[Rhodes22-list] Checklist

[William P. Barry, III]

A few suggestions... Put the hoist and connect the shrouds before applying
extenders. Why? Because if the extenders are on first, the only point
holding the mast forward is the forstay which leaves more room for error and
possibly missing a step. I like to make the hoist attachment one of the
first things i do so that i know the mast will not move backward until i
allow it to do so.  I'm sure you meant this but didn't say it-after
detaching the poptop slide...make sure it is in the UP position.
----- Original Message -----
From: "David Keyes" <dkeyes at houston.rr.com>
To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
Sent: Friday, April 16, 2004 11:28 AM
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Checklist


> Bill and Slim,
>
> I will put together my checklist in several days when I get back from a
> trip.  It is a composite of Stan's booklet of instructions for the
> mast-hoist system that lowers the mast towards the stern, plus some
> additional email instructions and recommendations from Stan, plus a few
> things from my experience lowering and raising the mast twice on
Wednesday.
> The first time, I carefully followed all instructions, and everything
worked
> fine--although there were a few things I would like to improve on next
time.
> The second time I did things from memory, when, as Bill suggested, most of
> the procedures are done when tired or rushed, and there was minor damage
as
> I described last night from a few forgotten details.
>
> I like Bill and Slim's recommendation that everyone have a list of
details,
> sequence and safety items.  I proceeded the first time from Stan's booklet
> and several emails, photos, and prior list postings, most of which I had
on
> board and consulted on my first time.  A laminated checklist succinctly
> written but catching all the necessary details would be even better.  The
> second time was in my head and mostly okay, but not a grade of A.
>
> One of my future projects is to figure out how to take down the 175 genoa
on
> the CDI furler and maybe do that, depending on the effort as compared to
> leaving it up while lowering the mast, to reduce bulk when I am not going
to
> put the boat on a trailor, but just want to lower the mast to do some
> repairs in place. I did find that keeping the genoa reasonably free of
sharp
> bends and stresses and corded or strapped to the mast at the worst spots
> while keeping the furling mechanism from scratching the deck or windows
was
> somewhat of a nuisance, although definitely manageable.
>
> David
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Bill Effros" <bill at effros.com>
> To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Sent: Friday, April 16, 2004 8:22 AM
> Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Checklist
>
>
> Slim,
>
> I don't have time for this right now, but let's nail this issue.  Stan's
> instructions are wrong and dangerous in some instances.  Some of his
> instructions are for lowering the mast to the stern, and others are for
> lowering it to the bow.  If you happen to have the wrong set for the
> direction you are lowering toward, you and your rig can get hurt.
>
> Checklists are the only way to do repetitive things on the boat.  Most of
> these procedures are performed when we are tired or rushed or both.  Elton
> can do them in his head.  We can't.
>
> I have checklists for most procedures for my boat.  I still haven't nailed
> the procedures for raising and lowering the mast because I do it so
> infrequently.
>
> Checklists "off the top of our heads" generally miss things that others
> don't catch.  When I have more time I will help.  For example, your number
5
> is my number 1.  This is a critical, often missed, simple step that does a
> lot of damage if overlooked, so I put it first, in all caps, to ensure I
> won't miss it--this time around.
>
> I hope you and others will develop a good checklist for this procedure,
but
> if you don't, I'll bring it up again when I have more time to participate.
>
> Bill Effros
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Steve Alm
> To: Rhodes
> Sent: Friday, April 16, 2004 5:31 AM
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] IMF Furling Repair; Mainsail replacement;mast
> lowered and raised twice out on the lake yesterday
>
>
> David,
>
> Glad your rig is back up and running.  As for raising and lowering the
mast,
> it sounds like you could use a little checklist to refer to as you go.
Take
> Stan's directions, paraphrase a bit and laminate it and keep it handy.
With
> a little more practice, you'll get it down, but some of those little
details
> like disconnecting the pop top slider, or the radio and light connections
> are easy to forget.  A checklist might be helpful.  Most important of all:
> when raising or lowering the mast, make sure nobody is in the cockpit or
> anywhere else where the mast could fall on them if something breaks.
Don't
> be in a hurry.  Take your time, follow the checklist, be methodical and
it's
> easy as pie!
