Outhaul pictures

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Case
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Outhaul pictures

Post by Case »

I am getting a full new suit of sails this year. New mainsail and new genoa. The new mainsail will be loosefooted.

Thing is... I am not 100% certain on how to configure the outhaul for adjusting the mainsail. I am a bit fortunate that I can get new ends for my boom and do an internal outhaul if I want to. The parts for my boom is still available. However, I am not sure if I want to go that route - not sure if I like the idea of putting lines inside the boom which can be difficult to route at a times.

I would appreciate pictures on various outhauls you have set up on your boom. Either external or internal would be fine, I want to see them all!

- Case
sail_fix
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by sail_fix »

On a prior boat I had a cascading 4 to 1 external tackle on the outside and while it did its job very well, line was always hanging down and trying to snag people or other stuff unless adjusted precisely.
Present boat has a multi-part tackle inside the boom with the tail exiting up near the front and an external cleat there. Much much better.
I would prefer not to go back to having lines dangling from the outside of that spar again!
:)

LB
Quetzalsailor
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by Quetzalsailor »

I doubt I'll be able to find pictures of the rig I had on the Morgan 27. It had interior outhaul and jiffy reef, both rigged with gun tackles; additionally, it had outside mounted slab reefing. All lines finished outside on the bottom of the boom. A gun tackle is a line dead ended within the boom, runs aft and through a traveling block, then forward to the gooseneck to a fixed block, out and then aft through a rope clutch under the boom. The outhaul or jiffy reef line affixes to the traveling block. You can add more parts and mechanical advantage as necessary. The trick is in arranging the travel of the system in tandem with the travel of the other system so as to not foul each other. Nice and neat, all the mess is concealed within the boom.

I imagine your free-footed main is roller furling behind the mast? If so, you'll need much more travel than a tandem gun tackle will allow.
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earlylight
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by earlylight »

I have a loose footed main on Early Light with an internal outhaul. The end cap on the boom has a sheave mounted in it for the outhaul . There is an internal single block attached approx mid boom with a thru-bolt and there is a single block with a becket at the aft end that is a traveling block. The outhaul line is attached to the becket and then runs forward inside the boom to the fixed single block then turns aft inside the boom and around the sheave of the traveling block, From there it runs forward to an exit block located on the bottom of the boom approx 3 feet aft of the mast. After exiting the boom it goes to a cleat. The mounting strap on the traveling block has a short line that exits the end cap sheave on the boom and is attached to the clew with an appropriately sized shackle. This system gives a 2:1 purchase making it very easy to adjust with no lines hanging down to snag anything. The blocks inside the boom are ball bearing blocks to further reduce friction. I hope you find this helpful.
Dick Coerse
Early Light
Sabre 34 MK1
Solomons MD

http://earlylight160.net76.net
Quetzalsailor
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by Quetzalsailor »

Sounds like Dick and dad depended upon the duplicate doohickey.
Paulus
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by Paulus »

Googling "boom outhaul" in Google Pictures provides for a plethora of different set-ups...
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Chris Campbell
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by Chris Campbell »

Quetzalsailor wrote:Sounds like Dick and dad depended upon the duplicate doohickey.
That made me smile!
carterskemp
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by carterskemp »

couple of things to note. i too have a loose footed main(not roller furled), and it is great, gives a superb shape down low on the main with the use of a good outhaul setup. because all the pressure is now located at the clew, and the shape is more dependent on the outhaul, the outhaul setup is much more critical. i started with a 6 to 1 system, and it was not enough. it really needs to be enough purchase to be able to adjusted under load, and 6 to 1 was not enough. i have a triton, and i am going to go for a 12 to 1 system. bit of overkill, but i love micro-adjusting my sails under load. comes from years of racing, i guess. i am going to run it internally. my thinking on this is that with a double line reef setup, i want to keep the lines on the exterior of the boom to a minimum to prevent them from crossing up.

harken has a site for various different rigging setups:

http://www.harken.com/rigtips/Outhaul.php

helpful, albeit generic. also, it has all the parts listed, so even if you don't get harken, you can get an idea of the load ratings needed.

will post pictures when i get it set up. hopefully next weekend.

good luck,

carter
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earlylight
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Re: Outhaul pictures

Post by earlylight »

Another idea that you might consider is trying to find a used Harken Magic Box. This was a multi-part ball bearing block and tackle system housed in a square aluminum extrusion. They were used by many of us one design racers in the mid 70's for all kinds of adjustments from jib downhauls to cunninghams etc. Unfortunately Harken no longer offers them. They were available in 3 different lengths of around 8 in, 12 in and 18 in. and were about 2 inches square with various purchases ranging from around 6:1 to around 24:1. If you find one to fit your needs it could be mounted inside the boom. You might wish to check Ebay, Craigs List or some of the second hand chandlers such as Bacon's in Annapolis.
Dick Coerse
Early Light
Sabre 34 MK1
Solomons MD

http://earlylight160.net76.net
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