Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.
If you mean how much higher does the trailer tilt when the extension is on the ball, I'd have to measure it. Can't be more than six inches since that's about the vertical distance between the hitches when stowed.
Yes the trailer winch is used. The web on the winch with the hook on the end is fed up through the roller at the top of the pole and attached to the jib halyard as in the first photo.
The standard trailer for the 250 has the mast raising system as well. However, the strap from the winch is attached to a line and a web strap that wraps around the mast belos the spreaders. It's held in place with the jib halyard. I think this is better (but don't know) because the angle from the top of the "crane" makes the lifting easier. MWR, do you have "baby stays" to prevent lateral movement?
Nah, don't use them. I control the mast while the wife unit operates the winch. I suppose you could make the operation single handed with the use of the "baby stays".
Yesterday I raised the mast on my new 84 for the first time, using the "huntington rig" that the PO had installed by a professional rigger. It was an interesting change, as with my previous 85 I had built an A-frame and always had raised the mast from the stern. With the huntington rig, the starting position is resting on the bow. While I probably would have never paid to get it rigged (and I certainly wouldn't have attempted it myself), it sure is a nice setup! With the A-frame it was always a little sketchy when I did it myself, as I never felt I had full control of the lateral movement of the mast. With this setup, I didn't feel that same concern at all. The upper shrouds are on the same pivot plane as the mast base, so they are taut all the way up. The boom bridle keeps the boom from moving side-to-side, and by using the main sheet purchase instead of a winch, I could stand right with the mast the entire time it went up (the main sheet is very long with this arrangement). I raised my mast on my 85 once with the A-frame while on the water, and I decided not to do that again without help. With this setup, I would have no qualms about raising and lowering solo while on the water. It's incredibly stable. Also, it's fast! Since the boom is already attached, once the mast is up, the lower aft stays are pinned, and the backstay is attached, you're ready to go.
In retrospect, if I hadn't bought the boat this way, I'm still not sure I would ever spend the money to get it done, just because the A-frame works pretty darn well for being so cheap to build, and I probably could have gotten similar stability if I would have experimented more with "baby stays". However, now that I have it, I sure do like it!
Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ. The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.