Association Forum - Rope clutches

Assn Members Area · Join

Home.

Association Forum

Ships Store

Cruising

Racing

Technical Tips

Photo Gallery - New

Boat Search - Updated

Manuals & Brochures

Swap Meet

Links

Officer Flag Line & Staff

Bylaws & Constitution

Members Area

Join the Association

Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.

Association Forum

Username:	Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?

All Forums

Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

Catalina 250 Specific Forum

Rope clutches

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Author

Topic

jfesi
Navigator

Member Avatar

USA
101 Posts

Initially Posted - 06/05/2006 : 22:48:05

Our boat is a few hours away, and I'm trying to order a new double rope clutch for the boom vang. Does anyone know if the rope clutch that comes on the boat is for 5/16" or 1/2"?

Thanks for your help.

Joe F
Veliero
C250WK
#713

Edited by - on

mday
Navigator

Members Avatar

197 Posts

Response Posted - 06/06/2006 : 00:49:37

Joe,

If you look at the owners manual (there's an online copy on this web site), the boom vang line is 3/8", same as the main sheet. The halyards and reefing lines are 5/16". I would think that if you wanted to run the vang line back to the cockpit, you could replace it with a 5/16" line ..... but I'll have to defer to someone who's actually done this. I've found that you can open the hatch and adjust the vang from the steps fairly easily without having to run it back through deck fittings and a rope clutch, but I'm 6' tall with long arms. Do you REALLY think you'll be needing to adjust the vang often enough to have it run back to the cockpit??????

As I recall Pretty Penny II has a whole mess of lines running back to the cockpit. Is the vang one of them?

Max

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 06/06/2006 : 01:18:58

Try flipping the vang end for end.

Edited by - on

frog0911
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1349 Posts

Response Posted - 06/06/2006 : 06:00:44

PennyII has eight lines that terminate at the cockpit, the boom vang is not one of them. The only time the vang becomes a important control is in winds above 12 knots, which is also the point of putting in the first reef if more than two people are aboard. If I am single the reef goes in at 8 knots and the vang is pulled in hard. The key is to sail this boat flat. After lots of trial and error the light bulb came on. In this years MUG RACE, with just my Son as crew, when the winds came up we dropped the drifter and reefed the main for approximately the last 25 miles to the turn before the finish then pulled everything out for the run to the finish. The 250 functions best if you can keep the heel angle at 15 or below which means reef earlier rather than later.

Edited by - on

jfesi
Navigator

Members Avatar

USA
101 Posts

Response Posted - 06/06/2006 : 06:47:50

Thanks for the info. We have the boom vang flipped upside down now and it works great. We are putting on a rigid boom vang and that's why we're running the line aft. I think that I'm going to run the reef line aft on the starboard side also and get everything into the cockpit.

Edited by - on

AADIVER
Admiral

Members Avatar

USA
966 Posts

Response Posted - 06/06/2006 : 22:30:25

"PennyII has eight lines that terminate at the cockpit, the boom vang is not one of them."

Our PRETTY PENNY has six lines leading aft to the cockpit: jib furling line, boom vang line, and jib sheet to port, reef line, main halyard line, and jib sheet to starboard. What are your additional two, Frog? Lemme guess: drifter/spinniker lines?

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 06/07/2006 : 06:24:43

Unless the vang has changed on the 250, neither boom or mast location for the cleat block work great. What does work is to rework the cleating angle on the block or replace the block with one with an adjustable cleat.

The cleat can be relocated by removing it, grinding away a portion where it seats and drilling a new mounting hole to change the angle to one suitable for mounting the block at the mast for easy sheeting.

The vang is not just a flattening device during a breeze, it is always used when off wind though hardened less in lighter airs.

On the water ballast, I've found the boom to be sufficiently stiff to vang sheet, made possible by doubling the vang purchase to 8:1. As Frog says, the 250 is reefed early and it just doesn't have so much ballast that it loads the boom and vang too greatly, all making vang sheeting possible. This is why I've never felt I've needed a traveler but it does require doubling the vang purchase and reworking the block so that easy sheeting can be done.

With the cam angle modified, the sheet can be slapped easily loose from behind the wheel, adjusted and reset.

Here is a pic that outlines the change in the vang cleat... but I note that I went a little too far which requires lifting the line to chest level to cleat but allows very easy release with a slight slap of the line. If doing again, I'd alter the angle less, perhaps instead of grinding off just past the original mounting hole, grinding just to it.

Edited by - on

frog0911
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1349 Posts

Response Posted - 06/07/2006 : 08:34:22

I don't count the sheets as lines to the cockpit since they do not terminate at clutches or cleats. PennyII's lines are: portside, drifter tack, Jib furling, reefing, jib halyard and outhaul; starboard, topping lift, main haylard and drifter haylard. The vang line is dropped in the boat and the hatch is closed which brings it back to the cockpit as close as the others.

Edited by - frog0911 on 06/07/2006 08:43:07

Topic

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Jump To:

Association Forum

Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.