Forestay chainplate rigging/hardware question (what is this)

[tipsyravensailing]

in this photo the forestay chainplate has two mounting points. The forward most is for the furler/forestay. On my boat there's a shackle and quick release hardware that doesn't connect to anything. all my photos of her in the yard before buying don't help me identify what it is there for. I was thinking maybe like a anchor chain keeper when stowed on the bow pulpit but i don't want to make assumptions.

I'm getting ready to put her in for the first time and i'm just auditing all hardware i have or don't have. This one i have and have no clue why.

Sorry if wrong forum. i am unsure where such things go as a newbie.

 

[dlochner]

The extra hole is for a tack shackle like this one: Schaefer Tack Shackle
If you have hanked on sails, the tack needs to be attached to the boat, the shackle is attached is attached to that hole.

 

[tipsyravensailing]

 

[dlochner]

View attachment 147758

That's another way of adding a tack shackle. The tack of the jib is attached to the shackle.

 

[tipsyravensailing]

well now i'm doubly confused. there's most certainly a roller furler here. maybe the hardware was left and truly unused?

 

[tipsyravensailing]

if there's a furler on this the sail wouldn't be able to attach lower than the roller furling's rope "drum" (sorry, i don't know the term) without causing the furler to be useless - it'd just bind all up in the rope. Granted the sails were not on it when i purchased so maybe? i'm kinda grasping at straws how to translate theory to application here as i've never worked w/ a furler. It just came with the boat. Thanks!

 

[dlochner]

well now i'm doubly confused. there's most certainly a roller furler here. maybe the hardware was left and truly unused?

Good possibility. Do you have an asymmetrical spinnaker? The tack line could be attached there. I use that hole to attach jack lines when sailing offshore.

Given the age of the boat, roller furling was added later and the tack shackle was just left there. If the boat was raced the roller furling drum could be removed and the jib tack would be attached there instead of to the furling drum.

If the furler works, don't worry about this shackle, but don't lose it, they ain't cheap.

 

[Roadking Larry]

Left over hardware. I added roller furling to my Cal a couple of years ago. The shackle for the hank on sail tack is still in place. Just like on yours.

 

[isaksp00]

The jib tack will attach to the fitting on the top of the furler drum, probably a welded on "hole", using a shackle. Since you have not rigged your boat yet you dont know how close to the drum the tack can get. If you find that when the jib is in the furler track and you raise it to the proper height that the tack is too far above the drum, it is possible that extra fitting was used to attach the tack to the drum. The prior owner may have just stored it where it is. Sort of an extender. Or, you may need that thing from the head to the jib halyard. Either way it might have been used if the jib luff is a bit too short.

 

[shemandr]

Pearson didn't know the boat would be rigged with a furling system when they built the boat. If you had a forestay without a furling drum you attach the forestay to the forward hole and you would need a place to attach the tack of the sail. The would be the other hole.
And yes, use the forward hole which has more meat to wear on.
You may find when you bend on the jib that you want the foot of the sail to be higher for a variety of reasons. That shackle could be the PO's way of doing that. BTW, PO's are blamed for every problem a boat has around here. They are sorta like a SBO piñata.
Posting on "Ask All Sailors" is usually a good bet.

 

[dlochner]

BTW, PO's are blamed for every problem a boat has around here. They are sorta like a SBO piñata.

Which is a good reason to never sell a boat to someone you know or lives nearby.

 

[shemandr]

Yeah they say a boat owner's second happiest day is when the boat is sold. It's actually when it sails over the horizon.

 

[tipsyravensailing]

Haha. I very much appreciate all the posts and insights! I'm glad I joined. I apologize for the wall of posts I'm sure I'll make. I'd honestly search the forums for answers but I'm going to run into this a lot where the books I've bought don't mention this scenario...

 

[dlochner]

Yeah they say a boat owner's second happiest day is when the boat is sold. It's actually when it sails over the horizon.

****** Thread Drift Warning *******

A few years ago I moved to a different marina. There sitting at a dock was the first boat I owned. Sold it about 15 years prior to moving. Looked at her lovingly and remembering the many good times I had aboard (and a few blood pressure raising events) and tried not to cry at her current state of maintenance. The docklines that I carefully wrapped with leather chafing gear were still being used. Then there was the waterline stains, dull gelcoat, etc. etc. I kept my mouth shut, except to tell positive tales about my adventures on her.

****Returning now to our regular programming********

Haha. I very much appreciate all the posts and insights! I'm glad I joined. I apologize for the wall of posts I'm sure I'll make. I'd honestly search the forums for answers but I'm going to run into this a lot where the books I've bought don't mention this scenario...

No need to apologize, this is a place to ask questions and learn. We're all here to share stories and knowledge. Enjoy your boat!

 

[Gunni]

Granted the sails were not on it when i purchased so maybe?

Does your sail inventory include an asymmetric spinnaker?

 

[tipsyravensailing]

i have a main and a jib. both newly serviced by doyle but i have never seen them up the mast as it were.

 

[Will Gilmore]

Which is a good reason to never sell a boat to someone you know or lives nearby.

Or is a member of SBO without making it clear you, as the PO, are watching all the posts about your old boat.

Left over hardware. I added roller furling to my Cal a couple of years ago. The shackle for the hank on sail tack is still in place. Just like on yours.

The manufacturer put in a chainplate that allowed for hank-on headsail or roller furling headsail.

You could move the roller furler to the after hole and fly your asym from the forward one, if there is room.

Welcome to the forum. I know you will get a lot out of joining us.

- Will (Dragonfly)

 

[jssailem]

@tipsyravensailing There are no bad questions just fools who never ask.

Your newly serviced sails, what does the luff of the jib look like? Are there hanks attached?
Looking like this.

Then you attach a wire stay from the front of the mast to the first hole (closest to bow) and attach the bottom of the jib (called the jib tack) to the other hole with a tack shackle.

 

[tipsyravensailing]

It is still a bit chilly here in michigan, but i plan on dragging the sails out in to the lawn. I'm also concerned that the ... dogs? for the main are not on the main. if they're not i have no way to attach the leading edge of the sail to the mast on hand. I also found the battens - or at least think they're the battens - so i gotta see if they're all there and look right

I doubt the previous owner is watching. Poor man passed away i guess? boat went up cheap as a salvage as i understand it. yard wanted it gone. bought and shipped to the house for under 4 grand where i have a shop (metal and wood working, my garage is now set up for fiberglass lol) and a year on the hard its time to see it sail again.

 

[Will Gilmore]

I'm also concerned that the ... dogs? for the main are not on the main. if they're not i have no way to attach the leading edge of the sail to the mast on hand.

If your main doesn't have 'dogs' or 'slugs' your luff is most likely trimmed in a 'bolt rope' (the old riddle about how many ropes are on a boat isn't accurate). This holds the main to the mast. Lots of sailors prefer a bolt rope because the leading edge has better flow entering the wind. It does wear the sail faster, though. So, cruisers go for the slugs.

- Will (Dragonfly)