I would advise against using the lazy jacks for supporting the boom. A topping lift or a rigid vang is much better for that.
You have to put together enough vertical lines, so that the sail will not droop between them. This depends on the sail cloth, battens and obviously, the length of the boom. The boom on my boat is over 11 ft. and I found that 2 lines wasn't enough (even with a pretty stiff sail cloth and full battens); I modified it to three lines. The lines are spread, generally, evenly along the boom. You may want to have shorter distances closer to the mast (more sailcloth to catch). I did attach the top lines to the spreaders about 15 cm from the mast (far enough to leave some opening, close enough that the leverage is not too much). I don't have any problems with the battens catching on the lazy jacks - I loosen them before hoisting the sail and I make sure that I am right up wind when I do so. If you want to fiddle a bit with the arrangement, try to come up with a system where you can take all the lines all the way to the mast. Even one side would help a lot. There are numerous ways of doing it. I was about to implement one of those ideas, but I found that I never have problems with battens catching so there was no point in complicating what was working fine already. I have a Boomkicker, so there is no issue of supporting the boom with the jacks (though when I installed them initially, I had a topping lift). Good luck Marek 1994 C270 "Legato" Ottawa, ON -----Original Message----- From: CnC-List [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Steve Thomas via CnC-List Sent: Wednesday, April 19, 2017 22:28 To: [email protected] Cc: Steve Thomas <[email protected]> Subject: Re: Stus-List Lazy Jack advice Lazy jacks can supplement or replace the function of the topping lift, and if you have any inclination to use them in that fashion then Dave's comment requires careful consideration. The main sheet can put on quite a load. As for the total number of lines to the boom, remember that the purpose is to stop the sail from falling to the deck. All else being equal, more is better, but the number of lines included in kits for a given boom length from the major manufacturers is a good place to start. I have a Harken 2 line kit on my 27, and find it adequate, but I also have full battens in the main sail which helps a lot. On the subject of battens, separate from questions surrounding lazy jacks, properly adjusted full battens can maintain a good aerofoil shape in extremely light air. It is a wonder how the boat will ghost along sometimes. Steve Thomas C&C27 MKIII Port Stanley, ON ---- David Kaseler via CnC-List <[email protected]> wrote: I'm no expert as I have no lazy jacks and have never used them but my concern would be the potential of putting extra stress on the spreaders causing them to become misaligned. Dave. Kaseler SLY, 1975 C&C 33 Sent from my iPad > On Apr 19, 2017, at 9:54 AM, Eric Frank via CnC-List <[email protected]> > wrote: > > appreciated! _______________________________________________ This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to: https://www.paypal.me/stumurray All Contributions are greatly appreciated! _______________________________________________ This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to: https://www.paypal.me/stumurray All Contributions are greatly appreciated! _______________________________________________ This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to: https://www.paypal.me/stumurray All Contributions are greatly appreciated!
