Topping Lift Pulley Wheel replacement

kevsbox

kevsbox

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Portsmouth, UK
www.kevsbox.com
Hey all
Out Topping Life Pulley Wheel (is that the right name?) is starting to break up (the inner roller) and so needs replacing. As these a special type of roller or can any do the job such as those in photo 3?
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Cheers

Kev
 
kevsbox said:
Hey all
Out Topping Life Pulley Wheel (is that the right name?) is starting to break up (the inner roller) and so needs replacing. As these a special type of roller or can any do the job such as those in photo 3?

Cheers

Kev
Click to expand...

In the boaty world it would be called a "block" and the wheel itself a "sheave"

Any chandler will have a good selection. As Lady in Bed says the topping lift is normally lightly loaded so no need for anything fancy like a ball bearing block but it might be a good idea to have one on a swivel so that it aligns with the angle of the boom.

Make sure the replacement is suitable for the diameter of your topping lift
 
SWMBO has always gone up our mast, she would rather do it than hoist me up, does mean I have to explain in mor3 detail though what the task is and how to do it, this is not always straight forward
 
Chiara’s slave said:
And that isn’t ending in divorce? I don’t think my wife would take kindly to a trip up the mast, but then, I’d never ask. I have a suitably trustworthy and muscle bound mate who can winch me up.
Click to expand...
She is happy to go up as long as me and our son have the lines below. It always costs me a steak and bottle of wine though
 
Kev,

There are a number of devices that will allow you or your son to make you own way to the top of the mast, webbing ladders, jumars aka ascendeurs (from rock climbing retail outlets), 2 or three Prussic knots. It will save much steak and wine (though if you are investing in good Australia wine - I am not going to discourage you :) ).

It is difficult to tell from the photo taken looking at the deck but your yacht does not seem 'small'. If it is not small I'd say it would be unusual (though I'm no expert) to have an external topping lift (I am sure I will be corrected) and I wonder if instead of a new block all you might need is a sheave (attach sheave to the component to which the block is attached) and then run the topping lift down inside the mast (which will be a real bundle of laughs). Whilst a topping lift does not commonly take much tension - it might do if you are reefing - and if the mast should have sheave and the topping lift internal to the mast - it might be a good idea to instal now.

I've just noticed you son - he will be much easier to hoist up the mast :)

Jonathan
 
Neeves said:
Kev,

There are a number of devices that will allow you or your son to make you own way to the top of the mast, webbing ladders, jumars aka ascendeurs (from rock climbing retail outlets), 2 or three Prussic knots. It will save much steak and wine (though if you are investing in good Australia wine - I am not going to discourage you :) ).

It is difficult to tell from the photo taken looking at the deck but your yacht does not seem 'small'. If it is not small I'd say it would be unusual (though I'm no expert) to have an external topping lift (I am sure I will be corrected) and I wonder if instead of a new block all you might need is a sheave (attach sheave to the component to which the block is attached) and then run the topping lift down inside the mast (which will be a real bundle of laughs). Whilst a topping lift does not commonly take much tension - it might do if you are reefing - and if the mast should have sheave and the topping lift internal to the mast - it might be a good idea to instal now.

I've just noticed you son - he will be much easier to hoist up the mast :)

Jonathan
Click to expand...
Thanks for the input. The yacht is 8m
 
Another system worth considering is to fix the topping lift at masthead and through a block at end of the boom then back to a cleat near the gooseneck. This saves a length of rope down the mast.
 
On my stella I had a fixed length topping lift with a short 4:1 tackle at the boom end. I could just reach up & pull on the tail of the tackle, pull downwards & raise the boom enough to allow the reefing to operate. Obviously there was a jammer in the tackle. The tackle line was 3 mm & the attached blocks very small. Typically what one might expect on a sailboard down haul.
It worked very well once I had established the fixed part of the topping lift length. That was about 6mm.
Light & functional
 
LadyInBed said:
The topping lift doesn't have a lot of strain applied to it so one as shown in 3 of similar size to original will do the job.
Click to expand...

Or - you could upgrade slightly so that it can double up as a main halyard or safety line for hauling people up if needed. I only have 4 full height mast halyards so I like them all to be good enough to do each others jobs if needed.
 
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