We have a 1993 Hunter 33.5. The Main is an absolute bear to raise - the last six feet are using an oversized Barlow and everything I've got to pull it up. The slides seem to move ok. The previous owners had tuned the rig so that the mast has a considerable aft rake. We've done everything we can think of - the Hard Vang is loose, the main sheet is loose, we use a spare halyard as a topping lift for the boom - no help. Any suggestions?
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Stephen Ostrander
The Main Idea
You say the previous owners had the mast raked. Do you mean raked aft, or are you referring to mast pre-bend, which is a different but necessary but condition? Some suggestions: Clean and lube the sail slide track and sail slugs with silicon or teflon lube-- West Marine or others sell a lube for this. Do not use WD-40 or petroleum-based lubes or they will stain the sail. Make sure that the halyard is running free through the sheaves at the top and bottom of the mast, and that the halyard is not wrapped around something inside the mast. Another thing you can do is to attach a block to the sail head plate for extra purchase, but you would have to rig a longer halyard, approx. 3 times the main luff length plus tail.
You say the previous owners had the mast raked. Do you mean raked aft, or are you referring to mast pre-bend, which is a different but necessary but condition? Some suggestions: Clean and lube the sail slide track and sail slugs with silicon or teflon lube-- West Marine or others sell a lube for this. Do not use WD-40 or petroleum-based lubes or they will stain the sail. Make sure that the halyard is running free through the sheaves at the top and bottom of the mast, and that the halyard is not wrapped around something inside the mast. Another thing you can do is to attach a block to the sail head plate for extra purchase, but you would have to rig a longer halyard, approx. 3 times the main luff length plus tail.
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Ron Barrow
Come on, be Mainly Main!
Usually when I have trouble raising the main it involves a foul of some type on the halyard. More than once I have inadvertantly wrapped the halyard around the topping lift. It goes up fine until the very end, when the friction becomes too great. As Steve said, make sure the halyard runs free without the sail. Check turn blocks at base of mast as well as deck organizer and rope clutch. It is possible to get more leverage on the halyard if you go forward and pull on the line as it exits the mast. Sometimes much easier to pull at that point before it has run through all the hardware on the deck. You have probably checked all this stuff; but, there just isn't much else to consider. Good Luck, RB
Usually when I have trouble raising the main it involves a foul of some type on the halyard. More than once I have inadvertantly wrapped the halyard around the topping lift. It goes up fine until the very end, when the friction becomes too great. As Steve said, make sure the halyard runs free without the sail. Check turn blocks at base of mast as well as deck organizer and rope clutch. It is possible to get more leverage on the halyard if you go forward and pull on the line as it exits the mast. Sometimes much easier to pull at that point before it has run through all the hardware on the deck. You have probably checked all this stuff; but, there just isn't much else to consider. Good Luck, RB
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Tom Hultberg
Sheave could be cracked
and will only take the weight of the sail up to a certian weight then it jams and you are just hoisting the remaining sail without any mechanical advantage, just brute strength. Only a guess, but waht else could it be if all shees are loose and halyards are running free.? Sailon
and will only take the weight of the sail up to a certian weight then it jams and you are just hoisting the remaining sail without any mechanical advantage, just brute strength. Only a guess, but waht else could it be if all shees are loose and halyards are running free.? Sailon
archives has some answers too.
Kurt: The archives have some answers to this problem. The first thing I would do is to clean the track. There are some kits on the market that allow you to raise a cleaning strip with the halyard but you could probably do just as well if you have someone haul you up the stick. You can use a piece of scotch brite and some cleaner to get the track clean. Then you should lube it up with something like McLube which will make it run smooth without attracting dirt. You should also lube the slugs. Give that a try and see if it helps. The next thing to check is the amount of bend in the mast. There are some guidelines but I cannot remember what they are (check the archives). This may be worth the cost of having a rigger that is familar with the B & R rigs to check it out. It sounds like that may be your real problem.
Kurt: The archives have some answers to this problem. The first thing I would do is to clean the track. There are some kits on the market that allow you to raise a cleaning strip with the halyard but you could probably do just as well if you have someone haul you up the stick. You can use a piece of scotch brite and some cleaner to get the track clean. Then you should lube it up with something like McLube which will make it run smooth without attracting dirt. You should also lube the slugs. Give that a try and see if it helps. The next thing to check is the amount of bend in the mast. There are some guidelines but I cannot remember what they are (check the archives). This may be worth the cost of having a rigger that is familar with the B & R rigs to check it out. It sounds like that may be your real problem.
