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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

Catalina 250 Specific Forum

250 Mainsail Halyard Tension

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Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1913 Posts

Initially Posted - 02/12/2007 : 18:32:30

When raising my mainsail, I have to take a couple raps around my cabin top winch and crank it up to get the luff tight enough to get the wrinkles out of the main. The track is clear and the slugs are fine, there are no restrictions.

I was wondering how tight others have to pull on the main halyard to get all the wrinkles out of their mainsails? Do you use just you arm strength or do you use the winch?

1997 250 TR WK (sold)
1984 O'Day 28 (sold)
1979 SISU 22
Bath, NC.

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Ben - FL
Admiral

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880 Posts

Response Posted - 02/12/2007 : 19:04:42

I like to put two wraps around the starboard winch and then haul the halyard by hand until it tightens and then a couple of cranks to top it off. I also like to put a little silicone spray on the slugs.

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Bubba
Admiral

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USA
542 Posts

Response Posted - 02/12/2007 : 19:14:25

Ditto

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Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 02/12/2007 : 19:28:34

Well... that makes me feel better. Thats what I have been doing as well. I've marked the halyard with a small piece of sail thread so when the thread meets the deck clutch I know its topped. It was the extra couple of cranks on the winch that had me worried, I was afraid I was putting to much tension on the Halyard.

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frog0911
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1349 Posts

Response Posted - 02/12/2007 : 20:38:44

Same here, but sometimes still can't get them out. Don't asked me why.

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Nautiduck
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3704 Posts

Response Posted - 02/12/2007 : 22:13:51

I'm new to the 250. Is there a cunningham to apply downward pressure? That would also tighten the sail. Does the 250 boom go lower?

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sterngucker
Navigator

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USA
169 Posts

Response Posted - 02/13/2007 : 07:23:32

The goose-neck is fixed to the mast on my 250. No adjustment available unless you rig a down-haul (cunningham?) on the bottom grommet at the tack. I have to tighten the halyard on the winch to get the luff smooth also.

Edited by - sterngucker on 02/13/2007 07:25:26

CaptRon400
1st Mate

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USA
90 Posts

Response Posted - 02/13/2007 : 08:24:03

I have absolutely no trouble raising the main from the cockpit without using the winch at all. but I have to admit that I've spent many years on larger boats where the forces are much, much greater. Assuming that none of us have any of the fancy tracks or cars on these boats, one trick that I've used before is a teflon based non-staining clear lubrication on the slugs / slides and tracks. If you can't find it, you can also use a tube of Starbrite white teflon snap and zipper lube. It's almost the same thing. Use a lubricated bolt rope attached to the halyard (and a down-haul) or the top 2 slides to lube and clean the track. You can obviously do it when the stick is down too. The clear teflon works better in this application than silicone.

If you can't get the wrinkles out, change the angle of the boom and try more (or less) halyard and outhaul to improve the shape. A cunningham could be usefull here too. If nothing helps it may be time for a new sail.

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CaptRon400
1st Mate

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USA
90 Posts

Response Posted - 02/14/2007 : 08:11:55

One other thought - the tension on the luff and halyard is not really a constant. It depends on the wind strength and some other factors. To get the proper sail shape, more wind usually mandates more tension. This applies to the mains outhaul and the head sail as well. The stock Catalina sails are not the best in the world, but you can usually get a decent shape out of them - at least until they stretch. Going too tight all of the time can shorten their usefull lives, or reduce performance if you don't care about its shape. A cunningham can get the wrinkles out of the bottom a lot better than grinding the halyard.

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AADIVER
Admiral

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USA
966 Posts

Response Posted - 02/14/2007 : 22:55:42

Ron,how, specifically, do you rig your Cunningham? And a query for all: why is the main halyard so "skimpy"? Could we reinstall a wider, "beefier" line, or are we stuck with factory installed?

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CaptRon400
1st Mate

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USA
90 Posts

Response Posted - 02/15/2007 : 08:20:09

A cunningham (invented by the race car driver / sailer Briggs Cunningham) is a line that pulls the lowest cringle (hole) on the sails luff down and forward towards the gooseneck. My Catalina supplied main has this cringle so I expect that most of them do. A tackle is normally used for additional leverage but probably isn't needed on a 25 footer. You would need 1 or 2 hooks and a way to tie it off - using a clutch or similar. If you want to get fancy, you can build one with a turning block with attached clutch and 2 hooks - one for the other end of the block and one for the end of the line. Add a 2nd block for more leverage.

The 250's halyard is about the right size for the boat. If you go much bigger it may not go thru the sheave at the top of the mast. That's another reason why one should not grind it for 10 minutes when raising the sail - the breaking strength of this line (or the bolt rope in the luff) is easily reachable using the winch.

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moserd
Navigator

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USA
149 Posts

Response Posted - 02/15/2007 : 18:59:57

Has anyone had any problems with the Spinlock cleat slipping? My boat is a 2005 WK and the other day in a 20 mph (35 Degrees :( ) breeze I had trouble getting the main tight enough, it simply slips about 3 inches after I get it tight.

Don

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frog0911
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1349 Posts

Response Posted - 02/16/2007 : 12:44:27

I have had the same problem since I put PennyII in the water in '04. I thought it was the clutch initially, but have since change the single clutches out for triples and it still does the same in winds above 15K. I have come to the conclusion, right or wrong, that the stock halyard is to soft allowing the line to crush easily and hence slip. I have been toying with the idea of going to 7/16 line with a harder cover to see if it stops.

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