[C320-list] Mainsail Hard to Raise/Lower

[Robert Seastream]

You're preaching to the choir, here.  If in mast furling ever fails,  
the best one can do would be to somehow secure the main to the mast as  
high up as one could reach, higher with a bosun chair once in calm  
waters.  My first choice is conventional flaking of the sail over the  
boom.  Second choice is in boom furling.  I bought my boat used; in  
mast furling was already installed.

Bob Seastream
Intuition # 906

On Oct 13, 2008, at 7:28 PM, Len wrote:

> My concerns over several potential problems inherent with the in-mast
> furling system led me to research the in-boom furling system.  When  
> I bought
> #1070 new in October 2005 I had Catalina change out the in-mast  
> furling
> system /mast to an in-boom furling system.  Boat was commissioned and
> sailing by mid-Jan '06.  Works like a charm, and you have a full  
> roach with
> normal battens.  If the in-boom furler were ever to jam (has never  
> occurred)
> you can always just lower the main.  I've never understood why more  
> owners
> do not opt for the in-boom system.
> Len Krane
> AQUA5   #1070
>
> On Mon, Oct 13, 2008 at 4:01 PM, Robert Seastream <
> robert.seastream at comcast.net> wrote:
>
>> David:
>>
>> Thanks for your input.  Now I know it's not just me or my  
>> imagination.  It
>> gives me fresh perspective, and a concrete point to proceed from.
>>
>> Bob
>>
>> On Oct 13, 2008, at 5:02 PM, Henderson, David wrote:
>>
>> This is a somewhat delayed response to Bob Seastream's post of a  
>> couple of
>>> weeks ago.  Bob, yes, I have had issues raising and lowering my in- 
>>> mast
>>> (Charleston Spar) furling main on my four year old 320 (#1049),  
>>> and I think
>>> I have discovered a potentially serious problem.  I would love to  
>>> know if
>>> others have encountered this issue.
>>>
>>> I noticed the problem for the first time during the 2007 season.   
>>> It was
>>> slightly worse this past spring when I raised the main, and now  
>>> just last
>>> week when I tried to take it down in preparation for haul-out, it  
>>> is worse
>>> still and I couldn't get the sail down.  It appeared that the head  
>>> of the
>>> sail and/or the swivel first stuck at the upper spreader.  I was  
>>> able to
>>> force it through.  But then it became really stuck at the lower  
>>> spreader.  I
>>> feared that the luff tape was cut or frayed and somehow hanging up  
>>> in the
>>> groove in the foil.  I also wondered if perhaps there was a joint  
>>> in the
>>> foil that it might be catching on.
>>>
>>> This past weekend my 25 year old daughter went aloft to take a  
>>> look (my
>>> days of going a loft are long over).  When she opened the shackle  
>>> and
>>> disconnected the sail from the swivel, the sail fell easily down  
>>> through the
>>> foil.  So it was now clear that the problem was not the luff tape  
>>> or the
>>> sail, but rather the swivel seemed to be the culprit.
>>>
>>> Upon closer inspection, it became clear that groove in the outer  
>>> part of
>>> the mast (that the sail passes through to wind onto the foil) was  
>>> slightly
>>> narrowed in the area of the spreader.  And in fact, the entire  
>>> mast cavity
>>> had narrowed and was pinching the swivel enough that it could not  
>>> slide up
>>> and down through it.  She then went up to the second spreader and  
>>> lo and
>>> behold, same problem, just slightly less severe.
>>>
>>> The broker who sold me the boat came by today for a look, and after
>>> attempting to raise and lower the swivel, he confirmed the  
>>> problem.  He even
>>> pointed out that the narrowing in the outer mast slot is readily  
>>> visible by
>>> line of sight as you look up the mast.  Our joint conclusion is  
>>> that the
>>> load carried by the spreaders is slowly but surely bending the  
>>> mast and
>>> narrowing the slot and cavity, and it is a progressive problem.   
>>> Not being
>>> able to raise or lower the main is the first level of concern, but  
>>> ultimate
>>> mast failure is obviously an even a greater concern.
>>>
>>> Though I am told that I am out of warranty, the broker immediately  
>>> offered
>>> to contact Charleston Spar and Catalina on my behalf.  Needless to  
>>> say, I
>>> anxiously await their response.  Meantine, I wanted to bring this  
>>> to the
>>> attention of anyone else with a similar vintage 320 that may be  
>>> experiencing
>>> similar mast issues.
>>>
>>> Dave Henderson
>>>
>>> Dottie B    #1049
>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
>>> Message: 4
>>>
>>> Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2008 20:16:39 -0400
>>>
>>> From: Robert Seastream <robert.seastream at comcast.net>
>>>
>>> Subject: [C320-list] Mainsail hard to raise
>>>
>>> To: C320-List at Catalina320.com
>>>
>>> Message-ID: <AADF86C2-2204-418F-BFC2-BF17EEE6486F at comcast.net>
>>>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed; delsp=yes
>>>
>>> All:
>>>
>>> Has anyone ever had issues raising their (in mast furling) mainsail
>>>
>>> past roughly the two thirds point, almost requiring winching to  
>>> raise
>>>
>>> it fully?
>>>
>>> We've had this issue since we bought the (used) boat.  I don't think
>>>
>>> there's any 'burrs' in the furler track; I'd expect rips in the luff
>>>
>>> if that were true.
>>>
>>> I'm wondering if the roller furler might have gotten bent,  
>>> although I
>>>
>>> can't imagine how.  By comparison, the roller furling jib goes up  
>>> its'
>>>
>>> own track smooth as silk.
>>>
>>> Another question is how does one access the furling mechanism for
>>>
>>> inspection/repair, once the mast is unstepped?  Perhaps that's a
>>>
>>> question for Charleston Spars.
>>>
>>> Regards,
>>>
>>> Bob Seastream
>>>
>>> Intuition # 906
>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>