Forestay popped out

I was sailing on Saturday in about 15 mph winds when I noticed that my forestay cable was not connected and that the mast was being held up entirely by the jib sail!!! I couldn't get the cable fastened while we were on the water so needless to say, we headed straight in (zig zagging up wind for an interminable ride, every minute expecting the jib to tear and the mast to come down). Ultimately, the horseshoe shaped fitting which fastens the sail and cable to the furler was bent, the screw was a bit bent, and it took quite a lot of time and some pliers to connect the forestay again.

Has this ever happened to any one and what causes this? Is there a way to secure the little screw so that it does not come out?

Also, now that the horshoe fitting is bent, can I still use it or should I replace the part?

Any advice would be appreciated.

We would need to see a picture to see if it needs to be replaced, if it is suspect at all i would replace it.

Remember you could use the main halyard tied off the front crossbar, this would act as a temp forstay in a time like this.

_________________
Brad Stephens
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The horseshoe shaped part is called a "bow shackle", and some manufacturers put a hole in the flat handle of the screw. If it's not something you want to release regularly (to lower the mast), after you have it screwed in, you can put a little zip-tie through the hole then around the side of the bow. That will prevent it from unscrewing on its own due to vibration, which does happen occasionally. When you do need to release it, just cut the zip-tie. I would recommend that for any of the shackles.

The new getaways have a yoke, a u shaped piece of stainless. From the bottom up you have lower forestay, yoke, swivel, shackle.

_________________
Brad Stephens
[email protected]
(866) 786-5266 <--- Advice HOTline
http://www.sunjammers.com
www.facebook.com/sunjammers

Thanks for the tips. Using the main halyard as a temporary stay is a good idea, and I wish I had that of that while on the water. For now, the forestay is secure but I think I am going to get a new shackle and new screw. There is no hole for a ziptie in the current screw.

Had a similar problem, once demasted while still on the beach (actually with me standing on the boat, so I could ease the mast down). Just figured it was a loose part that I hadn't been instructed to check, so tightened it up. (Only have had the boat for a few months now)

Then the same shackle (lower shackle, which holds the lower end of the jib and the forestay to the stay adjuster) gave way just after lowering the mast. On further inspection it appeared that the stay adjuster had bent out of shape a little and was a bit too wide for the shackle. As an addes precaution, I bought a new shackle with a hole in the pin so I can secure it even better.

On a related note, how does one adjust the forestay tension with the stay adjuster...it would appear that if you go beyond the 2nd hole, part of the stay adjuster would be pressing on the furler, also changing the angle of the forestay a bit. Is this OK?