Normally, electric winches are controlled "forwards" and "backwards" by reversing contactors. On winches with built-in drum free wheeling facility however the cable can be pulled off by hand with no great effort at any required speed. In this case, the drum is isolated from the motor's power flow by slewing the switching lever. This operation causes 2 gears to be pushed together. When the desired length of cable has been wound off the positive connection between motor and winch must be restored by reversing the switching lever. The motor is automatically locked electrically.
