Gooseneck track on mast

[Vega1447]

Hi.
My Vega (1447) has I believe the original boom - designed for "round-the
boom" mainsail furling.

Previous owner installed conventional slab reefing which works fine.

Only problem - the gooseneck runs in a vertical track on aft (obviously)
side of the mast. There is a cunningham (3-1 purchase system) for
downhauling the gooseneck - presumably to tension luff of the sail.

This provides an extra task to perform when reefing - and as I often
sail short-handed and occasionally single handed it is a pain.

Is there any reason not to secure the gooseneck permanently (using 2
flanges in the track one above & one below gooseneck, say & locked with
wingnuts)?

I could then rely on the main halyard to tension luff of sail as needed?
Or have I missed something?

Thanks for any tips,

John
--
Albin Vega 1447 "Breakaway"

John A. Kinsella Ph: +353-61-202148
Mathematics Dept. e-mail: John.Kinsella@...
University of Limerick FAX: +353-61-334927
IRELAND Web: John Kinsella's Website

 

[pjacobs55]

Sounds ok, lots of racing boats fix their booms and use just the halyard for luff tension.

If you put too many bolt holes in the mast in line, you may weaken it in that high stress area, beware.Nicholas Walsh
Nicholas H. Walsh P.A.
111 Commercial Street
Portland Maine 04101
Tel. 207/772-2191
fax 207/774-3940

This email was sent from the law firm of Nicholas H. Walsh P.A. It may contain information that is privileged and confidential. If you suspect that you were not intended to receive this email, please delete it and notify us as soon as possible. Thank you.

 

[stevebirch2002]

Hi John

I have just added a track so I can move my boom as my sprayhood was too
high. I can now lift the boom to teh height I want. You can always put a
stop above and below where you want the boom to stay.

Cheers

Steve B

 

[wxt8981]

Hi John;

I also have an about 1 foot track below the main sail
track. I also have a cunningham like you write, though it
is detachable from the boom if I want to reef the main. I
sail about 95% single handed, and never had a problem when
reefing.

I like the track for the boom; I no longer race, but I used
to adjust the main sail's tension with a 3/1 purchase- from
the top position down. I also adjusted the cunningham
likewise when necessary.

Now I take it easy..... though I still reef the main when
necessary. But the boom remains in the "up" position of the
track. I no longer care if I'm 10 minutes late, even though
I still watch the wind and look at the speedometer- guess
old habits are hard to loose.

Wilhelm, V-257