Hunter 33 Traveler Stops

RoyS

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Jun 3, 2012
1,739
Hunter 33 Steamboat Wharf, Hull, MA
Strongly suggest that you upgrade that traveler system. Doubtful it will hold up in a surprise jibe. I replaced mine after such an incident when I first bought the boat. I installed a nice Harken Windward Sheeting Car system on a larger piece of teak. A decent traveler will likely be wider and needs to be installed higher for clearance around it. I will see if I have a photo somewhere.
 

Rabe

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May 15, 2019
78
Hunter 33 - Cherubini Port Clinton, OH
Strongly suggest that you upgrade that traveler system. Doubtful it will hold up in a surprise jibe. I replaced mine after such an incident when I first bought the boat. I installed a nice Harken Windward Sheeting Car system on a larger piece of teak. A decent traveler will likely be wider and needs to be installed higher for clearance around it. I will see if I have a photo somewhere.
That's a picture I found on these forums.

Would like a new traveler for sure. While I wait I need to find the cars / stops.

If you still have the ones you replaced I would buy them from you.

Anyone know where I can find them?
 
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Joe

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Jun 1, 2004
7,999
Catalina 27 Mission Bay, San Diego
If you can't figure out the brand of track.... then a drawing or picture of it's profile would help a lot. Even though the track appears to be a high rise version (the lower part is thicker to get the car off the deck) what's important is the upper part that matches up with the car's bearings.... BUT..... I have an alternative solution that won't cost you a lot of money and will give you a much better functioning traveler. Here goes: instead of replacing the pin stops... attach a pair of 5/16 low stretch control lines, one to each side of the car.... then install two small blocks to the sides above each end of the track... threading the control lines through them to a vee, clam or cam cleat mounted on the side of the cockpit, a foot or so up or back... whatever is convenient. With a little creativity you can also incorporate some purchase.. 2 or 3 to one, say... but it's not necessary for the system to operate... you're not intending to move the traveler under load, you just want to re set it more easily that having to fiddle with the finicky pin stop on the track. The control line should be a grade or two above standard polyester line. Since you only need a few feet on either side, you can afford to get something good... Samson MDX would work well... and the higher quality line will allow you to go with the smaller diameter 5/16... saving money on the line and running smoothly through the smaller size block. A standard Harken bullet block fastened with an eyestrap... through bolted with large washers would be perfect... again the smaller size reaps large savings. Finally, the smaller line size will allow you to splurge on a pair of small Harken or Ronstan cam cleats with fairleads (which keeps the line captive and in position). There you go... problem solved... and upgraded. If you go to a more complex system at a later date...you'll be able to re use the hardware..
 
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RoyS

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Jun 3, 2012
1,739
Hunter 33 Steamboat Wharf, Hull, MA
Rabe, I do not think I have them anymore. Removed that in 2003. Looking for something to do on your new boat? Carefully inspect the mast compression post in the bilge. Here is what mine looked like in 2002.
58CC8251-DFDC-4214-843C-39EAC7B3EEBD.jpeg
 

RoyS

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Jun 3, 2012
1,739
Hunter 33 Steamboat Wharf, Hull, MA
BTW, I just noticed, you can see my mainsail traveler and wooden base just behind the compression post image above.
 

Rabe

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May 15, 2019
78
Hunter 33 - Cherubini Port Clinton, OH
BTW, I just noticed, you can see my mainsail traveler and wooden base just behind the compression post image above.
Wow! I sure feel lucky. My post looks brand new comparatively. And it's a different design. Like a skinnier post with thick flanges on the ends.

I see your traveler too! Now you've done it! I'm going to really bombard you with questions.

I've been looking at Harken stuff the last few days.



Is that the 27mm or 32mm track?

It also looks like the High Beam (tall) rail, is it?

There's no curve to it is there?

With the thick teak and the high beam rail do you have any issues with it being so tall?
 
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May 17, 2004
2,099
Other Catalina 30 Tucson, AZ
[QUOTE="Rabe, post: 1710588, member: 144778"
I've been looking at Harken stuff the last few days.
[/QUOTE]

Joe's advise is quicker (and cheaper) but if you decide to replace check out Garhauer Marine
 
Jul 7, 2004
8,402
Hunter 30T Cheney, KS
My cabin mounted traveler uses cleats instead of pins. So do my jib tracks. So much easier to adjust
 
May 17, 2004
2,099
Other Catalina 30 Tucson, AZ
"people (and sailors) will do what's easy and not what's hard". The more difficult or cumbersome the sail trim control is the less likely a sailor is to use it. That is especially true with jib leads. The first thing I looked at when I stepped aboard a boat was the jib leads especially if it was a masthead boat - on a masthead boat the jib is the engine. If the leads looked like they were frozen in place then the setting was like the broken clock - it was right once during the day and at night for a given point of sail and wind condition and wrong for all others. The same went for the traveler and outhaul - if the outhaul was stuck or the traveler was a curved track (old C30's) or had pins and stuff that was my first clue as to why the sailor could not get 100% efficiency from his boat.
 

RoyS

.
Jun 3, 2012
1,739
Hunter 33 Steamboat Wharf, Hull, MA
Rabe, traveler height is not a real problem. We use that traveler on every tack, so completely necessary. The only time the extra height becomes an issue is when someone sits on either side of the cockpit with their back against the cabin. It can be uncomfortable then. We use a cushioned seat there if on a long cruise. Regarding Harkin size, I recall it was described as Mid sized in their catalog and it was the taller model due to the mid span. Not there now, so that is the best I can do for now.
 

Rabe

.
May 15, 2019
78
Hunter 33 - Cherubini Port Clinton, OH
Rabe, traveler height is not a real problem. We use that traveler on every tack, so completely necessary. The only time the extra height becomes an issue is when someone sits on either side of the cockpit with their back against the cabin. It can be uncomfortable then. We use a cushioned seat there if on a long cruise. Regarding Harkin size, I recall it was described as Mid sized in their catalog and it was the taller model due to the mid span. Not there now, so that is the best I can do for now.
Mid is the 27mm and the taller model is the high beam. Thank you!
 
Jun 5, 2010
1,107
Hunter 25 Burlington NJ
Agree with RoyS on this - upgrade that. The X-section Nicro-Fico track was state-of-the-art in 1979; but it always had the inherent problem of there being no way to adequately caulk the mounting screws against the deck - there's a void there (the lower triangle of the 'X'-shape). Short of filling the whole thing with 5200, this track is best suited only for pedestal-mounted installations (as we did on Cherubini 44s).

I installed an Ocean-series track from Lewmar but their end stops severely shortened the effective width of the track so I made my own using StarBoard bumper blocks and little double-stack cheek blocks from Racelite (the beautiful thing about having a small boat is that you get to use Racelite hardware!). This was not difficult at all - just takes a little creativity and a good understanding of the loads and forces that govern how you'll mount it. The adjustment purchase is 3:1 - not bad on a small boat on which you can just grab the sheetline tackle and pull the whole thing to windward in anything under about 20 knots.
 
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Jan 2, 2008
547
Hunter 33 (Cherubini design Forked River, Barnegat Bay, NJ
In my 1983 Hunter 33 I replaced the original cockpit mounted traveler with a Garhauer up above the companionway with all controls brought back behind the wheel. Worked great. Loved it. I still have the complete original in the shed. Came off in 1998? If it's of interest, I'm around.
 
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Feb 21, 2013
4,638
Hunter 46 Point Richmond, CA