I put it all together, More questions.... Hunter 170

[Shorefun]

So I did a fit up in my back yard. Kind of had to make some educated guesses and learn as I go.

Jib set up, what order is it done in and how tight should it be wound? So I put the line in the roller foiler base, but how tight does the sail have to be? Should I wind the rope 1 turn around before going through the hole? Is there a quick trick to getting the rope through the hole?

Did I do the clew line right? Does someone have picts of the boom setup to sail and setup on the reef?

Why is it they manufacturer does not seem to have a detailed setup of the lines and such?????? What about the boom do I just leave it down while setting up? What seems to work the best. Then there is the whole how do you fold the sail and so one. The simple stuff I have no clue, but I am trying to guess.

What is the best thing to clean up the mast? It is dirty. What do I do to lube the slot where the sail rides as it was kind of catching as it went up.

The main sheet line I have does not have a preformed eye on the end to attach to the pulley. Is there a preferred knot to use?

The bracket on the mast that holds the spreader bars has some loose rivets. The stainless also is slightly beat up. Easy for me to fix, but should I redo the rivets and make it tight or are they just normally a bit loose?

The pulley's at the top of the mast have some cracking and are chalky. Is this a problem or dont worry?

The rubbers on the top of the keel are going bad.
Is there a recommended bungie used to keep the keel out in case you go over? Am I supposed to have one?

Found a crack on the hull bottom in the middle of the transom. I will do a repair to it before it sees water. Should I flip the hull upside down so the epoxy stays in place? Or just tape over it?

Found some cracks along the area where the grey rub rail is. How hard is it to take the grey rub rail and how do I do it?

There are 2 pulleys on the front face of the mast near the top. What would they be for? I am pretty sure that one could have a non roller jib if you wanted, but what about the second one?

It people could post picts of how they run lines and such please do. I realize to some extent is it perference as to how you run them. Please let me know about this stuff.

For the various pins like those that hole the shroudlines and such. Where should they be done with cotter pins and where should I use those ring clips?

Thanks,

Kevin

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Is there any sailor you can call on to come over to advise. Have read the owner’s manual? If not look under boat info for hunter 170? Add
Advise

 

[Shorefun]

Had my neighbor come over. He has years of Hobie cats and larger mono hulls. But older rigs. He was not sure about the stuff on the side of the boom and how to rig the clew. I certainly have it set up well enough to go for a sail. I will figure out the reefing eventually too. The boat is inside and I am not in a rush.

My priority right at the moment is to get the proper glues and such and tidy up some cracks. I still do not have a tow vehicle, anyone know of nice under 100k Expedition EL from a non-salt area? Here in NJ they go nuts with the salt stuff.
I also plan on taking apart the trailer and address some looseness where the tongue bolts to the 2 side pieces. The square tubing is also bent on the wall there. The tongue tubing rotates too much for my liking. I also plan on addressing rusty springs that need a good greasing.

I have all the fancy tools to do car autobody work including a bunch of airtools. So I expect I will be able to zip through the crack stuff once I get the hang of it. The biggest question I would like answer is about the grey bumer the surround the top/bottom seam. How is it attached and how hard would it be to get off. There is one area I would really want to take it off to get in and do crack work.

 

[BobbyFunn]

Have a look at this thread

Hunter 170...Anything to beware of?

This shows the boom hardware that you appear to have. The pictures show some slight changes versus the manual. The manual doesn't show any reefing instructions. I had to figure it all out by googling and averaging a dozen or so images and watching youtube on how to reef.

* The pulleys on my 2004 (boom, top of mast) are chipped as well. I only use the one on the boom. I think the two on mast are for spinnaker and hank on jib.

* How tight is jib. If you sail under 10kt winds just tight enough to pin the jib. The shrouds can be flimsy. I use adjustable shroud adjusters so after I pin the jib i close the levers. When the levers are closed the shrouds have no slack and just a tad of tension.

