Halyard Size

[Mark]

The halyards on my 88 C-30 need replacing. As a new owner (less than a year) I have yet to climb the mast, but need to. The 3/8" size the manual calls for seems fine for raising sails, but I would feel better with a little more diameter. Does anyone use larger lines than 3/8? What is the largest practical diameter line?

 

[Rick]

Cat 30 halyard

If you use a larger halyard, you run the risk of it jamming. The 3/8 should work fine. If your main is hard to get up- try using Fastrac, which is a track lub - great stuff.Also you don't need to go up to change a halyard. Take the rope end of the halyard, and tape a light "messenger line to it, the same length as the halyard. Then pull the halyard through so that all you have is messenger- then pull the new halyard up with that.

 

[Richard]

Rick is right......

Mark,Rick is correct. Only I would stitch my messanger lines on to avoid a bigger mess..Good luck

 

[LaDonna Bubak - Catalina Owners]

Are you afraid of it holding you?

It seems that you're saying you're afraid the 3/8" won't hold your weight, as opposed to a sail. Remember that the halyard not only raises the sail, it keeps the sucker up. Now I'm no physicist but I'd lay money that the pressure exerted from a full sail in a good wind FAR outweighs you. Unless the halyard is frayed and chafed, the likelihood of it parting while you're being hoisted is nil.That said, be sure to have TWO halyards on your bosun's chair when you're hoisted. One as a primary & one as a secondary, just in case. And never just clip in. ALWAYS tie the halyards to the chair. Have fun!LaDonna

 

[Jim]

Bigger is not better

I tried to replace my halyard with a 7/8" line and found that it did not fit freely into the sheeves in the base of the mast. I went back to the 3/4" line and used the 7/8" line for the mainsheet.BTW, if your worried about the strenght you can buy lines of different strength ratings.

 

[Joe]

Hey Jim, 7/8"? Docklines or halyards?

I'm sure you meant 7/16 and 3/8, unless you have a really huge boat .

 

[patrick]

large halyard

i upgraded to a larger size halyard before i took out the boat for a sail. i thought that it was common to have to use two people and the winch to get the main up. i went to a smaller diamenter and it was like night and day raising the main.

 

[Tron Jockey]

Strong Stuff

After you replace your halyards, they'll be strong enough unless you're a REALLY big boy. F'er instance, basic 3/8" braided dacron & nylon ropes have a breaking strength of 4000 to 5000 Lbs. Fancier stuff like Spectra and Vectran is good for 10,000 to 12,000LbBut Ladonna is as right as she is cute, use 2 halyards and a safety belt. The second halyard isn't to catch you, that's the belt's job. The second halyard gets you down.