Can My Rigging Hold a 200lb Guy in Bosuns Chair?

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JoelHoover

JoelHoover

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Mar 2, 2009
123
Columbia Yachts C22 Long Beach
I've got to replace a nav/stern/anchor light doodad on the top of my mast (see posting "I Hit a bridge Today..." for details).

I have 2 candidates available to ride the bosuns chair up. 1 is 90 pounds and kind of new to the game, the other is 200 pounds and very experienced with tools and electrical.

I trust the 200 pounder to install the new light correctly, but I am concerned if the rigging can take it.

The boat is a 1975 Newport 28

Thoughts, Experiences, Advice?

I ALWAYS appreciate the help from this forum :)
 
CalebD

CalebD

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Jun 27, 2006
1,479
Tartan 27' 1967 Nyack, NY
Joel,

If you can't raise a 200 pounder up your mast in a Bosun's chair then you have other problems. Meaning: your rig should be able to handle this.
Hopefully your halyards and sheaves on top of the mast are in good shape.

I went up the mast of our 27' sailboat recently. We used a separate manual 'mast crane' to haul me most of the way up (better mechanical adavantage) and our halyard(s) pulled me up the last couple of feet. Some clubs (like ours) have a free standing manual hoist devoted to to pulling/stepping masts.

Was it you who posted some videos of taking your MacGregor 26 out to Catalina Island a few years ago?
 
amry69

amry69

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Jun 18, 2012
22
Hunter 23.5 Canyon Lake
Your rigging should be rated for 1,000 plus pounds. 200 lbs shouldn't be a problem.
 
Sailm8

Sailm8

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Feb 21, 2008
1,750
Hunter 29.5 Punta Gorda
The real wear and tear will be on your winches. I had mast mounted winches and one broke off while I was up the mast. I had a safety line and a death grip on the mast so it really wasn't a problem for me. I have pretty good upper body strength and came down hand over hand.

On another boat the guts in the self tailing winch came out but I was able to survive without incident. Use a safety line.
 
Stu Jackson

Stu Jackson

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Feb 26, 2004
22,996
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Run your lifting halyard over your coachroof to your jib sheet fairleads and back to your primary jib winch. Mast mounted winches are not strong enough, nor is the wall of the mast. Don't use your halyard winches if they are one the coachroof, they're too small.
 
JoelHoover

JoelHoover

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Mar 2, 2009
123
Columbia Yachts C22 Long Beach
1,000lbs, eh?

That sounds like a good enough risk ratio :)

Caleb- Yes! That was me and a friend sailing the Macgregor to Catalina Island. I get alot of emails from YouTube viewers asking about mooring rates and travel time to Catalina :)

Stu- That's the nugget I was looking for. Will do, sir!!!
 
caguy

caguy

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Sep 22, 2006
4,004
Catalina, Luger C-27, Adventure 30 Marina del Rey
I went up a couple of weeks ago on the C27 with no problem. I wore a backup tied around the chest and took the slack out every 4' or so. I used the topping lift for the back up. I would hoist my self and take some weight off the main halyard while my son-in-law cranked the mast mounted winch. He told me that using the topping lift to take some of the weight off from the halyard made a big difference. My halyard wire cable is really thin and looks thinner the higher I got. What ever tools you take up make sure they are in the bosun chair pocket and not your pants pocket. When that chair closes in around you it's impossible to get anything out of your pants. Don't forget your camera. Good luck.
 
jibes138

jibes138

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Jan 27, 2008
3,086
ODay 35 Beaufort, NC
Don't rely just on some muscle man to hoist you. Lifting 200 pounds 30 or 40 feet in the air is a lot of effort. Help the poor cranker by using your feet and legs to climb. That way the cranker just takes up the slack and the winch holds the load statically. Large boats have big winches with two speeds or electric winches, your boat probably doesn't have as much mechanical advantage.
 
woodster

woodster

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Sep 15, 2009
6,243
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
you could rig up a 4 part line on a set of double blocks and hoist it up on the halyard ...secure the halyard when fully hoisted...then have a focused buddy pull you up the mast.....and by all means use a second line as a safety line on you....the pull for a 200 lb man would only be 50 lbs on the buddy below.....if you need to stop for some reason just take your hand and grab all 4 lines in your hand (ware gloves) and that will act as your brake going up and down as well..it worked for me about 5 weeks ago on my buddy's boat while having to replace the mast head light on a 44 ft mast......

BTW this is some thing i have done all my life in the construction trade and still doing it at 66 years old and yes i know that i am that age but you see when i look out away from the mirror everything looks as though i was 20 .......

regards

woody
 
Ross

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
woodster said:
you could rig up a 4 part line on a set of double blocks and hoist it up on the halyard ...secure the halyard when fully hoisted...then have a focused buddy pull you up the mast.....and by all means use a second line as a safety line on you....the pull for a 200 lb man would only be 50 lbs on the buddy below.....if you need to stop for some reason just take your hand and grab all 4 lines in your hand (ware gloves) and that will act as your brake going up and down as well..it worked for me about 5 weeks ago on my buddy's boat while having to replace the mast head light on a 44 ft mast......

BTW this is some thing i have done all my life in the construction trade and still doing it at 66 years old and yes i know that i am that age but you see when i look out away from the mirror everything looks as though i was 20 .......


regards

woody
Click to expand
When the man being hoisted pulls fifty pounds force on the hauling part he reduces the weight being lifted by fifty pounds.
 
M

Michael D

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Sep 20, 2009
5
Westerly Berwick32 San Carlos Mexico
What Woody said ....and ditto. It worked well and the electrician going up for the same purpose helped by climbing on the steps as much as possible. The Bo's'n/Bosun's/Boatswain's Chair (just to get in all three spellings at least the best ones can make it difficult to cllimb but the rule is take time, go slow. My ST40 jib winch though handled the stress in fine style. We used one of the other halyards for a safety and a third for the tool bucket.

Michael
 
Bill Roosa

Bill Roosa

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Jun 6, 2006
6,990
currently boatless wishing Harrington Harbor North, MD
So the 28 does not have a halyard winch????
I mean really guys just put all 200 lb of him in the chair and crank away. If the handle is 18" and the drum is 2" radius (9:1 advantage) then you will only see 200/9=22 lb at the handle.
 
Ross

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
Kinda hard to find 18 inch winch handles.
 
rgranger

rgranger

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Jan 19, 2010
12,553
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
Do you already have a bosun chair? I made one for a Coronado 25 I used to have, and then the Mac 22 I now have came with one. So I now have two... They are old school wooden chairs but they work. If you have a friend with a nicer chair use that but if you have to go buy one, you will be in for some change. If you need one, I'll send you one of mine for postage.
 
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