[C38] Binding Halyards/Masthead

[Tom T.]

Hello Russ,

Servicing the sheaves on our masts is difficult to do unless the mast is unstepped.  Our masthead is welded captive to the mast and cannot be removed so the sheaves have to be serviced with the masthead in place.

When I unstepped my mast a few years ago, I found that one of my masthead sheaves was different from the rest.  Then I found the original matching sheave in the mast step where it had dropped from an earlier repair attempt from a previous owner.

Our masthead sheaves are secured by a gate on the side of the masthead held by tapped screws.  Once the plate is removed, it's easy to remove the sheave pin but doing so will allow the sheave to drop to the bottom of the mast if you don't secure it properly.
I think the only way to safely service the sheaves with the mast up is to remove one halyard at a time and service one sheave at a time without the load of the halyard on it.  You could then easily use wire or string to secure the unloaded sheave to remove it from the masthead.  I had an easier job because my mast was down laying on saw horses but I did envision doing this procedure with the mast stepped and believe it is possible.

I used marine trailer axle grease on my sheave pin.  I had tried WD40 and even PB Blaster when the mast was up but they were only of limited success.  By completely removing the sheaves and pins, polishing any corrosion off and then greasing with a waterproof grease has made my halyards work very smooth and easy.

I had limited time when my mast was down but if I had more time, I would have drilled my sheave pins and installed grease fittings so future service could be done easily without any disassembly of the masthead.

It's been several years since I serviced my masthead so I hope my memory is serving me right with this advice.


Good luck,
Tom Troncalli

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Russ and Karleen Duff 
To: Catalina 38 Listserve
Sent: 7/5/2008 1:36:16 AM 
Subject: [C38] Binding Halyards/Masthead


I finally got the motor put back together and running, and now I have a problem with my main and jib halyards; they are both badly binding. I have no idea what could be causing this except that either the halyard sheaves are frozen, or maybe one, or both, of the lines have come off-track (they were fine at haul out at the end of the season). I am planning to go up the mast tomorrow to inspect things and hope for an easy fix.  If it isn’t, and I need to dig deeper inside, how does the masthead come off? Can it be removed with the mast up? I wouldn’t think so because aren’t the fore and aft stays connected to it?  If it can’t come off, is there any way to access the sheaves while it is on? This s_cks, I finally get the motor fixed, and now it’s something else (I guess that’s what you get with a 27 year old boat). Any advice would be appreciated. 
 
 
Sincerely,
Russ Duff
Catalina 38, Hull #112
"AVANTURA"
Lake Erie
Grosse Ile, Michigan
AVANTURA AT COMCAST DOT NET
 
  
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