Hi,

Does any body have any tips for getting
the little ball on the main halyard to
engage or lock in to the capture fork on
the mast when you rug the main sail.

Thanks
Peter

Not really. Make sure you're hoisting it all the way up, set your halyard in the jaw and hold it against the mast with one hand and with the other pull down the foot hard. When you feel it "set", I'll grab hold of the foot with both hands and pull as hard as I can to make sure its "set".

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Joshua

Texas Gulf Coast
'82 Prindle 16 (Badfish)
'02 Hobie Wave (Unnamed Project)
‘87 Hobie 18 (Sold)
‘89 Hobie 17 (ill-advised project boat, Sold)
--

Quote

When you feel it "set", I'll grab hold of the foot with both hands and pull as hard as I can to make sure its "set".

why not use the downhaul for this?

MN3

Quote

When you feel it "set", I'll grab hold of the foot with both hands and pull as hard as I can to make sure its "set".

why not use the downhaul for this?

You absolutely could, just habit really.
I sail on other boats with slightly more complicated downhauls and would like to avoid hooking everything up only to realize its still not hooked up top.

--
Joshua

Texas Gulf Coast
'82 Prindle 16 (Badfish)
'02 Hobie Wave (Unnamed Project)
‘87 Hobie 18 (Sold)
‘89 Hobie 17 (ill-advised project boat, Sold)
--

If you are still having trouble, turn the boat on it's side or with the mast off the boat and see why the "ball" will not engage properly. Make sure you're not using too long a shackle at the head of the sail. With the bolt rope all the way at the end of the mast track the ball should be just slightly below the hook.

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Bill Townsend
G-Cat 5.0
Sarasota
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I don’t have personal experience with the Pringle (Prindle?), 16, but I think it is the same setup as the early Nacra. On ours, the 5.7 is a catch every time, the 5.0, not so much.
After quite a bit of head scratching & looking, we came to the following conclusion.
The 5.0,(17’), mast is appx 2’ shorter than the 5.7,(19’) mast, 28’ vs 30’ for the stick. What really mattered was the mast hound on the smaller boat was decidedly closer to the little fork, where you hook the ball. This meant that as you pulled the halyard in close to the mast,(to get the ball to engage), the halyard hit the mast hound, & you couldn’t pull it any closer. The hound was close enough to the fork, that engagement was sketchy.
With the bigger boat, the extra distance between hound & fork, meant a shallower angle, & engagement was positive, every time.
The cure was two fold. Initially, after getting the ball sort of under the fork,(this is critical), bring the halyard around the mast, towards the stern, then give a good yank. By bringing it around to the rear of the mast, you get away from the hound, & a pull will bring the ball slightly down, but more importantly back towards the mast. It will then hook properly.
After a couple of seasons of this solution, we actioned a better cure.
BEND THE FORK SLIGHTLY OUTWARDS.
it only takes 1/8” or so. To prevent the halyard forces from bending it back, slide a little wedge under as you bend it outwards. We used a bit of scrap aluminum, bent to conform to the mast profile. Get a bit of that aluminum duct tape, put it over your shim, then bend the fork outwards, slide the shim in place, then smooth the tape. The AL duct ape is pretty sticky stuff, & lasts a long time.
This cured our N5.0 sail hooking
One last item, which I’m sure you’ve already covered. When first bringing the halyard towards the mast, make sure you are dead Center, & that the halyard is going into the fork. If you bring the halyard in on one side of the mast, it is easy to miss the fork. Watch with binoculars as a buddy tries to latch the sail, you will see very clearly if he is missing the fork...missing is a guaranteed fail.



Edited by Edchris177 on Aug 20, 2019 - 10:48 PM.

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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
--

Hey, that’s a very useful reply I will certainly give it a go next time I rig the sail. Thanks for taking the time to provide such a detailed info!

I rig in a creek where the wind swirls around in a crazy fashion. But assuming you are pointing in to the wind the ball would be blown away from the mast and fork so your tip of wrapping the halyard around the mast sounds just the ticket.

BTW, do you know of any locations where I can buy a new colored mainsail? I am currently looking at SLO sails and Super sails.

Cheers & thanks
Peter

http://www.whirlwindsails…ndle_16_SuperR_Main.html

http://www.whirlwindsails.com/prindle.html

I liked working with Chip from whirlwind - he just built me 3 sails
i can't say that about slo

Quote

But assuming you are pointing in to the wind the ball would be blown away from the mast and fork

However, in actual practice, the wire halyard has so little windage it doesn’t make a difference. If you rig without being able to face into the wind, the Nacra/Prindle system is a real bonus.
Both my Dart & H18 use a hook. Unless facing into the wind it can be the real B Word,the mother of all dogs, to get the sail up & hooked. Getting it down is the mother & her two sisters, especially on the Dart.
The fork/ball is much more forgiving, the sail can be against the shrouds & is no more trouble than dead Center.
As Shortyfox opined, it is also important to have the correct length wire halyard, with the ball in the correct place, just below the fork with sail hoisted.
A previous owner might have substituted something when the original broke.
Also, for a shim, you could use anything waterproof & rsistant to crushing. The fork is pretty stiff, try just a little bend.



Edited by Edchris177 on Aug 21, 2019 - 08:07 PM.

--
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
--