My windlass does exactly the same thing. Think it's more to do with the weight of the rode and the depth of the locker. If the rode is lightweight it doesn't fall too good, and if the locker is quite shallow then the rode has no depth to fall properly so backs up. I have to go upfront when I retrieve too, but with a remove around my neck it's easy.
ps, every windless I've ever had has done the same regardless of rope type of size etc