In Mast Furler & Outhaul from boom end to cockpit?

[Don Sloma]

The Selden in mast outhaul and furler on my 1993 Beneteau 445 work easily if I pull those lines directly out behind the car at the top of the boom and out of the back of the mast respectively. But I usually need some winching to set or furl with those same lines if I pull them from their aft led ends in the cockpit. All the blocks that lead them aft seem to turn freely when not under load. But both lines take a few 270 degree turns on their way aft. Has anyone replaced Beneteau's original blocks with spendy, new 'zero friction' ones? If so, did it make a material difference? Alternatively, has anyone re-rigged their outhaul and furling lines to come down into the cockpit directly from the back of the boom, so they can be operated by reaching up from the cockpit? Pros and cons appreciated...thanks.

[kas_1611]

Dan,

I've got a Selden In Mast furler on my Bavaria and in general don't have too many issues with it being difficult to fly or furl due to friction. Certainly not to the extent you seem to be anyway. Only time I sometimes struggle is to bring it out when it can be a bit of a heave.

Have you greased/lubed the furling mechanism recently? I try to do mine every year with WD40 or other such spray into the bearings on the upper furler and Teflon or similar grease on the lower furler (being more accessible) and the entire furling mechanism. I also lube the boom car and spray the sheave bearings every year. I did have to adjust the tension on the outhaul sheave a couple of years ago as it was not rotating freely which did help.

Sometimes the friction can be tricky to pin down and may be a multiple of factors, such as the 270º angles or a couple of slightly tight sheaves.

Another area to look at is the diameter of the lines and halyards. We are all guilty of wanting a line that we can grip or feel in hand but a 10mm line will give much less friction than 12mm. Something to look at when it comes time to re rig.

Hope that helps you free things up

Keiron

[Ivanvet]

Hi,
I had similar problems on our B473. I looked into the ends of the boom and I saw that where the outhaul comes out closer to the mast (red circle on the pic), and does a 90 degree turn towards the deck, instead of having a sheave for the outhaul line, this was missing, and the line was just riding over a metal pin. I have ZSpar rigging, so I ordered a replacement sheave from their catalog and that solved the problem.
I would check that all the sheaves in the boom are in place before changing the way it's rigged.

Good luck,

Ivan