We have a 1980 h33.the headsail is on a furler and I am looking to get it down off the furler? I believe I know the answer but just want some confirmation.also I will move the boat about 40 miles to the hard in the next couple of months.my problem is the port side upper shroud is broken at the turnbuckle so it's just dangling and the split back stay at the turn buckles are very rusted.don't know if the rigging will hold up for the journey.I don't trust the blocks to hold me up in a harness or I would have problem solved.any advice would help.
Lookin for advice
- Thread starter blunt
- Start date
might want to fix that problem now...if you don't and you loose a mast you will be very very sorry the cost of repair now is minimal compared to replacing the mast ...i know how expensive it can be to do this repair but you will break the bank if you loose the mast ....as stu jackson says ..."your boat your choice"
Your rig sounds pretty beat to even think of motoring very far, let alone 40 miles.
Not only that, he better have insurance in case the mast falls and damages other boats, personal property......or people!
Your rig sounds pretty beat to even think of motoring very far, let alone 40 miles.
That's what I had been thinking about the rigging,that it would not make it 40 miles.ok well I guess I will see about going up in a harness or look for a rigger.
You have had good advice above - rigging that is already deteriorated should be fixed and not piecemealed before there is a disaster.
Please don't be serious about climbing the mast with the rigging in the condition you describe.
Please don't be serious about climbing the mast with the rigging in the condition you describe.
I understand.will keep my feet on the dock.we are in a private marina with no way of getting a crane or cherry picker in.thus my quandry.
Not sure what you mean about getting the sail down. All decent furlers should allow for taking down and changing sails. If the halyard is parted, get a line through any part of the sail, lead it to a winch, and tug it firmly but patiently a little at a time. This jam will be your number-one project before rerigging the boat: get a good furler. If your furler relies on its own halyard, that's not the one to have.
Next question(s): how is the engine? And what kind of water are you traversing on the way?
I have a friend who motored his boat out of the marina down the River to his 'usual' slip, under power alone. I offered to go with him (he was going alone), looked over the boat and opted out. He had no sails on the boat. He had no anchors rigged. He had rope for several shrouds. In short, he had no alternative for if or when the engine failed, in a river with plenty of current, two bridges, few friendly shores, and few available docking places. I don't sail (or motor) with people like that.
I made him promise to e-mail me when he got in (which he did) so I didn't keep worrying about him.
If your engine is up to the task, consider dropping the rig, stowing the spar on deck, and motoring for it. But ONLY IF:
1. You are in good with TowBoatUS or SeaTow.
2. Your VHF works without the masthead antenna. Do not rely on only a mobile phone.
3. Your weather window is excellent.
4. Both bow anchors and one stern anchor are free and cleared for immediate deployment. If you must, lead one rode aft to the cockpit and cleat it with a sheet winch, to be released from there.
5. You make contact over the radio with every other boat you see, inform them of your destination and ETA, and offer assistance in return should they call you.
6. Your fuel tank is clean and full.
7. Everyone on board (do not do this solo) is well-fed, well-hydrated, well-clothed and secured to the boat, in PFDs.
8. All your fenders are on deck, secured and ready to be kicked down the hull (both sides).
9. Anything else that you can think of or that the other guys on here suggest.
Motoring any distance with the rig down is never a prospect to be taken lightly (as my friend seemed to do). Expect the engine to fail and have a plan for it. Anything else is foolhardy. 'Prudent pessimism is the mark of good yachtsmanship.' --me, all the time.
Your alternative is, since the rig has to come down anyway, to call a truck. In my area your boat would go 40 miles on land for about $400-500. In a very real sense that's a no-brainer (some insurance might even cover it).
Next question(s): how is the engine? And what kind of water are you traversing on the way?
I have a friend who motored his boat out of the marina down the River to his 'usual' slip, under power alone. I offered to go with him (he was going alone), looked over the boat and opted out. He had no sails on the boat. He had no anchors rigged. He had rope for several shrouds. In short, he had no alternative for if or when the engine failed, in a river with plenty of current, two bridges, few friendly shores, and few available docking places. I don't sail (or motor) with people like that.
I made him promise to e-mail me when he got in (which he did) so I didn't keep worrying about him.
