When trying to raise the centerboard today the line must have snapped so it's stuck in the down position. Does anyone know how and where the line attaches to the centerboard and whether it can be reattached from inside the boat? There is a wooden block under the cleat with several screws. If I remove those screws can I get to the spot where the line attaches? Any help would be much appreciated.
Thx!
Update:
According to AI it looks like the pendant attaches to the aft side of the centerboard about 2/3 of the way down with a shackle. Most likely the shackle has come undone or broke and is up inside the trunk.
Looks like I'll have to have the boat hauled and fixed at a marina nearby
Steve. So sorry for your situation but having gone through it last March I now consider myself enlightened. LOL Anyway, the centerboard line will attach to the centerboard by one of two methods. Apparently, some of the ComPac's directly connected the line to the board with a bowline. Other ones used a shackle. A friend with a SunCat says his is directly tied to the board, while my Horizon used a POS shackle that came apart last March while sailing in the Gulf. Either way accessing the centerboard is the key. If your boat is in reasonably clear water, perhaps you can dive on it and tie it off while holding your breath. You cannot access the top of the centerboard from the cockpit, so all work MUST be done under the boat. Or you have to lift the boat either out of the water of off the trailer high enough so the centerboard drops down at least a foot. The foot drop should expose the hole in the board and allow you to attach the line. If you want to know what it looks like I posted on the Horizon forum, the process with pics. In my case I had to have the boat hauled to replace the shackle. I found a perfect shackle on Amazon: lite, strong and narrow to fit up into the centerboard trunk and virtually impossible to come apart in normal activities. A competent diver would have it done in 10 minutes and would charge way less than a haul out or a lift off of the trailer. Yell if you need more infomation. Sail On, AL alsantini46@gmail.com
Hi Al,
Thanks for your reply and condolences . While I am a DIY kinda guy, I generally like to work on dry land. I'm going to make lemonade out of this lemon and have the boat yard clean and maybe even paint the centerboard while they replace the pendant since it's impossible to do on the trailer. I might ask them to replace the line with dyneema while they're at it since the current line looks a bit frayed. I'll also have them place the repaired boat on my trailer so I don't have to deal with hauling it. It's only money ;-)
Hey Steve,
Glad you can get her sorted. I would not recommend dyneema for use as a centerboard line. Dymeema is rough on the hands, you will find it slipping out of your hands, and it also doesn't hold well in jam or cam cleats. It is best used in standing rigging and not in running rigging unless it has a cover for sun protection or to improve running though cleats/winches. That stuff is over 3$/foot and would not last any longer than regular double braid.
I believe the factory used 1/4" or maybe 5/16" Samson polyester double braid which is easy on the hand and holds well in cleats but is less durable than dyneema. All the major manufacturers make this stuff. Get whatever you can get locally. West marine usually has in stock in a couple of colors. Sta-set or better Sta-set X would be a good choice.
Good luck,
Bryan
Hi Bryan,
Thanks for the heads up on Dyneema. I knew it was expensive but didn't realize it had those disadvantages. I'm learning a lot from this forum and I appreciate your help!
One advantage to a centerboard housed in a shoal keel is that the CB isn't very wide. In this thread a photo of the original SS CB trunk is seen, I'd suspect even after they went to a fiberglass trunk the CB itself didn't change much. As you can see, the board only needs to be dropped 4-6" to get to the pendant attachment.
https://cpyoa.com/forum/index.php?topic=11701.msg87974#msg87974
I agree that Dyneema is hard and slippery, and doesn't cleat well, but there are plenty of double-braid lines with a polyester cover and Dyneema/Spectra core, that would be easy on the hand, and would cleat well, and still have the benefit of a more durable core. The core would not be exposed to UV.
On my PC, the original CB pendant was black 3/16" Samson XLS, a polyester double braid. I wanted a line that felt better in the hand and went with 1/4" (6 mm) Yale PhD Racer, a very soft, single braid Spectra/polyester blend (the Spectra is wrapped with polyester in individual strands), which I've liked. Very easy to splice. That was in 2017, and I'm not seeing it offered much now (you certainly don't need a spool!), but a similar product could be available.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vRcejvfP7I
https://www.fisheriessupply.com/yale-cordage-white-green-ph-d-racer-poly-over-spectra-s1000-line?srsltid=AU7gw4XFZoSC7TUbMK0TSPQewzz_NKnF5qIIgMK-LaQ9xT_UQ7FVy4IZ