Couple Questions after First Mast Stepping

[Dfisher]

First of all I would like to thank Brian W for talking me through the first mast stepping on my 94 H26. It made a huge difference being able to talk it through with someone who had experience. Here are the questions I have after getting the mast up:
1) When I hooked the shrouds up I went off a blurry picture from the manual which lead me to think the lower stays attached to the forward ubolt and the upper stays attached the aft ubolt. Is this correct or did I get it backwards?
2) My boat has a aftermarket Harken Unit 00-AL roller furler. The furler seems to be pretty slack and is not holding the mast up. Is the mast held in place only by the upper and lower stays?
3) Above the mast attachment point for the upper stays there seems to be an aft bend in the spar. It seems as though the tension from the rigging to the rear of the boom is bending it back. Is this normal? Or do I need to tension the stays.
4) When the jib sheet is unfurled it hits the bow pulpet and life lines. I made sure the job halyard is hoisted as high as it can go. Is this a faulty installation causing this?

Thank you again for all your help as I work through the new boat.

 

[isaksp00]

The forestay inside the furler foil should be tight and holds the front of the mast. If yours is like my Harken furler, the furler drum acts as a turnbuckle and I assume must be tightened in your case. It is hard to explain how to do so - if you have your furler manual, read it carefully. On mine there is a locking collar above the drum and a star washer and nut on the bottom - these must be tightened after the forestay has been tightened, to keep the drum from loosening as you use the boat. And they obviously must be loosened in order to tighten the forestay.

I should add that when I purchased the boat the setup for the locking collar had been done incorrectly - it was above the stud on the end of the stay, not below. The prev owner was lucky he never lost the mast. Check yours vs. the manual.

Once you get the forestay properly tight, tighten the jib halyard, and winch on it. It has to be pretty tight, and you have to have the halyard at enough of an angle from the line of the stay, to prevent the halyard from wrapping around the furler swivel as you use it.

 

[John23883]

Refer to the manual

1. Yes, upper shrouds forward, lower aft. They will look crossed at the base.
2. and 3. Sort of. The upper and lower shrouds are doing most of the work but the without the furler, the mast would not stay up. You have to set up the mast per the manual:

Review page 27 of the on-line manual, go here: http://sbo.sailboatowners.com/downloads/Hunter_26_82584071.pdf

Under "Getting ready to sail" page 27, starting with paragraph 6 and specifically para. 7. The mast must be raked aft and if you have the mast raked to the specified dimension, then it is in the right place irrespective of how the mast base looks or how tight the roller furler is. Mine always looks slack like it needs to be tightened. It doesn't.

You should get a "Loos" tension gauge to make sure you have the right amount of tension on the shrouds and equal as well.

I put the trailer on the most level spot on the driveway, set a level on the top of the cabin and use a barrel jack under the trailer to level. Now follow the instructions in the manual.

Set the mast rake and refer to para. 9 to make sure the mast is straight. Having done that, para. 10 says to put 2" of bow in the mast. The upper shrouds will actually pull down on the mast (with enough pressure) and the lowers are either tensioned or untensioned to allow the correct amount of bow. More tension less bow, less tension more bow.

Sounds complicated but just do one thing at a time and it will work.

Now comes the question: "How much pressure on the shrouds?" No one will say, other than a percentage of the tensile strength of the shrouds themselves which is enough tension to tear the shroud chainplates off the boat. I use 600 lbs on the uppers and I think the lowers are around 400.

I only had to do this once and when I verify once in a while they are fine. Now, I only have the mast up one week a month so I don't have a whole summer of tension to verify.

So, to sum up, if the mast is raked 6", bowed 2", straight side to side and plumb, then don't worry.

4. Normal for the jib to lay on the bow pulpit.

 

[Dfisher]

Thank you for your reply. After reading through the manual it looks like I may be dealing with a incorrect or hybrid install. The forestay and turnbuckle are not coming out of the bottom of the furler. The furler is connecting directly to the chain plate with two plates. I will take some photos next weekend and see if anyone can offer guidance. Thank you for your help.

Dan

 

[Dfisher]

Thanks John. This was very helpful.

1. Yes, upper shrouds forward, lower aft. They will look crossed at the base.
2. and 3. Sort of. The upper and lower shrouds are doing most of the work but the without the furler, the mast would not stay up. You have to set up the mast per the manual:

Review page 27 of the on-line manual, go here: http://sbo.sailboatowners.com/downloads/Hunter_26_82584071.pdf

Under "Getting ready to sail" page 27, starting with paragraph 6 and specifically para. 7. The mast must be raked aft and if you have the mast raked to the specified dimension, then it is in the right place irrespective of how the mast base looks or how tight the roller furler is. Mine always looks slack like it needs to be tightened. It doesn't.

You should get a "Loos" tension gauge to make sure you have the right amount of tension on the shrouds and equal as well.

I put the trailer on the most level spot on the driveway, set a level on the top of the cabin and use a barrel jack under the trailer to level. Now follow the instructions in the manual.

Set the mast rake and refer to para. 9 to make sure the mast is straight. Having done that, para. 10 says to put 2" of bow in the mast. The upper shrouds will actually pull down on the mast (with enough pressure) and the lowers are either tensioned or untensioned to allow the correct amount of bow. More tension less bow, less tension more bow.

Sounds complicated but just do one thing at a time and it will work.

Now comes the question: "How much pressure on the shrouds?" No one will say, other than a percentage of the tensile strength of the shrouds themselves which is enough tension to tear the shroud chainplates off the boat. I use 600 lbs on the uppers and I think the lowers are around 400.

I only had to do this once and when I verify once in a while they are fine. Now, I only have the mast up one week a month so I don't have a whole summer of tension to verify.

So, to sum up, if the mast is raked 6", bowed 2", straight side to side and plumb, then don't worry.

4. Normal for the jib to lay on the bow pulpit.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Dfisher,

I would tend to think your boat is one I originally sold when my dealership was at the present day Conrads at Lake Corner and I fondly remember hosting regattas at VISA. I also personally knew the Bernards and when Hales Ford Bridge was dedicated and the ribbon cut, the old farmer and his mule who used to own the property were first to cross that bridge.

I have personally responded back to your email and will call this Monday or Tuesday. I look forward to helping you and maybe we can sail together next year as I am moving back to the area. I am originally from Goshen and Lexington.