If your engine is up to the task, consider dropping the rig, stowing the spar on deck, and motoring for it. But ONLY IF:
1. You are in good with TowBoatUS or SeaTow.
2. Your VHF works without the masthead antenna. Do not rely on only a mobile phone.
3. Your weather window is excellent.
4. Both bow anchors and one stern anchor are free and cleared for immediate deployment. If you must, lead one rode aft to the cockpit and cleat it with a sheet winch, to be released from there.
5. You make contact over the radio with every other boat you see, inform them of your destination and ETA, and offer assistance in return should they call you.
6. Your fuel tank is clean and full.
7. Everyone on board (do not do this solo) is well-fed, well-hydrated, well-clothed and secured to the boat, in PFDs.
8. All your fenders are on deck, secured and ready to be kicked down the hull (both sides).
9. Anything else that you can think of or that the other guys on here suggest.
Motoring any distance with the rig down is never a prospect to be taken lightly (as my friend seemed to do). Expect the engine to fail and have a plan for it. Anything else is foolhardy. 'Prudent pessimism is the mark of good yachtsmanship.' --me, all the time.
Your alternative is, since the rig has to come down anyway, to call a truck. In my area your boat would go 40 miles on land for about $400-500. In a very real sense that's a no-brainer (some insurance might even cover it).
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How many halyards do you have? Make sure you chain plates and halyards are good. Then run one halyard (with an extension) to the stern as a back-up backstay, and another to port to take the place of the port head stay. The lowers should hold the mast up with no load from your sails.
What do you think guys? Is that enough redundancy?
Back-up plan. Talk to a good rigger. He may have other ideas about securing your rig for the trip. There is little lateral stress hauling a person up the mast, most of your weight is in compression on the column of the mast if the boat is level at the dock. And the weight of a person is far less than the loads your sails will put on your rig.
Another idea is to pull your mast, and motor with the mast supported over the deck as we do in canals. If your marina doesn't have a mast crane, you could construct a timber tripod on your deck to do the job.
What do you think guys? Is that enough redundancy?
Back-up plan. Talk to a good rigger. He may have other ideas about securing your rig for the trip. There is little lateral stress hauling a person up the mast, most of your weight is in compression on the column of the mast if the boat is level at the dock. And the weight of a person is far less than the loads your sails will put on your rig.
Another idea is to pull your mast, and motor with the mast supported over the deck as we do in canals. If your marina doesn't have a mast crane, you could construct a timber tripod on your deck to do the job.
If you have a spare halyard, or even your main halyard, attach it to your port side rail and tension it. This will act as temporary shroud until it gets replaced. Had to do this a couple of years ago when my port upper shroud decided to part while under sail. Do not go up that mast. Concerning the furler. Can you just unroll the jib and drop it down? You can then use that halyard as another temporary shroud or backstay. If you can manage two or three spare halyards and get the mast fairly secured, you might make it to the the yard provided you are traveling in the calmest weather with a flat sea. Can you do this in the ICW? But, as others have said, your rig might be too far gone to attempt that. Tough to call without actually seeing the condition. You might also want to consider taking the boom off at this point. Good luck.
I concur with all of J. C.'s thoughts on motoring with the mast down. We did all of the above when we motored my friend's h30 across Lake Ontario from the Trent-Severn to the Erie a few summers ago. Of course we didn't see any other boats on our way across!
I have been considering trucking the boat since I am a truck driver by trade.just would have to find a trailer for the boat.I would be motoring across corpus christi bay and then into the icw.the bay does get choppy as we are having south winds today at 15-20 and 80 degree day.wish I was sailing today.
Didn't consider using spare halyards.my lower shrouds are in good shape.this is why I ask this question you all have given me some good ideas.instead of using the port rails how about using the toe rail?
Definitely use the toe rail. The long aluminum section, bolts every 6-8 inches, and deck hull overlap underneath make this the strongest part of your deck.
I have the main sail down.just need to get to headsail off the furler.but I am going to consult a rigger first.cool thanks gentleman this has been giving some sleepless nights.
