[C320-list] jam cleat replacement

[Irving Grunes]

Three turns of mainsheet on cabin top winch and the line pops out of the
jamcleat on 2001 #851
We usually have the main sheet on the winch anyhow
irv grunes

On Tue, Nov 29, 2011 at 1:19 PM, Robert E. Sloat <resloat at comcast.net>wrote:

> Rick-Sounds like a nightmare.  I have hull 894 (2002) with double sheeted
> mainsheet along with two secondary winches and two clam cleats for the
> mainsheets.  I can release the traveler from either side without loosening
> the mainsheet and do this a lot in big puffs.  This plus heading up would
> certainly have lessened tension on the mainsheet and allowed its release.
>  I have a hard time trying to see how the sheet could not be released
> during a half-hour thrill ride.  Stand close to the cleat and pull up.  If
> that doesn't work stand on the cockpit sheet and do the same, but that
> would make some uncomfortable.
>
> Bob Sloat
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Rick Sulewski" <rsulewski at bex.net>
> To: <C320-List at Catalina320.com>
> Sent: Monday, November 28, 2011 10:13 PM
> Subject: Re: [C320-list] jam cleat replacement
>
>
>  Fred,
>>
>> I second Warren's practice of using the cabin top winch to control the
>> mainsheet in higher winds, especially for a single line early 320 model. I
>> learned my lesson on Lake Erie that is notorious in the spring for rapidly
>> kicking up some challenging northeasterly wind and wave action along the
>> shallower region of the Western Basin.
>>
>> My jam cleat (clam cleat) learning experience came on my first higher wind
>> trip on our then, newly christened 320. Having locked the mainsheet in the
>> jam cleat well before the true wind rapidly went from the mid teens to
>> over
>> 32 knots, the higher wind speed made it impossible to clear the jam cleat
>> so
>> I could ease the traveler or shorten the mainsail with my traditional
>> boom &
>> single reef set.
>>
>> The wind was also shifting while I was taken off guard and off course.
>> Because I was unable to release the tension on the main, I got busy
>> furling
>> the headsail and punching course adjustments into the autopilot to remain
>> close hauled and nearer the edge of the wind. After I furled the headsail
>> and reduced hull speed and heel, I had no other option but to wait out the
>> blow.
>>
>> We plowed along while the first mate was hanging on with her white
>> knuckles
>> securely locked to the lee side companionway handle(s) I had installed
>> earlier in the day. As we proceeded close hauled, leaping up and then over
>> those sharp edged waves. By the end of the blow we were in 8 footers. The
>> bow was leaping out of the water before the hull crashed down the wave
>> picking up speed only to plow into the middle of the next wave and
>> resulting
>> in water coming over the topsides and pouring into the cockpit. The entire
>> thrill ride lasted for almost a half hour and several miles off course.
>> The
>> blow finally subsided to the lower 20s and the wind shifted again so I
>> could
>> begin a course heading to my destination island. When the wind subsided I
>> released the mainsheet from the jam cleat and began using the cabin winch
>> to
>> control the main (ever since).
>>
>> Had I been using the cabin winch all along instead of the jam cleat to
>> control the mainsheet on that particular day, I could have eased the main,
>> eased the traveler and eventually shorted the mainsail to find a more
>> tolerable wind/wave angle and hull speed to enjoy the high wind
>> experience.
>> Instead, I was thinking how much longer can we continue to remain off
>> course, rolling and pounding away while watching the standing rigging take
>> those high load shocks again and again each time we ran up, over, and down
>> into the waves..... all the while wondering if I should reach for the claw
>> hammer or a crow bar to release that mainsheet jam cleat.
>>
>> I learned to begin to reef much earlier and even added an additional set
>> of
>> reef points at the end of that first season. The other lesson I learned
>> from
>> that jam cleat experience is that my 320 can stand up to anything I am
>> ever
>> going to give it because the boat's limits are far more than conditions I
>> may ever sail in!
>>
>> Rick
>> My-Ria #277
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: c320-list-bounces at lists.**catalina320.com<c320-list-bounces at lists.catalina320.com>
>> [mailto:c320-list-bounces@**lists.catalina320.com<c320-list-bounces at lists.catalina320.com>]
>> On Behalf Of Fred LEcuyer
>> Sent: Monday, November 28, 2011 5:58 PM
>> To: Catalina320list Catalina320list
>> Subject: Re: [C320-list] jam cleat replacement
>>
>>
>> Thanks, Warren. I trust the jam cleat so little that I always use the
>> winch
>> (both in my case) to secure the mainsheet. The only time it comes off is
>> when we are furling or unfurling the main and need the winch.  It's when
>> the
>> wind starts to really rev up that I most need to rely on the jam cleat and
>> that's exactly when I don't trust it.
>>
>> Fred
>>
>>  From: wupdike at hotmail.com
>>> To: C320-List at Catalina320.com
>>> Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2011 17:52:03 -0500
>>> Subject: Re: [C320-list] jam cleat replacement
>>>
>>> Fred, someone else mentioned it, so I should emphasize that when winds
>>> are
>>> strong I use the cabin-top winch to manage the main sheet.  On these
>>> older
>>> hulls the main sheet is a single feed (stbd side) not a dual feed as on
>>> newer hulls.  Still, I find it no problem to use the cabin-top winch.
>>> Warren
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Fred LEcuyer [mailto:fred.lecuyer at live.com]
>>> Sent: Saturday, November 26, 2011 9:34 PM
>>> To: Catalina320list Catalina320list
>>> Subject: Re: [C320-list] jam cleat replacement
>>>
>>>
>>> Thanks, Warren.  Given all the comments, I'm wondering if my first step
>>> is
>>> to wash the mainsheet. It doesn't seem to hold well currently.
>>>
>>>  I've had it release while furling the main in heavy winds.... not a fun
>>> thing!
>>>
>>> Thanks for the advice!
>>>
>>> Fred
>>>
>>>
>>> > From: wupdike at hotmail.com
>>> > To: C320-List at Catalina320.com
>>> > Date: Fri, 25 Nov 2011 18:45:34 -0500
>>> > Subject: Re: [C320-list] jam cleat replacement
>>> >
>>> > Fred, my slip-mate is a Hunter 35.5 named "First Light."
>>> > My locking tab was broken years ago.  I thought about replacing it with
>>>
>> a
>>
>>> > clutch; but, decided to wait.  I no longer feel I need to replace it.
>>> It's
>>> > easy to use and easy to let go.  In 7 years, the number of time the
>>>
>> sheet
>>
>>> > has let go unexpectedly are few.  Just make sure you properly set the
>>> sheet
>>> > in it by pulling forward.  One benefit is that I can take the sheet aft
>>>
>> to
>>
>>> > the wheel and control a gybe single handedly.
>>> >
>>> > Warren & Pattie Updike
>>> > 1994 C320 #62 "Warr De Mar"
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > -----Original Message-----
>>> > From: Fred LEcuyer [mailto:fred.lecuyer at live.com]
>>> > Sent: Friday, November 25, 2011 10:48 AM
>>> > To: Catalina320list Catalina320list
>>> > Subject: [C320-list] jam cleat replacement
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > Has anybody replaced the jam cleats for the mainsheet?  The locking tab
>>> > on our 2003 First Light has broken off and I was never very happy about
>>> > secure the line was going through the jam cleat.
>>> >
>>> > Has anyone changed that to a rope clutch?  Thoughts about it?
>>> >
>>> > Fred
>>> >
>>> > First Light
>>> > #926
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>