>
> How about this--  Kind of off the top of my head--anybody chime in if I've
> missed something:
>
> LOWERING THE MAST:
>
> 1.  Disconnect the back stay tensioning line
> 2.  Disconnect the boom from the traveler
> 3.  Remove the traveler bar
> 4.  Hoist the boom up with the topping lift and cleat it off on the mast
> 5.  Disconnect the pop top slider and close the hatch
> 6.  Disconnect the radio and steaming light
> 7.  Wrap up jib sheets and jib reefing line
> 8.  Disconnect forward lower shrouds and add extensions
> 9.  Loosen all other shroud turnbuckles
> 10. Deploy and secure mast crutch
> 11. Deploy and secure hoist crane
> 12. Attach aft lower shrouds to crane
> 12a Alternate: Attach line from crane to mast bail if you're thus equipped
> 13. Tie hoist winch line to bow cleat with a bowline
> 14. Snug the hoist to slack the bow stay
> 15. Disconnect bow stay and drop clevis pin and cotter ring overboard  8-)
> 16. Crank the hoist "down" giving the mast a little shove to get it
started
> 17. Check the shroud extensions as you lower to avoid entanglement.
> 18. Tend the jib as you lower
> 19. Lower the mast to the crutch
> 20. Crack open a cold beer
>
> Do the reverse to raise the mast, but while raising, watch to see if any
> shrouds get tangled on anything as it goes up.  REMEMBER:  Nobody in the
> cockpit or anywhere else under the mast during these procedures.
>
> I'm leaving out some important details, like when a passing power boat
hits
> you with its wake and your screwdriver rolls off the deck and falls in the
> drink.  Or that same power boat passes just as you disconnect the boom
from
> the traveler and it swings around and whacks you in the noggin.  I'll
leave
> the trouble shooting up to you!
>
> Note:  Some boats utilize a method of lowering the mast forward instead of
> aft.  If that's the case with Arrowhead, then...um...ignore this.  8-)
>
> Hope this helps.
>
> Slim
> S/V Fandango
>
> On 4/16/04 12:08 AM, "David Keyes" <dkeyes at houston.rr.com> wrote:
>
> > Stan's mast-hoist system is great.  I am 64, worked single-handed
> > yesterday--no one around to help.  I spent all day today taking down the
> mast
> > (twice) at the dock, in howling winds, replacing the mainsail, and
fixing
> the
> > IMF.  No serious problems and nothing dropped overboard.
> >
> > Last fall, my mainsail jammed in the out position for a week.  The sheet
> metal
> > screw holding the upper bearing had backed out, jamming against the
inside
> of
> > the mast at the top.  I used cords to tie the sail against the mast
while
> I
> > was away for a week, but they came loose in windy weather, causing the
> sail to
> > beat against the spreaders and sustain sail damage.  The slapping around
> also
> > caused the screw to fall out, thus again permitting the sail to be
furled
> back
> > in and out.  After a few months of raising and lowering the boom
> slider/IMF
> > tube, the upper bearing (now missing its set screw) came off the top of
> the
> > tube and fell part way down the mast just inside the slot, preventing
the
> sail
> > from being unfurled past that point.  Time to fix everything and replace
> the
> > sail--all with great help by email from Stan, as well as earlier helpful
> input
> > from the R22 list.  I had never taken the mast down before, since my
boat
> > stays in the water full time and I don't own a trailor.  Based on advice
> from
> > the R22 list, I decided to do the work without taking the boat out of
the
> > water.
> >
> > Following Stan's advice, I removed the boom prior to lowering the
> mast--this
> > removed some of the bulk from the IMF repair job that I had to do (which
> > involved sliding the IMF tube out the bottom of the mast), although boom
> > removal wasn't necessary.  The IMF upper bearing did have a hole, but no
> screw
> > was in sight.  I drilled a new hole in the tube off to the side of the
old
> > one, and countersunk a 1-inch stainless #6 sheet metal screw.  I
replaced
> the
> > mainsail with the one that Stan sent me--the new style with the vertical
> > battens.
> >
> > All is working fine now, but I will need to replace the 4" carriage bolt
> at
> > the mast step (the last half inch and the wing nut were stripped and
> sheared
> > off).  Temporarily, the mast is sitting OK for the time being with no
wing
> > nut.  Also, I bent the spring pin in the pop-top block slider.  I tried
to
> > straighten it out, but it does't work as well as it should.  Stan will
> send me
> > the bolt and a replacement pop-top slider pin which can be replaced on
the
> > next mast-lowering.  I made a not very important gouge in the pop top
> cover
> > with the now-bent pin.  This happened because the second time I lowered
> the
> > past I had forgotten to slide up the pop-top block (but the slider was
> > detached from the pop top cover).
> >
> > Brief diary of the day:  I worked at the dock, in about 20 feet of
water.
> I
> > used the sailboat on the opposite side of the dock, to my bow, as a
> "table" to
> > hold the IMF tube as it came out.  I was pleasantly surprised that the
IMF
> > tube is so rigid that I was able to carry it off the dock and up on the
> grass
> > to work on it, without any excess bending.  The weather was bright
> sunshine,
> > with low winds increasing to howling winds during the mast lowering and
> > raising.  Drinking lots of water still left me six pounds lighter at the
> end
> > of the day--194 down to 188.
