Was coming back into Pittwater with a bit of a swell running which caused slight surfing whilst running before a breeze of around 15 knots. The main wuld power up after we lost the waves and depower while surfing resulting in horrible noisy shock loadings on the shackles connecting the mainsheet to the boom and traveller and presumably also shock loadings at the gooseneck.
Has anyone addressed this problem with an easy fix? I guess I could have altered course to make it more of a reach than a run but I was in a bit of a panic because one of my passengers was throwing up.
I was thinking about some way to affix one of those rubber mooring line shock absorbers (a whimpy one and probably a loose rope or wire safety) in line with the mainsheet just under the boom. Anyone done something like this?
Hiya JM,
That's almost as bad as being becalmed after a front has passed and the sea state is still all over the place. Just thinking out loud here, you could:
- Oversheet the main (as if you're beating) so the delta between depowering/powering isn't as much and just take the resultant hit in speed;
- Try and pin the boom with a preventer up to the bow and the vang; or
- slalom your way downwind, where you end up hot, staying fully powered up as the speed falls off (kinda needs preventer and oversheeting still).
Racing of course you're grinding/easing on every surf, but that gets old very quickly, even with spare hands.
When we broke the boom it took out the 3:1 mainsheet. It was still big seas and 25-30knots so the pit crew were grinding on every surf with a 1:1 mainsheet. Almost killed the poor sods and that was with 15 min rotations 
.
Sheet in!!
Only joking, not so easy when you are buy yourself.
We had Betty's strop until it wore out. It was literally a big rubber strop that went over the boom with an eye in each end. It eventually wore out and I searched high and low to find a new one. But when you start searching on Google and can't find it and start searching for Betty's double endend strop you stop pretty quickly.
What you want is a webbing or heavy duty cloth over the boom to disperse the load and not chaffe. Then some sort of bungee attached to it.
Apparently modern boats have a vang thing. Modern boat sailors always come on classics and go what the fark are you talking about. What are all these weird things and why don't you have a VANG.
Never compromise safety of the yacht or yourself because someone is throwing up( until day 3 then they might be dehydrated). Even if it is your wife. Because she is never coming back onboard any how.
Select to expand quotetarquin1 said..
Watch out for shock loading!!
Aw man, that's just a tease, can only see the top bit.
Select to expand quoteshaggybaxter said..tarquin1 said..
Watch out for shock loading!!
Aw man, that's just a tease, can only see the top bit.
Ouch
On a run I like to run a line from the boom fwd to a bow fitting it sort of works like a vang too & if the line is long enough it can be used like the main sheet when gybeing, gives no control over the gaff tho, thats when a gaff vang is needed as well
Only just watched it again. There is a longer vid that shows the boom slapping about and stopping just before the guys head 3 or 4 times before it breaks.
Watch out for snatch loading!
On a gaffer you don't won't any sort of vang or block and tackle pulling the boom down. It tightens the leech and pulls the gaff to windward. Not good. Just a preventer fwd. Talked a lot about gaff preventers but never had to use one.
Select to expand quotetarquin1 said..
On a gaffer you don't won't any sort of vang or block and tackle pulling the boom down. It tightens the leech and pulls the gaff to windward. Not good. Just a preventer fwd. Talked a lot about gaff preventers but never had to use one.
In a beam sea while running the gaff was thrashing around so much I had to gybe take the sea on the stern and beam reach a memorable sail, our objective wasn't reached but it did start me thinking of some sort of gaff restraint
Welcome to sailing on a gaffer!! You just can't do some stuff and have to go somewhere else or take longer to get where you are going. Or you will break the gaff or tear the sail from the leech because of shock loading as the gaff swings up in the air. Or break a spreader.
Select to expand quotetarquin1 said..
Sheet in!!
Only joking, not so easy when you are buy yourself.
We had Betty's strop until it wore out. It was literally a big rubber strop that went over the boom with an eye in each end. It eventually wore out and I searched high and low to find a new one. But when you start searching on Google and can't find it and start searching for Betty's double endend strop you stop pretty quickly.
Ah, Betty....
What about one of these? www.theboatwarehouse.com.au/anchors-chain-fenders-buoys-mooring/mooring-lines/forsheda-mooring-compensators/ .
Select to expand quotesydchris said..tarquin1 said..
Sheet in!!
Only joking, not so easy when you are buy yourself.
We had Betty's strop until it wore out. It was literally a big rubber strop that went over the boom with an eye in each end. It eventually wore out and I searched high and low to find a new one. But when you start searching on Google and can't find it and start searching for Betty's double endend strop you stop pretty quickly.
Ah, Betty....
What about one of these? www.theboatwarehouse.com.au/anchors-chain-fenders-buoys-mooring/mooring-lines/forsheda-mooring-compensators/ .
That's the sort of thing I was thinking of. Need a loose but strong safety at maximum extension in case it's snaps also some sort of snap shackle either end for quick attachment and removal. Anyway when I get around to trying something I'll post further pictures. Might be a while as I'm thinking of getting my rigging done.
Thank you everyone for your replies. I don't have a gaff rig but they are pretty topical at my club at the moment as we have just hosted the Couta nationals. 14 boats trucked up from Melbourne!
Jules, my go to in any kind of swell when running is to rig a preventer. That would take care of the flopping main to a good degree and it also guards against an accidental gybe. I had a situation where I was running on starboard tack without a preventer, I was really powered up and solo sailing. The boat rolled heavily to starboard on a wave causing the boom to flip to starboard and I accidentally gybed. It all happend in a second and there was nothing I could do. Luckily nothing broke, but it was very violent event and something could have.
BETTIS tong strap! NOT Betty's strop. I still don't think you will find one though.
I hate anything bungy or stretch related thingammy on any boat. The idea of connecting one to a boom or mainsheet makes my toes curl. Sorry, but If stretchy things were a good idea outside of anchors they would have permeated into our standing or running rigging gear sometime over the last 2000 odd years. Takes all of 5 mins and a snatch block to run a bow mounted preventer.
Just pin the boom with preventer and vang. That's triangulating it. That has to be better.
