Gearmatic winch operation

[VJW]

Bought a gearmatic 8A a while back and been slowly working on it. I have never operated one of these but I always thought the control lever mounted on the fender was for forward and reverse operation of the winch cable. However, it looks like the internal brake bands simply control the speed at which the cable is released when paying out cable with the PTO is disengaged. It occurred to me that if a guy winched himself up so tight that you might not be able to get the PTO out of gear to release any cable because the tension. Guess I need a good job briefing on the proper operation on on of these. Thanks for any input. V.j.Wheeler

[Lavoy]

On an 8A, the controller engages the clutches to pull cable in, or disengages the brake to freespool cable out, there is no power out position.
Lavoy

[VJW]

I,ve seen many gearmatic winchs on crawlers for sale but they are missing the controller. Is it possible to operate the winch without it? The reason I ask is I seen one on E-bay recently that did not have the controller but the guy claimed that the winch worked fine. Thanks for the info. Vic.

[Lavoy]

I do not see how you could operate one without the controller. The clutches are hydraulicaly actuated. I suppose if you could jam the clutches so they are always engaged, and then cut or otherwise defeat the brake band, it might work. You would be able to power in, and then you would have to spin the gears in the winch as you freespool cable out. You would no longer have a brake if you wanted to hold the load in place.
Lavoy

[VJW]

From what I've seen on the few I looked at, the plunger that is actuated by the hydraulic cylinder on top of the winch is what rusts out. I'm talking about the long rod that has a spring on the bottom and some kind of shoe that engages the brake bands. Are any of these parts availiable? Mine looked good from the outside but once I got the plate off much of what I'm talking of was deteriorated. Tried a couple sources but these parts had already been robbed.

Vic

[Lavoy]

The slave cylinder on the top is what disengages the brake, the spring on the bottom engages it. At one time I had a source for new slave cylinder, seems to me over $100 for just the cylinder.
Lavoy