> >
> > I spent the morning carefully going through instructions and lowering
the
> mast
> > and removing the IMF tube.  In early afternoon I wasted 45 minutes
looking
> for
> > a 1-1/4" #6 sheet metal screw, but it turned out that the 1" I already
had
> > worked.  It is necessary to countersink the screw head into the bearing
so
> > that it does not bind inside the mast.  By 4 p.m., I had the mast back
up,
> the
> > IMF repaired, no damage or incidents, and everything perfect.  My 7/64
> drill
> > bit (used to drill the hole in the IMF tube for the self-tapping sheet
> metal
> > screw) was too dull, and it took several attempted holes and lots of
elbow
> > grease.   Next time I will start out with a high-quality new drill bit
for
> > hard metal.   The only other glitch on my lowering of the mast had been
to
> > forget to unplug the radio and light plugs at the foot of the mast--the
> wires
> > certainly got a tugging before I noticed it when the mast was almost all
> the
> > way down.  Amazing that the wires didn't pull out of their plugs.
> >
> > So, at 4 p.m. I had removed the mast hoist and was finished except to
> restore
> > the boom and for trying the IMF.  The IMF was jammed.  I seemed to have
> lost
> > an extra wrap that I needed and also the sail seemed wedged, with the
new
> > vertical battens taking extra space in the wrapped sail.  (Stan
> subsequently
> > advised me not to retract the self-cover area, containing the battens.)
I
> was
> > no longer confident that I had wrapped the sail and the IMF furling line
> > correctly.
> >
> > So . . . from 4 to 6:30 I repeated the job except for the now-fixed
> bearing--I
> > lowered the mast and removed the IMF tube again and took the tube and
sail
> > back up on the grass and started again.  I lowered the mast from memory
> and
> > while tired--no instructions--a mistake since I forgot this time to
slide
> the
> > boom block and pop-top block to the high positions, so that I heard a
> crunch
> > of the pop-top block into the pop-top cover.  I also seemed to have
> stripped
> > some of the threads on the mast-step bolt, because the wing nut could
not
> be
> > removed, and I finally sheared off the end.
> >
> > However, by 6:15, when I got back to where I had been at 4 p.m.,
> everything
> > worked.  I don't know if I had done anything wrong on the first IMF
> furling
> > installation or not.  So I replaced the boom.  I had to pull and work
> > carefully to get the sail out of the slot the first time, past the
> vertical
> > battens, but then it expanded and retracted easily.
> >
> > I noted that the luff line of the new sail, in the IMF tube slot, is
about
> > 1-1/2" longer than the old one.  I was going to drill new holes for the
> upper
> > and lower brackets where the sail loops attach, so as to extend them to
> their
> > full length.  But it was so difficult to drill the one hole for the IMF
> > bearing that I did not do this.
> >
> > Stan's mast-hoist instructions talk about walking the genoa back to the
> mast.
> > By email he told me not to do this if it is a CDI or other third-party
> > installation--I have the 175% genoa with the CDI furler.  I will
remember
> next
> > time the importance of sliding up the boom and pop-top blocks to their
> high
> > set points; I had focused on the most important step of removing the pin
> > connecting the pop-top cover to the mast.  I will also remember the
> obvious
> > point, if one notices or thinks about it, that the electrical lines
should
> be
> > unplugged.
> >
> > One safety point that almost caught me.  At one point I got my thumb up
> into
> > the rope coil around the crane winch.  Not a good idea.  The beginnings
of
> > what in a split second more would have been torture chamber time
prompted
> me
> > to remove my thumb faster than the speed of light.  It didn't even hurt
or
> > cause a mark on my thumb--the story would have been different if I
hadn't
> > stopped winding and got my hand out of the way in the nick of time.  As
> Stan
> > warns in his instructions, keep clear and realize that there are a lot
of
> > mechanical forces, and protect the boat by stoppiong instantly if
anything
> is
> > going wrong.  I found Stan's instructions very helpful to watch all the
> stays
> > and keep everything clear and free from binding and be ready to stop
> > immediately.  At one point a found a lower shroud caught between the
edge
> of a
> > porthole and the cabin--I saw this before ever starting to raise the
mast.
> >
> > Two times does not make me an expert, and obviously no where near the
> > experience of those who trailer their boats.  But if anyone on the list
> thinks
> > that my day of doing all this might have given me some useful experience
> > relating to tasks that someone else on the list maybe hasn't done
before,
> I
> > will be glad to try to answer questions about how I did some of this
work,
> > what I thought was hard and what was easy, and what I might do
differently
> > next time.  Overall, the day was a success.
> >
> > David Keyes
> > S/V Arrowhead
> > Lake Travis
> > Austin, Texas
> > __________________________________________________
> > Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>
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