I have about 12 years experience on a Hobie 16. I live in Tampa, FL and sail on Tampa Bay and in the Gulf of Mexico. After sailing larger boats for awhile I want to get back into a cat of some sort. I would guess I would be sailing solo about half the time. I have been looking at variety of used cats, mostly Hobies, Nacras and Prindles. I really would like to notch it up a level or two from a Hobie 16 but at the same time I would like something that I can solo. At the moment there are two relatively nice Nacra 5.2s for sale not too far from me both of which seem quite nice. Is a Nacra 5.2 a boat that could be launched and sailed solo (assuming the right equipment) by some one who weighs 150 lbs like me or is that out of the question? Also, how difficult is it to get parts for a 5.2? I appreciate any thoughts. Thanks.

At 150 lbs righting may be tough but not impossible. The 5.2 has a good reputation as a solo boat. That was actually a consideration when I purchased my 5.2. I solo mine (210lbs) but with the jib and boards the workload is quite high so I usually don't rig the jib and run it as a uni. I know a lot of the other 5.2 owners on here solo thiers fully rigged, but I'm not that good a sailor yet.


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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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i think you would be fine
get a righting bag and you can right it solo

Wolfman, I also picked up a N5.2, the kids are older and don't have the interest so I though this might be a good boat to solo. My question is what tricks have you come up with to raise the mast solo. Even though the mast on the N5.2 is lighter then my other boat it is still a challenge to get up by myself. Any thoughts?

Thanks

Jeff O

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Jeff O
N5.0
solcat 18(sold),
N5.2,
H16
Camarillo CA
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Jeff,
My best trick is I try to raise the mast as few times a year as possible. :) I have a lake front cottage so I can leave it rigged most of the year. That being said I usually have to step my mast with minimal help. I use an 8 foot step ladder to help. I put the ladder behind the boat and lift the mast up to the top of the step ladder before getting on the tramp. Then it is a lot easier to just hop up on the tramp and walk the mast the rest of the way. I then get someone (a passerby or available family member) to put the forestay pin in.

I have heard of people rigging a line from the forestay through the bridle and back to themselves on the tramp. That way once you get the mast up you can tie off the forestay to the mast and then go and pin the forestay to the bridle. I've never tried it myself though.

THe last option is Hobie's Mast Stepper III a gin pole arrangement specifically designed for masts that have to be rotated when stepped. Expensive and somewhat complicated but likely the safest option.

D.

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
--

I found this post while searching for a used dagger or two for my 5.2. I sail mine solo, most of the time, last year I logged 60 days out on the water, mostly in good breezes 15 to 20+ mph. At 165 lbs. I usually have no problem righting it solo as long as there is plenty of wind. Just point the mast upwind and step out on the dagger board for extra leverage. Once the mast comes out of the water, the wind picks you up. Just be ready to leap to the windward hull before it’s upright, or you’ll be cartwheeling back over again. On lighter air days, a righting bag has helped, but honestly it’s not easy to hold over your shoulder while trying to right the boat. If anyone has a lead on one or two dagger boards for the 5.2/5.5 please drop me a line. THANKS 7-11-11

Bob - Cicero, NY
1984 Nacra 5.2 - never uni
www.radesignz.com/nacra5.2redo.htm

Dave, when using the ladder trick, is your boat on the trailer, or on the ground? What part of the mast winds up resting on the ladder? Midway? 1/3 from top? I'm thinking of trying this technique again. With regards to soloing, I sailed this boat initially with my non-sailor son who, at that time, couldn't figure enough out to help me except to stay out of the way. (he's actually a big help, now) Therefor, I was, effectively, soloing the boat without significant difficulties, although I would be hesitant to do it in more than 15 kts of breeze.

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Eric C

Force 5 project boat
Unnamed

Previous boat
1980 Nacra 5.2
"Double Vision"
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I try to do it on the ground if I can because it gives you more height to work with. I have also done it on my trailor but it's a little tougher. The only benefit of the ladder is just to make the transition to the tramp and lifting the mast by yourself on the tramp a little easier. I put the ladder right near the rear beam so it rests just below the spreaders, tricky to make sure you don't catch teh diamond wires.

Yeah I solo mine all the time. Much easier with a roller furling jib. On a reach I can just furl it and reduce the work load. Deploy again to tack and furl when beaching. Beaching is always fun though getting the daggers up and everything set. I really could use a clip for my tiller to keep course while lifting the boards. Haven't found one yet that would work for my boat though.

