Mast Raising trick

[beene]

For years I have been looking for a good way to have the right rig tension with just enough mast rake and still be able to put the forestay pin in with ease

Looked at all kinds of options including the johnson quick release adjustable snap down lever (which requires a new shorter forestay)

What I now use is my old main sheet assembly with 6-1 or 8-1 purchase

I attach one end to the bow and the other to the head sail halyard.

Secure the halyrad, then pull on the old mainsheet line

I can easily pull till the forestay pin lines up without a fuss

The mast raising system pulls far to low on the mast.

Cranking down on it does little for the forestay as that is coming from much higher up the mast

Using my method pulls down on the mast at exactly the same location as the forestay

So, if anyone has a spare mainsheet assembly, or can disconnect theirs from the boom for ease of pinning the forestay, I highly recommend it

Works like a charm

G

[Tomfoolery]

The mast raising system pulls far to low on the mast.

<snip>

Using my method pulls down on the mast at exactly the same location as the forestay

<snip>

Works like a charm

The old, out-of-favor style MRS does exactly that, since it uses the jib or spinnaker halyard.

And yes, it too works like a charm. No Johnson levers, no loosening anything, other than the backstay (which you don't even have), but I use a 5:1 system with ball bearing blocks, since I had them laying around already, and they were too big for any other use on a Mac.

[Azzarac]

Gotta agree with Tom. The MRS works fine even though I did install a johnson lever on Chameleon because I was finding it difficult to attach the forestay. It turns out in my case the original 52' line supplied with the gin pole is actually a few feet short. I replaced it with 65' of halyard line which allowed me to raise the gin pole a few inches closer to the mast when raising and that made all the difference. Pinning is easy now.

[paul I]

I still use the Mast raising system as well. In my system I use the OEM main sheet blocks with the integrated cam cleat (I replaced them with a new Lewmar set a few years ago). I considered changing to the newer version MRS, but I really don't see much of an advantage in doing so, and this post highlights a disadvantage, not to mention the added cost (+$200 at BWY). The biggest advantage I can see for the system is it gets people out of the cockpit and out of harms way while raising the mast, but so does my system since I stand on the bow or on the dock to use it. Its probably faster than using the winch system once it is attached, I assume the effort is less with the MRS, but I cant imagine the difference being truly significant since it pulls right up (no winch needed). What am I missing? Is there any other advantage to switching to the system? If I could leave the MRS in place permanently and raise/lower easily for bridge passage, maybe... but I don't do that very often (in fact I never have), and it would tend to further complicate getting the mainsail cover on and off, and I could do that with the system anyway. I guess I just don't see the advantage. What is the advantage for those who prefer the system?

[reastmure]

For years I have been looking for a good way to have the right rig tension with just enough mast rake and still be able to put the forestay pin in with ease

Looked at all kinds of options including the johnson quick release adjustable snap down lever (which requires a new shorter forestay)

What I now use is my old main sheet assembly with 6-1 or 8-1 purchase

I attach one end to the bow and the other to the head sail halyard.

Secure the halyrad, then pull on the old mainsheet line

I can easily pull till the forestay pin lines up without a fuss

The mast raising system pulls far to low on the mast.

Cranking down on it does little for the forestay as that is coming from much higher up the mast

Using my method pulls down on the mast at exactly the same location as the forestay

So, if anyone has a spare mainsheet assembly, or can disconnect theirs from the boom for ease of pinning the forestay, I highly recommend it

Works like a charm

G

This is a great idea. Are you confident the head sail top pulley can handle the loading like that? I have been cranking on the mast raiser system as much as I dare and still always a bit of a struggle to get the pin in. I was wondering what to do with the old main sheet assembly too as I upgraded this year. Thanks for sharing!

[innervations]

Really good tip. I was considering the Johnson lever but did not want to take on moving the forestay mast hound up the mast. I have enough boat jobs on my list

Related question as I raise and lower the mast often when on the water to clear bridges. Where can you purchase spare pins as I am sure i am going to drop my one and only very soon?