* Jib furler should have 4mm control line (harken small boat furler #163). Put 3 turns on it before pinning jib. While jib is rolled up and pinned wrap jib sheets another 3-5 wraps before leading to jib sheet cams. Test unfurling and furling while still on trailer or at dock. You shouldn't have to unstring the furler ever. The furler stays with the boat. In other words, when removing the jib, don't take the furler off the boat. I take my jib off at every tear down. This means the furler is still attached at the bow and there is no line left on the drum. Just the knot at the end of the control line so it doesn't slide out. When I go at set up I uncam the furler line, put three turns on it, roll the jib up tight, then attach. I test by pulling jib sheets slowly (this winds up the drum), then pull furling control line to roll it back up.

* There is supposed to be a bungee cord attached to pad eye near mainsheet stand. Bungee goes from there to centerboard after you lower it. Old ones will snap if you try to raise the centerboard and forget the bungee.

* Mainsheet can be attached with buntline knot or bowline.

 

[BobbyFunn]

Be sure to get a drain plug! Attached is a suggested launch plan.

 

[JimInPB]

... I still do not have a tow vehicle, anyone know of nice under 100k Expedition EL from a non-salt area? Here in NJ they go nuts with the salt stuff...

The whole boat/trailer rig is less than 1,000 pounds. You don't need a Mack truck to pull it. Any mid size vehicle should do. I am considering getting a hitch put on my VW, so that I can tow my 170 with that.

 

[Shorefun]

Yes, I am aware that a small car will tow this rig no problem.
I was in the market for the Expedition before the 170 came along. I am very tall and my sons are going to be tall so leg and head room are an issue. I also play with other stuff like pinball machines and video games and that lets me move them. We also have relatives come visit so the 8 passenger seating would be nice. I had a E350 passenger van but it had the 7 seat set up and more then once I needed 8. Sold that a bit ago because it was rusty and wanted to off it before something big failed due to rust.
Putting a hitch on the wagon or my little sedan would cost around $500. It is like $300 for the hitch and $200 for the special inductive trailer light set up since the new cars you can not tap into the wires.
Not in a rush in any event.
If anyone in the southern NJ area has a particularly nice (not rusty) V8 used Expedition with under 100k and post 2007. I prefer one that is just the base XLT and EL (extended length) but I flexible if it is particularly nice. Oh I prefer the XLT as it has less extra options which the options are nice, but cost more to fix if they break when they get older. Low miles and not rusty I get interested pretty quick

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

A customer showed up in a new VW with hitch once for a 170. He pulled it off the lot and back over the N C mountains to his home.
Would not suggest using air tools. I suggest a Dremel with various speed options for better control dealing with a 3/16 plastic ACP cover

 

[Shorefun]

I did some experiments on a piece of 1/4" lexan I have. I have both a Dremel and a Fordham rotary tools. I put carbide cutters on each. The Dremel did fine, but was slow. The Fordham has much more power and with the flexible shaft it gives a lot more control. I can cut many times faster with the Fordham and keep the tip right where I want it and control the depth. The Dremel is light and wants to jump off track, it always has.
I was going to use a 90 degree die grinder with a sanding pad to relief the area on the couple of longer cracks as per the Hunter repair guide. I have a lot of experience doing detail work from making metal panels and welding them in place in the restoration of my 1931 Model A Cabriolet. I will also do some finish sanding with my low throw orbital air sander which is made for finish sanding. That along with the Fordham some of the really expensive tools I bought with some luck really really insanely cheap at a flea market or garage sale over the years.
Next project, fixing some bricks on the front porch. That is where the air chisel makes quick work in replacing 5 bricks.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Just be careful so you do not over heat the ACzp

 

[Shorefun]

The Fordham tool has more power so I can run the cutter at a slower speed. This is less heat and more cutting then with the Dremel which you end up running at a higher speed as the motor has less torque. The end result is less of the plastic that melts that you have to break off after.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

To each his own. I would be afraid of taking too much. However I am not familiar with Fordam so I rely on your good judgement