I also recommend you clip into a harness when you are soloing (quick release or ball hook). It's a bit of a pain but you are much less likely to be parted from the boat, snag the mainsheet around the ankle and dragged.

D.

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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I’ve been using a variation of Wolfman’s step ladder method. I use a pair of 8 ft. 2x4’s with a bolt/nut through them at 10” down from one end. When opened up 3-4 feet, this provides crutch which I can walk up the mast from the top, to about half way to the stern. The neat part which allows me to step the mast completely SOLO, is that before I start, I roll a pair of homemade beach wheels, from hard plastic boat hoist wheels which put the bar about 18” off the ground, and effectively elevates the stern by the same amount. This means that once the mast is raised by the crutch/ladder (I may switch to this as it seems a simpler method) from the tramp, I can raise the mast to a forward/upright position which is fixed,(gravity holds the mast in place) allowing me to jump down and pin the forestay. If it’s really windy, I would do this stern to the wind to be on the safe side.

Bob - Cicero, NY
1984 Nacra 5.2 - never uni
www.radesignz.com/nacra5.2redo.htm

sorry to bore you long time forumites with these AGAIN but...

soloing a 5.2

uni-rigged, no jib......needs extra skill to tack and trim the main but less likely to get blown over

http://vimeo.com/5075989

sloop rigged, with jib.....needs fast gust response to keep from going over but easier to sail with basically set and forget sails

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j55lMDEBmP8

on our small lake with lightish air and no swell it's safe to solo but i've NEVER been able to right the boat unassisted as the lack of swell and constant winds means my 170lbs/75kg just can't unstick the mainsail from the water.....i keep working on a righting pole but it isn't fitted yet....

the mast only goes up and down once a year and then the boat has to be broken down completely to comply with local trailer laws so i just tip the boat over on an old blanket on the sand and prop the hull on a ladder to get the mast on and off

Never boring erice. But the same questions do get answered over and over on most types of forums I've been involved in. Sometimes you get a little different spin on things that makes all the difference though.

Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one who loses his hat while sailing! :) Also glad to hear you also use a ladder to unstep the mast. I'm going to start a campaign to make a ladder required sailing gear at the F18 worlds.

--
Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
--

Go to http://sailinglouisiana.com they have a great article about how to lift a mast solo. You use a electric winch......easy to install and works perfect.

I have not tried completely solo but I use a winch on my mast stand on my trailer to lift the mast. I loosely tie the front 2 trap lines to a point on the outside of the front beam to help control sway. I do not have a gin pole right now so I have to get the mast up high enough that the winch can get a good bite. right now usually I or one of my kids walks to up to the trap as a winch to give the height. A ladder or something like you guys or using could help with this. I raise it by one of the rear traps instead of the forestay so I have it secured and held in place while I pin it. now I added a furler pinning it seems to take more hands. goes down the opposite but I am not sure I could hit a ladder at eh back of the boat so would be nervous doing by my self. Luckily I usually have a kid around but I would like to get it down to a one man job as I think there will be times I may want to do sail by myself.

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Dustin Finlinson • Magna, UT
Member: Utah Sailing Association
1982 Prindle 18
1986 Hobie 17
1982 Prindle 16
1980 Prindle 16(mostly)
1976 Prindle 16(mostly)
Check out "Prindle Sailors" on Facebook.
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Yeah, this year I 'almost' got the mast up solo. I did what you did except I extended my trailor mast support to 8 ft using a 2x4 lashed to the support. Do not do this! You need something stiffer that wont bend like a bow under the weight of the mast (maybe 2 2x6s sandwiching the mast support. I put a 6:1 at the top of the 'gin pole' arrangement, set my mast on a ladder, tied the 2 trap cords to the front beam (for sway) and started hauling.

First problem I already noted. Second problem was that with the 6:1 setup at the top of the pole I could only get the mast half way up, had to get on the tramp and heave it the rest of the way (which was easy). Third problem, I had my trap wires tied to the rear of the main beam, better to go around to the front, I had to pause half way and move them so they weren't fighting me. Fourth problem, once I had the mast all the way up and held by gravity (the bows were pointed way down and incline) I had to uncleat the 6:1 and jump up to get the forestay down. But in the end it worked but as golfdad says - it is WAY easier to just man up and heave it.

