swing keel

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alan

i am a new owner of a 25 catalina with a swing keel. on certain sails i hear the keel banging. i had it lowered to about 4 feet of draft. is this normal.. also when she is sailing well i get a vibration which i believe is from the keel cable that hums thru the boat.. is this also normal... thanks alan
 
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Mike

lower it al the way

I have a C22. When the keel is not lowered, the top portion does not rise up into the keel trunk. The keel has a wee bit of sideways motion. When the keel is lowered fully, the top is keel has less room to move sideways. Catalina Direct sells pads to epoxy onto the top part of the keel so that it doesn't clank like yours does, except I think yours will quiet down if you lower the keel fully. Also, the hum will completely go away if you lower the keel fully, and then go a few more turns to slack the cable. Imagine the cable being a guitar string. It won't play if it's slack, but make a lot of noise if it's taut. How much tautness do you think a 1600 lb. keel puts on a 1/4 inch cable? Not to mention strain!
 
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alans

keel vibration

thanks for advice mike. ill try on next sail. is the banging more a nuisance then damaging. when i loosen cable a couple of turns will the slack in cable be of any concern? thanks alan
 
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