Acsalts

[acsalearntosail]

Hey, folks, I have two issues. Looks like the first may have created the second.

What is the appropriate tension on the port/stbd mast stays on a Oday 240? I don't have the owners manual and not very good at searching this website.

I have hull/cap separation on the port side centerd around the port stay chainplate. Can I repair by slacking the stay tension, laying in epoxy, and then weighting down the deck to compress the cap back on the hull?

 

[Joe11688]

You need to take some pics of the chainplate area and also inside the cabin where the chainplates attach to the bulkhead and post them on the thread.
I have no idea what the chainplates on the 240 look like. Evidently one of your chainplates is pulling away for some reason.
Years ago when I lost my mast I had a new mast set up by a rigger and he installed heavier lower stays which later contributed to a broken "L" bracket inside the cabin on the bulkhead which was attached to the Starboard chainplate. I had to replace these chainplates with O'Day 25 chainplates. After a period of time, water started to seep into the cabin around these chainplates which could have rotted out my bulkhead, so I had covers made up and welded to my chainplates. Fortunately I haven't had any water problems since.
As far as what the tension is supposed to be on stays, I have no idea. Years ago I bought a Loose Tension Gauge and every once in a while I check the tension of my stays with it. You have a few choices of what to set your stay tension based on the thickness of your stays. All I did was pick a happy medium number for my upper stays and a lower number for the lower stays. Using the gauge takes all the guess work out of tensioning stays. If you set the tension on your upper stays with the same number and set the lowers with a little less tension of the same number, there's less chance that your mast won't be straight.

 

[Sunbird22358]

Unless you are a competive racer, it really isn't critical to tension hte rigging to any set pounds. Basically, the 240 should be set up similar to the 25 and here is the manual advice: "After all stays are securely attached, take the slack out of the rigging and tighten. With the mast plumb (in a vertical position), the Headstay, Backstay, the two upper Sidestays, should be tightened 3-5 turns more than hand tight. The two lower Sidestays should be just taut, not hand tight."

The General Rigging advice that came with most O'DAYs is scanned below.

 

[cbourne200]

Sunbird -

Can you scan again? All I get when I open is first 2 columns, no pictures, and columns 3/4 are non existant. Also so small I can't read it...

 

[emergpa1]

Unless you are a competive racer, it really isn't critical to tension hte rigging to any set pounds. Basically, the 240 should be set up similar to the 25 and here is the manual advice: "After all stays are securely attached, take the slack out of the rigging and tighten. With the mast plumb (in a vertical position), the Headstay, Backstay, the two upper Sidestays, should be tightened 3-5 turns more than hand tight. The two lower Sidestays should be just taut, not hand tight."

The General Rigging advice that came with most O'DAYs is scanned below.

Elegant, simple, informative. Thanks sunbird!

 

[acsalearntosail]

Thanks to all. We trimmed her up pretty tight for racing this year.

Though the separation is in the vicinity of the port chainplates, the support strut and mountings inside are secure. It seems more likely that someone tried to haul up the main with the winch, while the halyard was attached to the lifeline stantion. This stantion is in the center of the damaged area.

Thanks again for all the support and comments.

ACSALTS