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Patrick Ewing
Ours was just like you describe
Go stand by the mast while someone else raises the sail and watch what happens. The slot cover ( the part which retains the slides ) on ours was catching the last few slides as the sail was raised. It had sharp edges and the slides caught on it as the last two went by it. The Dutchman system was also misadjusted and caused the battens to twist the slides which they were next to. These two problems multiplied the effort required to lift the last few feet of sail. Proper lubrication helps also - WD40 makes the plastic slides sticky. Now I can raise the sail by hand. Please let us know what you find. Patrick
Go stand by the mast while someone else raises the sail and watch what happens. The slot cover ( the part which retains the slides ) on ours was catching the last few slides as the sail was raised. It had sharp edges and the slides caught on it as the last two went by it. The Dutchman system was also misadjusted and caused the battens to twist the slides which they were next to. These two problems multiplied the effort required to lift the last few feet of sail. Proper lubrication helps also - WD40 makes the plastic slides sticky. Now I can raise the sail by hand. Please let us know what you find. Patrick
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Dick Carey
Sail Track Lube
Curt, I had some difficulty raising the main last year. I lubed all of the sheaves with WD-40, cleaned the sail slide track with mineral spirits, and applied Elmers Slide-All (recommended by Practical Sailor) to the sail slide track. Got Elmers Slide-All at the local hardware store. I did all of this when the mast was unsteped at winter layup. This year the main went up with ease. Regards, Dick C. S/V Puffin 1990 Hinter 33.5
Curt, I had some difficulty raising the main last year. I lubed all of the sheaves with WD-40, cleaned the sail slide track with mineral spirits, and applied Elmers Slide-All (recommended by Practical Sailor) to the sail slide track. Got Elmers Slide-All at the local hardware store. I did all of this when the mast was unsteped at winter layup. This year the main went up with ease. Regards, Dick C. S/V Puffin 1990 Hinter 33.5
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keith shaw
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Kevin
Tried it all!
I have a 28.5 and tried all the lube and cleaning stuff with not much of an improvement. The last four feet was just a pain in the, well you know. What I found with the amount of prebend and mast rake I have the top three to four slides would jam as they reached the magic last four feet. The fix in my case turned out to be fairly simple, at least when compaired to all the cleaning and lubing I did. The boom must be level or slight raised in the aft end, what was happening was the leach was pulling on the upper most sildes as the main was raised and would jam them. Once I adjusted the topping lift I never had a problem again, only if I could type as good as the main now goes up. Oh by the way I replaced my main with one from Quantum and the new one goes up just fine. Kevin
I have a 28.5 and tried all the lube and cleaning stuff with not much of an improvement. The last four feet was just a pain in the, well you know. What I found with the amount of prebend and mast rake I have the top three to four slides would jam as they reached the magic last four feet. The fix in my case turned out to be fairly simple, at least when compaired to all the cleaning and lubing I did. The boom must be level or slight raised in the aft end, what was happening was the leach was pulling on the upper most sildes as the main was raised and would jam them. Once I adjusted the topping lift I never had a problem again, only if I could type as good as the main now goes up. Oh by the way I replaced my main with one from Quantum and the new one goes up just fine. Kevin
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Doug
Been there, done that
Our 33.5 had the same problem. I found that the Sailcoat Mclube product works (and most importantly) lasts better than others. Listen to Steve O. and stay away from wd40 type products. You should only have about 3-4inches of Prebend. That means, if you let your halyard hang with shackle just above boom on a dead calm day (with nobody moving about down below) the shackle should come to rest 3-4 inches aft of the mast. If you have much more than that I would suggest having a qualified rigger check it out. As Steve O. also pointed out, rake is different from prebend. Prebend is aft curve in the bend (as if you are tightening your backstay) and rake is where the mast (bent or not) leans backward like the smokestacks on the Titanic. The standing rigging is not the thing you want to have mis-adjusted on your boat. Make sure your backstay adjuster is slack too. If you are bending her back more than needed that will jam the top slides as pointed out. Try the topping lift idea given by another poster. Doug
Our 33.5 had the same problem. I found that the Sailcoat Mclube product works (and most importantly) lasts better than others. Listen to Steve O. and stay away from wd40 type products. You should only have about 3-4inches of Prebend. That means, if you let your halyard hang with shackle just above boom on a dead calm day (with nobody moving about down below) the shackle should come to rest 3-4 inches aft of the mast. If you have much more than that I would suggest having a qualified rigger check it out. As Steve O. also pointed out, rake is different from prebend. Prebend is aft curve in the bend (as if you are tightening your backstay) and rake is where the mast (bent or not) leans backward like the smokestacks on the Titanic. The standing rigging is not the thing you want to have mis-adjusted on your boat. Make sure your backstay adjuster is slack too. If you are bending her back more than needed that will jam the top slides as pointed out. Try the topping lift idea given by another poster. Doug
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Sam Marks
Upgraded Winches to 30s
Have had the same problem. Applied candle wax to the sail track and upgraded winches to Lewmar 30 2-speed instead of the 16s. Has helped greatly. Good luck.
Have had the same problem. Applied candle wax to the sail track and upgraded winches to Lewmar 30 2-speed instead of the 16s. Has helped greatly. Good luck.
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