I have a question regarding where the boom should be set on the mast. After loading the slugs for the main into the mast, there is a stopper bolt that stops the slugs from falling back down and out of the mast. Should the boom be above that stopper bolt? Should the boom be free to move up the mast or held down with a cunningham or other means? Or should the cunningham be held in reserve to tighten the luff? I ran into difficulties trying to put a reef in the main. It was necessary to remove the bolt and allow some of the slugs to fall out of the mast so I could attach the reef clew over one of the horns on the boom, so I could put the reef in. This doesn't seem right to me. Another problem is getting the main to drop into the sail jacks. The sail won't drop all the way down and it means a trip to the mast to haul the sail down. Would it be prudent to attach a downhaul? Thanks for your input
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Same as mine...
I don't know what you are sailing but reefing the main on my Hunter 23 is much like you describe it to be on your boat. I have to let two slugs drop out of the track in order to get the cringle on a horn. It is a bit of a pain in the butt... but I've gotten used to it. The gooseneck mounts maybe 6" below the track on mine. That's just a rough guess though...
I don't know what you are sailing but reefing the main on my Hunter 23 is much like you describe it to be on your boat. I have to let two slugs drop out of the track in order to get the cringle on a horn. It is a bit of a pain in the butt... but I've gotten used to it. The gooseneck mounts maybe 6" below the track on mine. That's just a rough guess though...
There are metal plates available that ...
slip into the slot gate and screw to the mast to keep the slugs from falling out. Then you don't need to worry about slugs falling out. Look up Mast Slot Gate plate in google. Not having a gate lock is a carry over from when sails were just bolt roped to the mast. Probably available from your mast maker. Vic "Seven"
slip into the slot gate and screw to the mast to keep the slugs from falling out. Then you don't need to worry about slugs falling out. Look up Mast Slot Gate plate in google. Not having a gate lock is a carry over from when sails were just bolt roped to the mast. Probably available from your mast maker. Vic "Seven"
Boom/Mast
You might want to try moving the reef grommet on the sail up so you don't have to drop slugs out of the track. This would be a simple task for a sailloft.
You might want to try moving the reef grommet on the sail up so you don't have to drop slugs out of the track. This would be a simple task for a sailloft.
home made
I used a 1 1/2" x 4" piece of aluminum to make a slot gate cover. I put it in a vice with a pipe and tapped it with a hammer to give a roundness to match the mast shape. I cut and shaped a piece to fill the gate itself and JB welded it to the cover piece. Worked great on my H - 27. To reef I need to bring the boom to the top of the boom track and lock it in.
I used a 1 1/2" x 4" piece of aluminum to make a slot gate cover. I put it in a vice with a pipe and tapped it with a hammer to give a roundness to match the mast shape. I cut and shaped a piece to fill the gate itself and JB welded it to the cover piece. Worked great on my H - 27. To reef I need to bring the boom to the top of the boom track and lock it in.
luff reef cringle...
rather than trying to hook the luff cringle directly to the reefing horn, install a short strap through the cringle with a stainless ring sewn in each end. You can then pass the strap over lower folds and hook it on the horn. My mainsail came with this feature installed. Call a local sailmaker and ask them to make one for you. Another solution is rig a forward reefing line, run it from a padeye on the port side of the mast, up through the cringle and the down to a cleat on the other side, opposite the padey. Pulling down and forward. If you're really clever you could run this line back to the cockpit, along with the clew end reefing line and create a two line reefing system you can operate from the safety of the cockpit. Finally, for immediate result, use a sail tie to cinch off the reef tack cringle to the boom. You could do the same to the reef clew cringle also, but you still need to hook up the outhaul to pull the clew back to flatten the lower part of the sail.
rather than trying to hook the luff cringle directly to the reefing horn, install a short strap through the cringle with a stainless ring sewn in each end. You can then pass the strap over lower folds and hook it on the horn. My mainsail came with this feature installed. Call a local sailmaker and ask them to make one for you. Another solution is rig a forward reefing line, run it from a padeye on the port side of the mast, up through the cringle and the down to a cleat on the other side, opposite the padey. Pulling down and forward. If you're really clever you could run this line back to the cockpit, along with the clew end reefing line and create a two line reefing system you can operate from the safety of the cockpit. Finally, for immediate result, use a sail tie to cinch off the reef tack cringle to the boom. You could do the same to the reef clew cringle also, but you still need to hook up the outhaul to pull the clew back to flatten the lower part of the sail.
re:attaching boom to mast
Heres the way I do it. Well, the way the person that gave me a newer sail for my Columbia 8.7 did it. Instead of attaching the sail slugs to the sail, reeve a piece of line, thru the bottom 5 or so cringles. Knot it at the top and bottom, leaving a couple of feet of slack at the bottom. Attach the slugs to this line and raise the sail as normal. On the 8.7, there is a tack hook at the gooseneck, so that the bolt rope won't pull out of the boom track, but that extra couple of feet of line can alternatively be looped thru the gooseneck, to tension the tack. Or it could be run thru padeyes to the aft end of the boom, and then to a cleat or cam cleat. When time to reef, the slack just needs to be introduced into the line, which allows the first five or six cringles fall to the boom. I hope I've explained this so that anyone can understand it. I can see it in my mind's eye, but a picture is worth a thousand word, and I don't have a picture. I'll take one tomorrow, and post it asap. Larry Wilson
Heres the way I do it. Well, the way the person that gave me a newer sail for my Columbia 8.7 did it. Instead of attaching the sail slugs to the sail, reeve a piece of line, thru the bottom 5 or so cringles. Knot it at the top and bottom, leaving a couple of feet of slack at the bottom. Attach the slugs to this line and raise the sail as normal. On the 8.7, there is a tack hook at the gooseneck, so that the bolt rope won't pull out of the boom track, but that extra couple of feet of line can alternatively be looped thru the gooseneck, to tension the tack. Or it could be run thru padeyes to the aft end of the boom, and then to a cleat or cam cleat. When time to reef, the slack just needs to be introduced into the line, which allows the first five or six cringles fall to the boom. I hope I've explained this so that anyone can understand it. I can see it in my mind's eye, but a picture is worth a thousand word, and I don't have a picture. I'll take one tomorrow, and post it asap. Larry Wilson
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