Boom turns during sailing

[marc1]

Hi There,

Looking for some assistance/help in determining what, why and how do I stop my boom from gradually turning. I have a 1973 30' C&C.

Basically there is a square head nut on the boom just back from the gooseneck and when turned with a wrench it causes the boom to turn. Whats been happening lately is my boom gradually turns on its own. I have never seen this on a boom before and I'd like to stop it from turning and gain an understanding of what it's for? I have attached a picture.

Any help is much appreciated.

Cheers,

marc.

 

[DayDreamer41]

Turning as rotating axially? if on the horizontal plane then the main sheet and traveler are the controls which determine the position of the boom angle.

 

[dlochner]

Welcome to SBO.

What you have is a roller furling boom. Back in the day it was thought to be a better idea than traditional slab reefing. It wasn't.

When the fitting is cranked with a handle the boom rotates and reduces sail. Only works on end boom sheeting.

 

[marc1]

Axially.

 

[marc1]

Welcome to SBO.

What you have is a roller furling boom. Back in the day it was thought to be a better idea than traditional slab reefing. It wasn't.

When the fitting is cranked with a handle the boom rotates and reduces sail. Only works on end boom sheeting.

Interesting, though it might have to do with furling. Any ideas on how to remove/stop from turning?

 

[marc1]

Thanks for the welcome!

 

[dlochner]

Interesting, though it might have to do with furling. Any ideas on how to remove/stop from turning?

Converting to a slab reefing system will make your life easier.

Behind the crank fitting, there is some sort of gear drive that turns the boom to roll the sail up on the boom. I'm not familiar enough with them to give detailed instructions. If you take it apart it may be possible to install a bolt or pin to stop the turning. Another option might be to have someone weld the boom to the part that isn't turning.

My very limited experience with these roller reefing booms was not pleasant and resulted in the USCG pulling us off a break wall at night.

 

[marc1]

Yes, I don't really like the look or sound of this type of reefing system and already have my standard reefing in place. Like the idea of welding the gear/assembly and will try this approach.

Thanks so much for the advice!

marc.

 

[shemandr]

Dlochner is on it. My Ranger from 1970's had the same thing. I don't remember how the mainsheet attachment interacted with the rotating boom and I never used the reefing system that way. But the boom liked to rotate a bit under sail. Anything I could do to stop that small rotation would have been worse than the rotation. Again, it being a 70's masthead rig the mainsail was like a rudder and the jib was the engine. No biggie.

 

[capta]

Welcome to SBO.

What you have is a roller furling boom. Back in the day it was thought to be a better idea than traditional slab reefing. It wasn't.

Actually, I sailed with that system from Pago Pago, across the Indian Ocean, up the Red Sea and on through the Med to the Caribbean, and I loved the system. Of course my mast was stepped in the cockpit with the crank just above the helm, so it meant I could reef from the cockpit without going out on deck.
As for stopping it from turning, how much can it possibly turn if the halyard isn't slacked?

 

[heritage]

I believe that the round fitting with the square metal piece in the center is where a winch should go to crank the roller boom for reefing.

I had a 1976 Westerly that had a similar reefing setup. I converted the rig to slab reefing for several reasons: Better sail shape,, I no longer had to go forward to the mast to reef ,, and I didn't have to disconnect the boom vang to reef the sail. The boom would still turn slightly, but was never a problem.

 

[jssailem]

Welcome to the forum @marc1
I think Dave has hit the ball out of the park..
Glad to have you hear. How about sharing a picture of your boat in your next post.
Ain't it fun to have an old boat and find old guys who remember stuff.

 

[dlochner]

Actually, I sailed with that system from Pago Pago, across the Indian Ocean, up the Red Sea and on through the Med to the Caribbean, and I loved the system. Of course my mast was stepped in the cockpit with the crank just above the helm, so it meant I could reef from the cockpit without going out on deck.
As for stopping it from turning, how much can it possibly turn if the halyard isn't slacked?

Ah, Capta, you are so old school.

 

[marc1]

Actually, I sailed with that system from Pago Pago, across the Indian Ocean, up the Red Sea and on through the Med to the Caribbean, and I loved the system. Of course my mast was stepped in the cockpit with the crank just above the helm, so it meant I could reef from the cockpit without going out on deck.
As for stopping it from turning, how much can it possibly turn if the halyard isn't slacked?

It's surprising just how much it can turn and strain the outhaul, but it's easy enough to correct and usually takes several hours of sailing before becoming an issue.

Question: when you used the system, how did you manage to furl the main with the Vang and Topping lift (on my rig the topping lift runs from the boom end and the vang, as with other booms, from the underside - I might be missing something here, or do you rig differently when using this system?

Thanks,

marc.

 

[marc1]

Welcome to the forum @marc1
I think Dave has hit the ball out of the park..
Glad to have you hear. How about sharing a picture of your boat in your next post.
Ain't it fun to have an old boat and find old guys who remember stuff.

Sure is and thanks! Its even more fun when you realize that as old as the boat is...I'm older

 

[shemandr]

That's one nice looking C&C! My Ranger was red so I'm already liking it. The dodger is perfect. It is what a dodger is supposed to be. Reef that down and it can take some S**t.

 

[dlochner]

Question: when you used the system, how did you manage to furl the main with the Vang and Topping lift (on my rig the topping lift runs from the boom end and the vang, as with other booms, from the underside - I might be missing something here, or do you rig differently when using this system?

Often the main sheet and the topping lift were attached to a tang at the aft end of the boom with a single pivot bolt. This allowed the boom to rotate when reefing. The vang has to be disconnected from the boom.

 

[shemandr]

So I believe the roller reefing on the boom of that time was rolling on the outside of the boom - like a window shade. It would have to be a pretty flat sail which would be consistent with mainsails of that time. There was also the Hood in boom reefing system which rolled the main inside the boom if my memory serves me - and it has been asleep on the job lately. The Hood system did pretty well on larger boats presumably because it was a bit pricy to put on a smaller boat. As we say in NY, "Not for nutin'" but I'd rather reef from top down than from leach forward. But that's a subject for discussion.

 

[Joe]

Interesting, though it might have to do with furling. Any ideas on how to remove/stop from turning?

Installing a vang will solve your problem.

 

[marc1]

Often the main sheet and the topping lift were attached to a tang at the aft end of the boom with a single pivot bolt. This allowed the boom to rotate when reefing. The vang has to be disconnected from the boom.

Right, that makes sense. I'll probably secure the boom from rotating and set-up a standard reefing approach (smile). Although it is a pretty neat system for back in the 70's. This particular C&C is a '73, with plenty of miles left in her.