the battery was still at 12 volts when I got home after being on the water 8 hours using the trolling motor and the Deckhand.Great product and looks to be made good. Time will tell but won't be without it again what ever it takes.Update after over two years of use. It’s now 7/2019 and it’s still going strong. Works just as it did out of the box and I’ve gotten very good at positioning the boat over brush and my favorite spots, even in the wind.

After a few years of use I have really liked having this on my boat. Never any issues works perfectly!

Works great, very strong winch, will pull 28lb anchor out of thick river mud with ease!! Really appreciate not having to pull the anchor by hand. I switched to a 28lb anchor and it grabs great in swift current and I don’t have to jump up to pull the anchor. I think it’s a great safety feature as well. Planning to add on on the rear of the boat for sideways fishing.