Retractable keel HUMMMMM

[Doug Wickham]

I recently purchased a 1971 Catalina 22 that has always been a freshwater sailor. On our first (and so far only) go out, I became aware of a continual "humm" that seems to emanate from the retractable keel. There is a handcrank located just inside the below deck that I fiddled with but could not get the noise to go away. Any ideas?

 

[Art]

Hummm is good

This is probubly the most asked question on this forum. Here is the short answer. THe humm you hear is the water moving across the keel cable as you sail. It is normal. Some people like the hummm because it gives you a goos sense of how fast you are going. I don't like the hummm. I have a GPS and know how fast I am going and the hummm keeps my 2 year old awake when its nap time. You can get rid of the hummm by letting the keel all the way down and then continuing to turn the handle another half turn. This will put a little slack in the cable and it will not hummm when not under tension.Good luck hummmming alongArt <)))><