My boat is ready to go except for a mosquito net over the hatch and a "topping lift" to hold the boom up while at anchor. I have a length of 1/4" nylon line tied to the end of the main boom, through a pully on the mast head down to a deck pully and back to a cam cleat. The weight on the line [two booms and a sail] is so heavy that the line will twing if you pluck it and it is very hard to lift the booms by pulling on the line. I am thinking of going to a single 5/16" line from the boom to the mast head and half way down the mast. At that point I will install a single pully with a becket and a double pully to finish the run to the deck, this should give me more purchase when I lift the booms. Any thoughts will be appreciated.
i don't have thoughts - but can commiserate - my topping lift is equally as taut when engaged and not all that easy to get to work unless i use one hand to lift the boom and then pull the rope. Let me know if you get more purchase that way - because I could use the advice too.
Glad you are working on the boat - hope you are feeling better.
a.
I use a different rig for my topping lift that uses far less line and is easily opperated from the cockpit.
I have a tang on the mast head to tie off the upper end of the topping lift, at the lower end of the line I have tied in a small block. The block is placed high enough to accomodate the max hieght I want to lift the boom to. Recap single line tied to mast head on upper, small block on the lower end.
On the side of the boom I have a small pad eye to tie a length of line, the line runs up to the block on the topping lift and back down to the opposite side of the boom (port and starboard). Were the line comes back to the boom I have a small cheek block but a pad eye would likley work on a Weekender. Just in front of the companion way I have mounted a cleat to tie the line off to. The line on the boom is basicly a bridle to adjust the hieght of the boom.
Hope that helps, clear as mud,
Jim
All this on one side of the sail Jim? I use a single run of 1/4" and my shoulder. I can use just the rope but it is quite a tug to raise the boom. I usually snug it up befor dumping the sails then shoulser it up a couple inches when rigging to remove the crutch when going out. I need to do something diffrent as I took it apart and now it fouls the peak halyards at the mast head. Where ever it goes it is in the way
The right hand picture is the one I like best. I am trying to order the line from a wholesale source I found. 1/4" Samson Trophy Braid line @ $.30 per foot the last time I bought It. Thanks
Ed, the image I have listed above has been updated to make it easier to see. The right hand drawing is the lift tackle in the slack position, used when sailing. The whip block is about 5' off the deck. The left side shows what this would look like, if you pulled it until the whip block and the turning block on the deck where about to touch (max travel). This results in the boom end rising up about 30", which may be enough for you. If you need more height the whip block has to be higher off the deck. If you want the boom end to rise 6', then the whip block must be at least 12' away from the turning block. If you want more height, maybe enough to stand the boom up against the mast, you'll have to move the attachment on the boom closer to the gooseneck.
This setup will cause the least amount of chaff and requires only three single blocks. It will half the power needed to move the line through the tackle. In other words, if it took 40 pounds of line tension to move the boom before, then a whip tackle will decrease this to just 20 pounds. Actually it may be in the area of 22 pounds as a result of friction in the tackle. Good blocks and lines that don't touch each other or anything else will help the friction issue.
You could replace the turning block on the deck with a becket single, attaching the tag end there, but your friction would go up and twisting will become more of an issue. I try to stand off the tag end of lines when I can for this reason, it keeps friction down and the blocks are less likely to twist the tackle in use.
Did you get Angie's old motor up and sputtering again?
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/srai...ality=Full
Hey Craig,
The main line will ride all on one side of the sail when the sail is up, but is long enough when slacked not to interfere with sail shape. The lower line is attached via the pad eye on one side and the cheek block and cleat on the other on the boom, which keeps the boom from twisting when the lift is in in use. My boom is solid yellow pine and built to stock dimensions making it quite heavy, the purchase in this set up makes it very easy to get that beast up out of the way.
Jim
Paul I can't get the links to work this morning, they might start later.
The problem with the motor was the operator :oops: . When I looked into the tank it looked like it still had about 1/4 tank of fuel but it did not. The filter sticks up a little trapping some gas. I did clean the tank out and put the left over fuel in the lawnmower so I can start with fresh fuel at Lake Nickajack.