25.5 Topping Lift

[nschmoeker]

I've got an 84 25.5 that I bought last year and I am trying to get it back into shape. My question is how should the topping lift be connected to the boom? As you can see in the pictures, a rope is tied to the end of the topping lift which goes to a double pully on the boom. I'm thinking there should be a pulley at the end of the topping lift, or is it something else?

 

[Barnacle Bill]

It's hard for me to make out the photos, but most topping lifts consist of a line or wire from the masthead down to maybe 2 or 2.5 feet above the boom end. At the end of the topping lift you can attach a single block for 1/4 or 3/16 line. Then you take a line and tie it to an eye strap on one side of the boom at the very end and run it through the block on the end of the topping lift and then down to a cheek block on the opposite side of the boom from the eye strap. The line then runs forward to a cleat closer to the mast where you can reach it where ever the boom is (centerline or all the way out to the shrouds while running).