[Tomfoolery]

Related question as I raise and lower the mast often when on the water to clear bridges. Where can you purchase spare pins as I am sure i am going to drop my one and only very soon?

BWY has them. They have a giant head, and they're overly long, though that makes no functional difference.

[SENCMac26x]

I have the front halyard attached to the gooseneck (the metal harness ring) so the MRS pulls both the center and top. It's actually not too bad to put the pin in, though I do have a Johnson lever tool to get that last bit of tension.

[Mac26Mpaul]

Any decent chandlers like Whitworths or Bias has em. The ones at Whitworths are a little longer but that is better in my opinion. Or the WA Mac dealer will have em if you are near him.

[bartmac]

One thing I have done ...after losing some pins!! is to make a small cord which is attached to the other half of what ever it belongs....I used the string used by carpenters for string line....reasonably strong and resilient.I found not only do you lose things on the water but also the constant shaking on our wonderfully smooth roads will shake anything apart.

[Catigale]

Securing for trailering and for sailing are two distinct, different procedures. The spectrum of shock and vibration from trailering is huge compared to sailing, as anyone who trailers a lot knows. You try to double secure everything, have redundancy, and it still pays to inspect hourly.

I'm still smarting from my rare trailer mishap of lose wheel, but two events in 12 years of Mac trailering isn't too bad

[Dirko]

I ran across another quick trick for pinning the forestay if you have a roller furler. Tie a bowline onto one end of about a 3-4' line, and tie the other end of the line around the furler drum. Straddle the foresail with the end of the line over the bow and use one of your feet in the loop to push the furler down, while still having both hands available to pin the forestay.

I also ended up backing both my inner and outer shrouds off by one hole as my mast wasn't rotating. Might have to look into BWY's mast bearing assembly. I believe I'm left with about 260 lbs tension on the outers and 200lbs on the inners if each notch changes the tension by about 40 lbs (thought I read that somewhere). With this change I'm able to pull the forestay into place and pin it without too much trouble. I haven't noticed a big performance difference on a close reach, but haven't had much time to get a good feel for what the tension change has done.

Fair winds

[mastreb]

Dirko's trick can be done with a dock line as well, which is usually right there, or the roller furling line itself.

[DaveC426913]

I ran across another quick trick for pinning the forestay if you have a roller furler. Tie a bowline onto one end of about a 3-4' line, and tie the other end of the line around the furler drum. Straddle the foresail with the end of the line over the bow and use one of your feet in the loop to push the furler down, while still having both hands available to pin the forestay.

This spring I finally had some luck with pinning my forestay by using a ratchet strap from the drum, over the bow and down to the towing D ring.
Keeping the line on the prow was the most complex part of the setup.

I'm confused about your method.
You are straddling the sail? So you're behind the bow, facing forward, over the forestay?
How do you use your foot? esp. if the loop is out of sight over the bow?

No, you must be off the boat, forward of the bow, facing sternward.
Then you can step in the loop and your weight will pull the forestay into place. Yes?

Still, my biggest difficulty is getting the extension over the bow to stay put, rather than slipping off to port or stb.

[kevinnem]

ug.. the forum just ate my post.


recap . IO hate raising the mast, we use 26x and 26x mast raising system. I may be doing something very wrong, but I kill myself getting the mast up .. like 2 hours of mast raising and then 3 hour rest, if I don't collapse in the heat first (seriously, not exaggerating here, I am often worry IO push so hard I will fall of the trailer/boat).

we need 4 people usually to raise the mast, .. 2 girls in teh cockpit, me up deck, buddy with the pin. and even with INSANE tension on the MRS the fuller can barely be put in.

the mast is bent like a bananna toward the back when we are done. I don't like it at all, I hate it so much . it gets in the way of the joy we should have.

We are at the point where the women just will not want to go anywhere with teh boat, because only of the mast.

is my rake to far back .. should I loosen the sides. (top or bottom). I don't know how to set up the standing rigging, but my world is not anything like what you guys are talking about now .. my world is horrible crappy painful hours of getting the mast up.

Kevin.