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Adding a topping lift, or the heck with sheaves

8K views 32 replies 11 participants last post by  blutoyz 
You can make a topping lift kit for well under $100. Use dyneema (Amsteel) instead of wire for the fixed portion of the topping lift, it is much lighter and will blow out of the way of the sail when sailing. Even the smallest dyneema will be plenty strong.

A basic topping lift on a 25' boat is about 30' of 7/64" dyneema ($10) with a brummel splice on each end, a Harken 2698 T18 block at the bottom splice ($17), and 10' of 1/4" double braid running from the end of the boom ($7), up to the block, and back to a cleat on the boom. If you don't already have a cheek block and cleat on the boom you'll need to add them, but you can still do the whole project for well under $100. It makes a much better topping lift then the kit from Sailcare.

This is what I mean by the dyneema topping lift flies out of the way of the sail:


That photo was taken in 6 or 7 knots of wind.
 
When you are at anchor you can use the main halyard to lift the boom out of the cockpit. You should move the main halyard there anyway so that it doesn't slap against the mast and keep your neighbors awake at night.
 
When I had a hank-on boat I would bring the jib and spin halyards to the bow pulpit, but anywhere away from the mast is good.

Almost every boat that I sail on uses the main halyard to support the boom when docked. It's the best way to lift the boom high off of the cockpit if you want to hang out in there. Most topping lifts (like the design that I described above) allow you to lift the boom up to a foot to support it while raising sail and to provide sail shape in extremely light air. They aren't meant to lift it farther.
 
Ok, this sounds easy (your plan for the topping lift and how to put it together) but I have a devil's advocate question; why not run it up the mast through a block and down to the top of the boom. This is how it is on the boats we have run in the past (newer/larger) so that it can act as an emergency halyard if needed. Why not just do this with dynema line. I am sure there is a good reason I just am new and not getting it.
On your boat there isn't space for a second sheave to run a second main halyard. Adding one is a lot more work.

You also need to splice something to the dyneema that will work in a cleat. Dyneema is extremely slippery and doesn't work in cleats, clutches, or knots without a cover.

EDIT: And one more question, if you are on a run downwind and want to adjust, isn't it a pain if the line is cleated on the boom vs in an organizer/clutch on the cabin top? Again, asking as I have never had one on my boat.
I only adjust the topping lift about one out of every ten sails on my boat. It normally stays adjusted just longer than the leech of my sail so that it flies out of the way when sailing, but keeps the boom off of the dodger when the sail is down. It's not worth the cost and expense to run it back to the cabin top in my opinion. In general I'm not a believer of running all lines aft.

It is easy enough to go forward to the boom if I need to adjust this line, since I'd only do so in light wind.
 
They are almost certainly stainless. You want new/sharp cobalt bits, low speed, cutting oil, and pressure so that you make progress on every blade rotation. If the bit just spins it will work harden the stainless and make it harder than a high speed steel bit.

I'd be drilling off the concave part of the pin. Once the head comes off (not much material to remove) you just use a pin drift to knock the pin out of the masthead.
 
That is why I recommended drilling out the "tail" (concave) part of the pin. I've removed rivets like that with a drill and it worked just fine. A grinder also works, you just need a steadier hand to avoid marking up any of the surrounding metal.
 
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