[C320-list] raising a bosun's chair

[Quentin Murphy]

Jeff:

That's how I have done it too and it's offers total redundancy and is
simple.  It works great with a bunch of guys aboard at the dock.  I like the
idea of using the power winch (windlass) if I'm out on the boat with my
first mate and something happens then (hasn't happened yet), then she would
be able to hoist me up the mast with the windless without me having to
practically climb up to take the load off the winch she is trying to grind.
I just want to make sure this "power winch" solution is also a safe
solution.

Quentin
Celtic Knot #667

-----Original Message-----
From: c320-list-bounces at catalina320.com
[mailto:c320-list-bounces at catalina320.com]On Behalf Of Jeffrey Hare
Sent: Wednesday, August 23, 2006 9:34 AM
To: 'C320-List'
Subject: Re: [C320-list] raising a bosun's chair


Koen,

   For what it's worth (at this point):

1) We use the bosuns chair clipped to the main halyard as the primary lift.

2) As a secondary, the person wears a harness clipped to the spinnaker
halyard for the safety.


Since the main halyard goes to the starboard side cabin top winch, and the
spin halyard goes to the port cabin top winch, the process is simple and
safe.  The person doing the work down below can do without moving far.


As Chris Holt Mentioned:
========================

Going UP: Crank up about 5' using main halyard,  pull up slack on spin
halyard.  Repeat until you're where you need to be.

To come down, release the spin halyard and the person pulls down ~5 or 6
feet of it and reclamp stopper (or put 4 wraps on the drum and secure
through the self-tailer.)

Then ease the person down by tailing the main halyard on the mainsheet
winch.


To make the process easier:
===========================

1) We always send the person up the mast with an FRS radio (on an attached
lanyard) so that we can communicate without shouting.

2) We nearly always have tools going up tied on lanyards and attached to the
bosun's chair.

3) We nearly always have a spare line tied to the person going up so that
they can drop it down and pull up other tools/parts as needed.


My personal *Opinions* on other methods:
========================================
The process I use is the one that ASA teaches.  (Except they teach using one
person on the main and one on the safety line.)  Mast gadgets like the
ladder steps, self-climbing doohickies, etc, are still probably safer than
the winch approach, and some are clearly easier than others.

While an Ascending knot is not a bad idea (if the person going up the mast
is an experienced climber).  Knot that it may not always be as easy to use
on a boat where the mast may be causing you to swing around.  Mountains
don't try to swing you around like a pitching mast does. :) I frequently
have to hang on with my hands and legs to keep me positioned where I need to
be while going up and down, and to have to use two hands to run the ascender
is a pair of hands I don't always have conveniently available.  I'm not sure
how good an ascender knot is for a safety line though... (My brother is, and
he didn't suggest it for what that's worth last time I went up the mast).

While the windlass might be easier from a muscle standpoint, it's not safe
enough for me or any of my crew with no sheet stoppers or convenient safety
line management right there at the windlass.  People clearly have success
with this approach, but it's not for me.   It's your life, live it however
you dare.. :)

-Jeff H.

-----Original Message-----
From: Koen Bennebroek [mailto:vergaar2004-catalina at yahoo.com]
Sent: Monday, August 21, 2006 3:17 PM
To: C320-List
Subject: [C320-list] raising a bosun's chair

I finally got a bulb for our deck light half-way up the mast. Now I just
need to get it in. WM had a pocket bosun's chair on sale, so I ordered it.
Now the question becomes, how to get it up there? We have a spinaker halyard
that we can backup with the main halyard for safety (or vice-versa). Can we
use the anchor windlass for this? Or are there other preferred methods, like
routing it over the 2 jib winches? Is using 2 halyards enough safety or are
there other safety precautions to think of?

Any advice is highly appreciated!

Thanks, Koen
(BigCat, #224, 1995)