Capri 18 - is it possible to remove the Furling foil without lowering the mast?

May 25, 2019
27
Catalina Capri 18 Bronx, NY
Hello everyone,

(forgive me is this isn't the right forum, I didnt think it was specific to smaller boats)

My friend and i have a 1987 Capri 18 that we purchased and sailed with no issues in 2019. We got off to a great start this year, but have run into a number of sail related issues over the summer. First, a thunderstorm came through and ripped our furling head sail to shreds. Luckily I found one in stock at a great price and replaced it with no problems. Then our main halyard frayed and broke, requiring us to lower the mast and replace that halyard. If anyone needs a suggestion on how to do this when there is no existing halyard, I would be happy to help. We used a wire snake to go over the pulley, down the mast and out the exit hole to attach a messenger line and then pull the halyard through. Lots of experimenting, but it worked great.

We failed to make any other improvements while the mast was down, and we are now paying for it.

Then Hurricane Isaias came through and severed the halyard of the jib roller furler. I believe this is a CDI FF2, but not 100% sure.

I would like to replace this halyard without taking the mast down, actually my co-owner and sometime friend is refusing to do it. I need help figuring out if I can remove the furling foil from the head stay, replace the halyard, and then put it back on, all without lowering the mast. Obviously we would need to do something to prevent the mast from falling backwards. Any thoughts?

As an alternative, does anyone have some good ideas for safely lowering the mast without breaking our backs? I have seen lots of solutions for tricking out a C-18 for frequent mast raising and lowering for trailer sailors, but we do not use a trailer nor do we have a shop to rig up extra parts. Is there a post somewhere else that will show us how to safely lower and raise the mast with the help of winches and pulleys, or similar?

All ideas are welcome.
 
Sep 22, 2018
1,869
Hunter 216 Kingston
There are numerous threads on SBO about how to use gin poles along with your mainsheet (increases mechanical advantage) and a crutch at the stern to make raising and lowering your mast easier. No need to break your back :)
 
Sep 22, 2018
1,869
Hunter 216 Kingston
Here is a thread about replacing the halyard on a CDI furler that might be helpful.