David's ideas of using the halyards is a good idea, but only for motoring with the rig still up. Don't dare pull up sail with only rope for stays! The parted shroud will have to be compensated-for; greater than the concern for the top of the mast whipping about is that for the middle section of it pumping, especially under power. The lower shrouds are doing more work than the cap shrouds in this situation. And everything under power is yank-yank-yank, not easy steady pressure like under sail. So the likelihood for rigging (jury-rig) failure is higher, and the failure mode less easy to recover from.
Roland has a good point about removing the boom. Less weight and stuff to whip about = better in this case. Save it below for if you need to jury-rig for any sail up (re: David's point about seeing no one en route).
What David said about carting the mast on board on horses is what I meant about taking it with you. Any readers of Cruising Outpost will recall the story of Jessica and Kate doing the Great Loop last year. Like others they motored in part with the spar down, but they eventually sent it on ahead via truck to meet them in Mobile. But a sailboat with no mast in it is essentially a really inefficient motorboat; and I'd hate trusting in the engine alone (part of why I am a sailor and not a stinkpotter).
You might consider using an internal pole-lift as a port lower shroud. Also, as I originally thought, you could cable-clamp any short length of cable, or a fitting to which to attach rope, to the remnant of the parted shroud and belay it, perhaps farther forward or aft, to the toe rail. Don't merely lash it, for the rope will chafe through due to the sharp edges of the toerail holes. This is a good application for a long-D shackle, with a big pin diameter, such as 3/8", the better to alleviate movement and chipping of the toerail.
As a truck driver you may be able to strike a deal with someone having a hydraulic-lift trailer. These sell, used, for about $15,000 (new about $100,000, the more because, having one, you de facto are in the boat-moving business) but you may be able to lease one for a very short period, especially if you have the OO's insurance to cover it. Your BoatUS should take care of the boat itself and your liability for towing it.
At the risk of contracting analysis paralysis, check out all the options before sustaining regret.
'The guy who said, "Don't put all your eggs in one basket" was a fool. Put all your eggs in one basket-- and then, watch that basket!' --Mark Twain.
Roland has a good point about removing the boom. Less weight and stuff to whip about = better in this case. Save it below for if you need to jury-rig for any sail up (re: David's point about seeing no one en route).
What David said about carting the mast on board on horses is what I meant about taking it with you. Any readers of Cruising Outpost will recall the story of Jessica and Kate doing the Great Loop last year. Like others they motored in part with the spar down, but they eventually sent it on ahead via truck to meet them in Mobile. But a sailboat with no mast in it is essentially a really inefficient motorboat; and I'd hate trusting in the engine alone (part of why I am a sailor and not a stinkpotter).
You might consider using an internal pole-lift as a port lower shroud. Also, as I originally thought, you could cable-clamp any short length of cable, or a fitting to which to attach rope, to the remnant of the parted shroud and belay it, perhaps farther forward or aft, to the toe rail. Don't merely lash it, for the rope will chafe through due to the sharp edges of the toerail holes. This is a good application for a long-D shackle, with a big pin diameter, such as 3/8", the better to alleviate movement and chipping of the toerail.
As a truck driver you may be able to strike a deal with someone having a hydraulic-lift trailer. These sell, used, for about $15,000 (new about $100,000, the more because, having one, you de facto are in the boat-moving business) but you may be able to lease one for a very short period, especially if you have the OO's insurance to cover it. Your BoatUS should take care of the boat itself and your liability for towing it.
At the risk of contracting analysis paralysis, check out all the options before sustaining regret.
'The guy who said, "Don't put all your eggs in one basket" was a fool. Put all your eggs in one basket-- and then, watch that basket!' --Mark Twain.
Thanks jc.I have purchased new running rigging for the mainsail halyard and the jib.heading to the boat tomorrow to replace the old rigging.will be removing the boom.hopefully the north winds that blew today subside soon so I can remove the sail from the furler.will keep everyone up to date on this.
If you weren't all the way down in Texas I would want to come down and check it out for you. Please be careful with your preparations and your passagemaking. I'm looking forward to hearing of you replacing all the rigging and, even more importantly, inspecting and, if necessary, rebuilding the deck under your mast step. But I agree it all starts with your getting the boat safely to where you can work on it.