In the end I will probably bite the bullet and get a mast stepper 3 that mounts a metal gin pole right on the mast and eliminates 90% of the headaches I had. Likely worth the price given the amount of time I wasted screwing around with the jury rigged setup, and the beer and food I need to pay one of my buds to come out to the cottage to help me take her apart for the winter (neither my wife or father are able bodied enough to help me raise or lower the mast very safely).

Oh gosh darn it the site censor blanks out scr*wing!?

Regards,
Dave



Edited by Wolfman on Jul 11, 2011 - 06:09 PM.

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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Dave there is thread just a few days ago, with some good ideas for stepping, the thread is here:
http://www.thebeachcats.c…ms/viewtopic/topic/12709
I like SKARRs idea, & though someone slagged the 2 men on the tramp, I find it worked very easily for my 5.7.
I'm only 170 lbs, with wet hair & PFD, & find the idea of grunting a mast up by sheer force is a case of large shirt size, small hat size. Better to think like an Egyptian, & use the laws of physics, rather than my back. That said I only raise mine once or thrice a year.
You have lots of Cat time, no reason you can't solo a Nacra or like. I was practically new to Cats when I got my 5.7. I can't really power it up solo when the wind gets to 15mph, but with even a 120 lbs on the wire, it is amazing how much speed you can attain. Even driving the 5.7 hard with two on the wire & myself braced against the traveler base it won't pitchpole. Yesterday with my wife on the wire & 20+ mph we stuffed into a wave that put the hull down to the beam. Wter everywhere, & off course we lost speed , but it surfaced & took off again.
I use a furling jib, mostly because I have a constricted place at my dock, & a rock breakwall. That helps immensely when docking. I always use the jib, unless I'm experimenting, just to gain knowledge of how to run the boat if my jib were to explode 20 miles from home.
At each tack, as you move across the tramp, move the traveler line with you, hang it by the rear beam. Get the boat around, roughly sheet the jib to where you think it should finally be, get on the wire, & haul in the main. I keep the main looped across the upwind knee, so it stays there, & the jib sheet lies by my feet. I have the tiller in one hand, main in the other. It is easy to do a head up a bit, hold main & tiller in one hand, do a knee bend, grab the jib or traveler line & adjust, then just straighten your legs to trap fully out. It takes a bit more organization, but tacking isn't a high speed event if you are soling, lots of time to do 3 or 4 things as the boat comes slowly around. Make an SOP (standard operating procedure) out of it, & two days later it will all seem old school.
I flipped it quite few times the first year, now I only flip when we are screwing around, or deliberately living on the other side of the edge, seeing just where the edge of the envelope is, then trying to stretch it just a bit.
If the wind is right, I can right the 5.7 solo, with even a 100lb kid along it is easy with just the line. Solo I bring a bag, but have learned that I don't need to struggle with 100+ lbs of water. I can almost right the boat, so really I only need a few lbs in the bag. Place it on your chest, or lift it & hang it from a hook, that you can clip just above a knot on the line. As you know, once the mast is 6" out of the water you're golden.
The 5.7 is a handful solo once the wind is over 20 mph, I might like a 5.0 better for those days. I looked at the New Nacra 4.3 in Oz, but I'm not sure if I could swing it as checked baggage, though I did manage to check a 5.7 sail bag,with main, jib, along with beam, V brace, & a steamer trunk of other parts.

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Hobie 18 Magnum
Dart 15
Mystere 6.0XL Sold Was a handful solo
Nacra 5.7
Nacra 5.0
Bombardier Invitation (Now officially DEAD)
Various other Dock cluttering WaterCrap
--

Yeah, I am mostly sailing solo with crew (i.e. useless crew) but I always find myself being over taxed. I think I really need more true solo time without passangers. Although tacking isn't much of a problem for me anymore with or without jib.

Once I clued into blowing the traveler or mainsheet a bit to keep the boat from windvaning it became much easier. My tacks are still ugly but that seems to be the biggest trick.

Dan Berger just got his girlfriend a 450 and man they look AWESOME. I would love to have a second small simple cat like that to tool around on by myself. But everyone already knows that I think. :)

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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Wolfman

Oh gosh darn it the site censor blanks out scr*wing!?

No, screwing is too important to block.

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Damon Linkous
1992 Hobie 18
Memphis, TN

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