Spinnaker lines clanking....remove?

[John 32i]

After every sailing trip we religiously take both spinnaker lines forward and fix them to the pulpit to stop them clanking and when we go sailing we attach them to the mast, however they invariably still clank as soon as the wind gets up….we have never used the spinnaker (and don’t plan to) so last weekend I decided enough is enough…lets remove the lines once and for all – then at the last minute I thought it would be better to run
mousing lines, just in case we (or a future owner) ever want to reinstate the spinnaker lies. Is this sensible? Or has anyone got an easier solution for a quiet life?

 

[ryanroberts]

Tighten them up?

 

[awol]

Unless they are likely to foul the jib furler why not just leave them on the pulpit?

 

[awol]

Tighten them up?

.... or slacken them off. My pole topping lift is a noisy bu**er unless loose.

 

[John 32i]

Tighten them up?

Even when winched tight they still clank when the wind gets up...!

 

[John 32i]

Unless they are likely to foul the jib furler why not just leave them on the pulpit?

Large genoa means there is no room!

 

[Lucky Duck]

I found the spinnaker halyards very useful when the main halyard came loose from the sail and ended up three quarters of the way up the mast!

 

[John 32i]

I found the spinnaker halyards very useful when the main halyard came loose from the sail and ended up three quarters of the way up the mast!

Or if the forestay snaps

 

[Lucky Duck]

Fortunately that hasn't happened to me just yet!

Like you I take the lines back to the base of the mast but it is quite rare for them to start banging against the mast while sailing.

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

Flip them outside the spreaders and down to the chainplates (a loop of thin line tied through a bottlescrew is handy).

 

[TernVI]

Normally, when I secure a halyard at the base of the mast, I flip it around the spreader so it's not against the mast.
Or tie it to the shroud 6ft off the deck.
Alternatively, secure it to the chain plate. Or toe rail.
Leaving it banging the anodising off the mast is not an option I like!

 

[johnalison]

My lazyjacks are kept away from the mast by bungee cords from the spreaders. My spinnaker halyard I attach to the handlrail on the coachroof, which is about halfway out to the shrouds, in order to prevent it chattering on the mast. The uphaul I attach to the foot of the mast but leave it fairly slack, and it doesn't make a noise.

Keep the spinnaker gear. You can't have too many lines to the mast.

 

[Deleted member 36384]

I have the same issues on my boat, 2 observations: -

1. I left the spinnaker halyard on the front of the pushpit initially and it worked fine, clear of the furling genoa. Then one day it was loosened and it fouled with the genoa as it was furled.
2. The top of the UV strip on my 1 1/2 year old furling genoa has worn through from the spinnaker halyard being stored on the pushpit too loose. I don't pull the halyard very tight when stored on the push pit as it is quite a large lever and could strain the pushpit mounts due to the overhang.

The solution now is that the spinnaker halyard is stored against the cap shroud which keeps it to the side and away from everything; the halyard is on an articulated block at the mast head before entering the truck sheave, so there is no side loading on the sheave. I use a stanchion base, with a built in loop, that is near the cap shroud to attach the halyard to. I would be just as happy with a rope loop around the lower turnbuckle to attach the halyard to, if the stanchion base was not there.

 

[neilf39]

Connect them to the base of the mast, tighten them and then frap them with bungee cords to the shrouds at about head height so they are kept away from the mast and can't bang.

 

[sgr143]

If you do decide to remove them and leave mousing lines in place, use lines thick enough that they can't fall into the gap between the edges of the sheaves and the slot in which they sit, and jam. I had a nasty experience with that thin blue string that's sold as "mousing line", that was only resolved when I had the mast down, and even then it was a bugger to sort out. I now use 5mm line for mousing, probably overkill, but one bad experience like that was one too many. Of course, for your purpose, such lines could also clang against the mast. You can't win, sometimes.

 

[LadyInBed]

I tie mine off to the bottle screw at the base of the forward shroud as suggested above.
Used for hoisting sail on inner forestay and putting someone up the mast.

 

[pcatterall]

down the shrouds sounds favourite. If I have 'spare' line/halyards near the shrouds I like to tie them to the shrouds so that when 'lurching around the boat' I grab both together rather than just a halyard with no support.

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

I should add that the reason I flip them round the spreaders is that it helps keep them away from the top bearing of the furler if there is one.

 

[Norman_E]

Connect them to the base of the mast, tighten them and then frap them with bungee cords to the shrouds at about head height so they are kept away from the mast and can't bang.

That works for me. I use a cord with a bowline tied on one end, with a long bight. The bight is passed round the shroud and the cord put through it. On the other end I have a hook like this Holt Marine Spring Snap Hook Stainless Steel to hold the halyard away from the mast.

 

[John 32i]

Thanks for all suggestions....you have convinced me to try other options before removing the offending lines