Rigging the forestay

I am in my second summer with my 18 and loving it! So this winter and spring I have been doing all I can to reduce and ease my rigging time. I found the old Hobie Mast Caddy on Ebay for $75 and cant wait for it to arrive.

I usually have someone help step the mast. I find that when attaching the clevis pin from the furler plate to the forestay I dont have enough hands to hold them together and thread the clevis thru the stay and the plate. I end up dropping the pin or the forestay slips out of my hand all the while my son is standing on the tramp holding the mast - getting frustrated.

Is there a better way?

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1984 Hobie 18

Usually shorter people tend to have trouble with this, especially when the boat is being rigged on the trailer, they have to reach over their head to hold up the furler box and get the forestay pin installed.

Definitely make sure you loosen the side shrouds enough so there is plenty of slack in the forestay. This makes it easier to get things aligned.

Another option is to leave the forestay pinned to the furler adjuster plate and do your connection/disconnection at the bridle wires/bow tangs. This is the way it's done on the H20. It's better on your bridle wires too because they don't take a nasty bend at the swage when the person pulling the pin on the forestay drops the furler box. I've gotten into the routine of completely removing my bridles/furler from the boat during disassembly.

sm

I do rig this on a trailer nevertheless I am 6'3" and do keep the shrouds on the top hole of the plate when I break the boat down. I'll try doing the bridles for a while. I changed from this because I figured the 1 pin on the forestay is faster than the two bridle pins. Didnt factor my clumsiness I suppose.

Man, I gotta go back to work been blowing too much time here today. Nice working out of the house though so I can do this.......

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1984 Hobie 18

Do you use a winch to raise the mast?

If so undo one trap line and use that for raising and leave it connected to the winch when the mast is up until you are pinned then you son doesn't have to hold and can put the pin in while hole the 2 pieces together.

If you don't use a winch then undo one trap line and tie a line on it with a good knot like bowline then tie off the other end to your trailer mast support. It can hold the mast up while you pin it again if your son can help here the faster.

Another option is to get a quickpin that you can slide in easily then use a regular clevis pin in one of the other holes. A lot guys don't trust the quickpins on mast rigging but if you are just using it to pin it then use another clevis pin as well your covered.

Add this little trick to what you are already doing ..... stand sideway between the hulls w/ the bridles passing over your shoulder and the furler just in front of you .... the bridle should be laying on your shoulder .... this will leave your two hands free .... one to deal w/ the forestay .... and the other to insert the clevis pin. Once "pinned" allow the mast to put tension on the forestay (you may need to remove the "stepping pin") ..... now you can install the clevis pin "ring".

For us "shorter" people you may need to stand on the trailer tongue .... (I'm 5' 8 1/2" tall ....) Usually I pick-up the bridle and place in over my shoulder as I'm stepping up onto the trailer tongue ..... if the boat is on the ground I may actually need to "stoop" a little ...

Count me as "one of those guys" that will not use a "quick pin" on standing rigging !!!!! My Jib Halyard and tiller stick .... yes ..... but never on "standing rigging".

I always leave my forestay/furler adjustment plate in the furler .... and disconnect the forestay from top hole of the Adjuster plate ... the clevis pin stays w/ the forestay ... and all my rigging is rolled up and placed inside a Murrays Large "Tramp Pack" I have tied between the straps semi-permentally when I trailer the boat between events .....

Now reverse this when you "de-rig" .... allowing the bridle to fall onto your shoulder ..... (Mr SRM has a very good observation about breaking strands in the bridle wires) ... then gently lay the bridles down .... For Trailering I either attach my jib sheets to the furler and tension them so the bridles/furler lie horizontally ..... or I tie a length of line to the furler and then tightly to the dolphin striker, again holding the bridles horizontally .....

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HarryMurphey
H-18 mag/ #9458
Fleet 54 Div 11

Thanks guys. I do use a wench to raise the mast. I will these ideas.

For trailering I attach the jib sheets to the furler and snug them them up. Then I wrap a small bungie around the furler and the rope that connects the front cross bar to the wench to keep if from bouncing too much.

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1984 Hobie 18

"... a wench ...."?????

".... bouncing to much ...."?????

I need to come sailing w/ you ......!!!!!!

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HarryMurphey
H-18 mag/ #9458
Fleet 54 Div 11

You bustin' my OO's ?

Yea I dont like the furler and bridles bouncing too much when I am trailering.

And I am a bit too heavy to be walking around on a trailered boat so I use a wench and crew to raise the mast.

BTW come on down the water is sort of warm now and its been blowin' 30+ here in Memphis today!

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1984 Hobie 18

This is fine to do on a 16, but I would never recommend that you tension the bridle wires in this way on an 18. The bow tangs on the 16 allow the bridle wire to align to the tension from the jib sheets. However, the 18 uses swaged fittings that will bind against the bow tang fitting when pulled at this angle and therefore won't allow the bridle wires to pull in a straight line - the bridles will take a bend where they exit the swage.

You have to be real careful with the angle you allow the bridle wires to take on the 18 or you can damage them. Tell the person who un-pins the forestay not to drop the furler (we usually hook a bungee down from the mast stand to the furler box prior to releasing the forestay pin so it doesn't drop), and don't use your jib blocks to pull the bridles back horizontal for trailering. Either tie the bridles up to the mast (and then connect your jib blocks to it), or take them off all together for trailering.

sm

Ive been doing this on my boat for 10 years and have never had a problem bending the bridals. I also bungee it up to the mast to keep it from bouncing.

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1992 Hobie Cat 18 #16943
Hobie Fleet 198, Rapid City, SD

If you run a line up to the mast, then it may put enough upward component to the bridle that it runs clean. But I would take a close look at the bridle wire as it exits the swage. We stopped pulling the bridles back with the jib sheets for trailering a long time ago because of the bend it puts in the wire.

sm

SM - I was thinking the same thing when Tom said he bungies to the mast. I did look at the bridal wires and I would say they curve as they go to the furler. Not really a bend at the exit point of the swage. Nevertheless when boucing down the road I can see there could be some torque on the swage and the tang.

I like leaving it hooked so I'll have to see about adjusting the angle and torque on the swage.

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1984 Hobie 18

If you like to leave the bridles attached to the boat for trailering, then simply take a line and tie the bridles up to the mast (as the mast sits in its cradles) so the furler is held UP. You can use your jib halyard tensioning line for this. Then connect the jib blocks to the forestay adjuster and pull back. This way the bridles will be held at roughly the same angle as when the boat is rigged.

sm

That pretty much how I do it, just with a bungee instead of the jib halyard (because I coil all the wires on the tramp).

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1992 Hobie Cat 18 #16943
Hobie Fleet 198, Rapid City, SD

Now I've never had any problems .... but you gentlemen do have a good point .... and what "SRM" proposes requires only a minor adjustment to my proceedures/system ....

I think I will use "bungie" to tie the bridles up to the mast when trailering ... as I have noticed that my trailer tongue does flex up and down quit a bit .... I don't want to risk damage to my mast .... (my trailer was origonally ordered/ built as a H16 trailer I suspect ... so I installed a longer tongue after I put a dent in my truck w/ the boat's bow when making a turn ....)

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HarryMurphey
H-18 mag/ #9458
Fleet 54 Div 11