Friday 15 April 2016

Putting it back together.......

Skipped out of work on time on Wednesday for a session putting "Sparrow" back together following the rain soaked debacle on Saturday...beautiful afternoon/early evening - the sun shone and it was good to be back on a floating boat...

First stop the furler foil support tangs which had been bent badly during the mast raising ...  this is the shot from below and it's quite clear no damage done - those plates are 2 or 3mm stainless, and the clevis is enormous...  all good and built like a brick outhouse (it did originally come off a 30 footer I believe)..


Next job to to tighten up the rigging which had been left taught (to hold mast) but not tight..  tightened everything up and did the "head at the bottom of the mast" trick to get a foreshortened view up the mast, which allowed me to straighten everything out..

After that the jib went on, sheets (must replace - they're not worn out but matt finish doesn't run smoothly when short tacking), and roller furling line.

Then the bit I was looking forward to - new sail time! Whacked on (err... "attached") the boom, took off the old sail, and started feeding in the new - did the foot first, and although I've now removed the block at the outhaul to save some distance, it's a perfect length, the following is tensioned and I still have a couple of inches spare....


...then it was time to raise it... 


...all the way to the top, and then tensioned at the bottom... if I was fussy I'd have like an extra couple of inches free, but I still have a little room for manoeuvre, and to all intents and purposes it looks like this sail was made for the boat..  this is also boom roller furling, so I can always take a roll in if I really need to


...delighted! I'm going to use it for the summer before I decide if I need to get someone to do any trimming...  put the battens in, and packed the sail away (new boom cover fastenings perfect, b.t.w)

The topping lift back to the cockpit modification was also perfect, and note the better run for the furling line to the cleat now on the outside of the hand rail..


...and by this time it was half seven and still sunny on the moorings...


..but time to head home for a beer.. 


4 comments:

  1. oh yeah, that sail looks smart. Does this mean you are no longer an imposter with the sail no? 😁

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  2. By a couple of inches to spare I guess you are talking about a slightly shorter luff? so you can get a bit more tension when it breezes up? If this is the case I guess you could get a cunningham eyelet put in to get that extra tension.

    She looks pretty, and shipshape moored and ready to go for the new season!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Alden - re. shorter luff, "yes".. cunningham eyelet, possibly.. the gooseneck fits to a fitting on the mast that can slide in the track that you can (just) see.. when tensioned the boom is at the bottom of that track... if I want to tension it more, then i'll just take a roll in (round the boom)... by the end of the season I'll have a better idea of what the sail will and won't do...

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