Preventing Chafe from topping lift

[Sparx]

What techniques work for minimizing chafe on the main sail by the topping lift? This is especially a trouble on those full reach, full batten sails.

I have tried running the topping lift just short of tight as well as full slack. Not terribly pleased with either.

[slug]

Sail with a reef in .....

[Pete7]

Move topping lift to mast once the main is hoisted perhaps.

Pete

[gonesail]

install a boomkicker vang. cut the cord.

[wguinon]

Fasten the middle of the lift to the backstay with a bungee cord

[billknny]

In the realm of slightly more helpful comments...

To some extent it is just the nature of the beast. The sail has to rub on the topping lift at least sometimes, but there are a few things that can help. I am sure others will have ideas too...

First, if you haven't yet done so, swap out the toping life for thin, uncovered spectra or dyneema. It is a lot slicker than wire or other matierials and is therefore way more gentle on your sails.

Both too loose, and too tight cause more problems... so what to do? Take a 3 foot length of bungee and seize it to the topping lift line with the ends about 5 feet apart on the line. It makes the slack adjustment of the topping lift a piece of cake. and keeps it from snagging on things--which some can if they get too loose.

See your sailmaker. they can beef up the tableing that covers the leech line. They have seen and understand the problem.

If you prefer, you can always go to a rigid vang that supports the boom and ditch the topping lift altogether...

[SVTatia]

Originally Posted by Sparx

What techniques work for minimizing chafe on the main sail by the topping lift? This is especially a trouble on those full reach, full batten sails.

I have tried running the topping lift just short of tight as well as full slack. Not terribly pleased with either.

Is it wire or rope? If its wire, replace with smaller diameter dynema.

[Snore]

Originally Posted by Sparx

What techniques work for minimizing chafe on the main sail by the topping lift? This is especially a trouble on those full reach, full batten sails.

I have tried running the topping lift just short of tight as well as full slack. Not terribly pleased with either.

Respectfully, you are dealing with the symptom and not the cause. No boat designer would establish connection points for a topping lift that would chafe the main. Does the topping lift connect to the very end of the boom?

[roverhi]

Originally Posted by Snore

Respectfully, you are dealing with the symptom and not the cause. No boat designer would establish connection points for a topping lift that would chafe the main. Does the topping lift connect to the very end of the boom?

Must be a lot of dumb boat designers out there!!! Every boat I've owned has the topping lift impacting the mainsail's leach in some position.

If you haven't already, switched out the topping lift to Dyneema/Spectra single braid. The line will either not chafe or chafe so little as to not be an issue. Be careful going too thin, an 1/8" or smaller line will sing in fairly light winds, BTDT.

If you are talking a square headed main, believe they use a flexible extension off the back of the mast head so the topping lift clears the sail when not under tension.

Add a rigid boom vang and do away with the topping lift altogether.

[kas_1611]

If you have a gas kicker then you can do away with the topping lift almost completely. I say almost as it's the only halyard I have that goes right to the top of the mast as I have in mast furling (no comments about that please).

As the gas kicker actually pushes the boom up and counteracts the downward pull of the mainsheet the topping lift becomes somewhat redundant and you can tie it down to the base of the mast, base of the shrouds or to the base of your rear stays if you want to get it away from the main.

[CFS Klopas]

My topping lift is polyester because I wanted some stretch. I wanted to be able to use the boom vang tackle without adjusting the topping lift. I can't quite articulate why, but low stretch on a topping lift doesn't seem like a good idea.

[TrentePieds]

We do not know what boat you sail, nor do we know if you have a real (running) topping lift or a "faux" (standing) topping lift, though if you can slack it, I assume it's a running lift. Depending on a number of factors, including the size of your boat and the amount of money you wish to spend, you could contemplate going back to the days of iron men and wooden ships.

The TL can be rove through a thimble on the end of a light "in haul" line leading from the boom end to the goose neck. As you start the TP after hoisting sail, you use the inhaul to haul in the TP so it's bight comes to the gooseneck where it's secured. The standing part of the TP will then be coming down along the mast and along the boom. Thus no chafe of the leech of the sail possible.

On sails with a substantial roach I believe that is the best way. A TP never takes much of a load, so light line is what's called for. Wire should never be used.

TrentePieds

[Sparx]

Thanks for the thoughts.

The boom sweeps closely above the coach roof on my cat, leaving not much room here for a boom kicker. There are also no backstays to bungy to either. But these were fine responses to the original post.

I had thought about swapping the double braid for Dyneema , and may go that way if no better idea occurs to me. I would splice the Dyneema into the double braid, using the double braid in the clutch to keep the ability to easily adjust.

TrentePieds, your inhaul idea will get some thought. I like clearing the topping lift out of the way. But of course the downside is that leaves on more adjustment that must be remembered and completed before furling the main.

[George DuBose]

A Englishman showed me the easiest way to stow the backstay.

The aft end of the topping lift is fixed to the aft end of the boom. Then the topping lift runs up to the mast and then down the inside of my mast, exiting by the forward end of the boom.

When I raise the mainsail, the topping lift stays fixed to the aft end of the boom, but I grab the bight of the topping lift with my hand or a boat hook, leaving the aft end of the topping lift connected to the aft end of the boom. I then lead the bight to the reefing hook at the forward end of the boom and pull the bitter end of the topping lift tight and fix it.

When lowering the mainsail, I simply go to the mast, release the bight of the topping lift from the reefing hook and haul tight on the bitter end before cleating it off.

This way the topping lift doesn't touch the mainsail at all. I don't have to lean out from the boat trying to unhook the aft end of the topping lift. I have yet to see a simpler and more effective way of dealing with the topping lift. No unhooking, no bungee cords.

Just a long enough line.

[Sparx]

Originally Posted by George DuBose

A Englishman showed me the easiest way to stow the backstay.

The aft end of the topping lift is fixed to the aft end of the boom. Then the topping lift runs up to the mast and then down the inside of my mast, exiting by the forward end of the boom.

When I raise the mainsail, the topping lift stays fixed to the aft end of the boom, but I grab the bight of the topping lift with my hand or a boat hook, leaving the aft end of the topping lift connected to the aft end of the boom. I then lead the bight to the reefing hook at the forward end of the boom and pull the bitter end of the topping lift tight and fix it.

When lowering the mainsail, I simply go to the mast, release the bight of the topping lift from the reefing hook and haul tight on the bitter end before cleating it off.

This way the topping lift doesn't touch the mainsail at all. I don't have to lean out from the boat trying to unhook the aft end of the topping lift. I have yet to see a simpler and more effective way of dealing with the topping lift. No unhooking, no bungee cords.

Just a long enough line.

... a very simple and elegant approach.

I am just wondering why I did not think of this myself...