Cabintop Clutches for Lines Led Aft
1. the arrangement you have with the ropes to control your traveller is sick. Where do they run back to?
2. do I need a down haul or can I lock the boom in place and tension it with the halyard?
3. I need spin locks for everything but I don't want to pay that much for them. I am thinking of having a piece of aluminum with holes drilled horizontaly for the ropes to pass through, then have cam cleats on the back side, staggered to give me room to add some arms on them so I can just pinch them together above the ropes to release them. Then pinch them together and lay the rope in between the cams to grip it. It's not as easy as a rope clutch but much more affordable to me.
1. I guess you mean something other than sick! Anyway, if you look closely the traveler control lines run aft (through the "invisible" dodger!!! - remember it was down) to a bullet fairlead midway on the cabintop between the the aft edge of the cabintop, and then to cam cleats on the aft end of the cabintops. A better solution is to have swiveling cam cleats.
2. I have no idea what your goose neck condition is so how can I answer that? If it's floating, you need to secure it, either physically or with a downhaul.
3. "There you go again!" Sometime "creativity" is a good idea but that one sounds like a disaster. Trying to get to the end result without taking the "baby steps" first can be misguided. There are thousands of boats sailing out there, hermit, without the lines led aft. If I were you, what I would do is make a list of everything you eventually want to run aft, and then make a plan to do so over time. Here's what I have, many of which lines you do not even have in mind or may even know about yet; we also have double line slab (jiffy) reefing.
Port side
cunningham in swivel cam cleat
boom vang in swivel cam cleat
second reef tack
second reef clew
first reef clew
Starboard side
mainsheet - many people don't use clutches for this, I promote it, leave it open when sailing, gives much better fairlead to the winch than Catalina's old stupid gray clam cleat
first reef tack
main halyard
lazy jacks in swivel cam cleat
empty unused swivel cam cleat
So, first of all unless you've already arranged your reefing, most folks use single line reefing so you eliminate two right there. What I suggest is you carefully consider double line reefing but you don't need clutches for this right away, regular horn cleats would suffice forever if necessary since the original factory arrangement for reefing was double line but at the boom.
You most likely don't have a cunningham, yet. You should have a vang, but could live with an upside down four part tackle with the cam cleat on a fiddle block on the boom, rather than the mast. You already have the mainsheet coming back. I also commented on jib halyards earlier today, here:
http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?p=655678#post655678
Start thinking, then do it right, please. You just don't have all that much stuff, right now.
Also, forget Spinlocks, they're way too expensive. Garhauer makes great stuff and you can get triple ganged sheet stoppers or build them up one at a time, your pocketbook, your choice! Price them out online. BTW that's what we have, right 'dere in those flix!
Glad the pictures helped.
PS If you go out without a reefing set up, at least the first one, please understand that we do NOT talk to you EVER again. I don't wanna read another one of your f-ing horror stories that scares Jeanette out of her socks. Are we clear here?
