My main halyard keeps jamming

StevenRolland

9th January 2004 at 1:46 PM

I’m having a problem with my main halyard. More often than not is jams solid when we lower the main, always in the same place with the shackel just above the spreaders. It seems pretty solid when it does jam (we first came across this when I was decending from the top of the mast and it took the weight of me bouncing up and down on it and still did not release).

The wire-rope join is slightly kinked where its gone over the wheel but not frayed.

Has anyone come across this before or suggest what may be the cause?

Any help would be much appreciated we’ve scratched our heads for quite some time over this.

Many Thanks

Steve

bigboystoys

9th January 2004 at 2:43 PM

First of all guys change the halyard from wire and rope to just rope (must racing sonatas have just rope )

also check the halyard whell at the top of the mast to make sure it spins freely we had the same problem few years back and found that ours was siezed solid,

but you do really need to get rid of wire and rope halyard and get all rope all racing boats have just rope and its must quicker to get the main down when the s**t hits the fan

StevenRolland

9th January 2004 at 4:08 PM

Do Sonatas have a bar in between the spreaders? Someone from the Sailing Anarchy forum has suggested that I may have worn a ‘jam cleat’ into something. That is now my favorite theory.

What rope do you use? Dynema or whatever the stuff is called. Our jib halyard needs replacing soon would you suggest the same for that?

martin hartley

12th January 2004 at 12:31 PM

6MM SPECTRA IS COMMON AMONG THE RACERS, NO NEED FOR ANY WIRE HALYARDS ANYWHERE.

Administrator

16th January 2004 at 9:11 PM

Take a look at the metal sheave (pulley) that the wire runs round at the top of the mast. The sheaves, the cages they are mounted in, and the spindles that they run on all wear so that a gap appears between the side of the sheave and it’s cage. The wire then jumps off the sheave, falls into the gap, tilts the sheave on its (worn) spindle and jams solid in the resulting wedge-shaped gap. Worn sheaves are also a great way of destroying new dyneema halyards. Buy a new fitting.

Jack

StevenRolland

19th January 2004 at 8:21 AM

The sheave seems okay. But if we buy a new halyard, we’ll change it out anyway.

When the shackle sticks, there is still quite a way to go before the wire/rope join gets to the sheave.

Thanks,

Steve