Tanzer 16 #1306 -- Getting Ready for 2nd Sail -- Trailer Troubles

Tanzer 16 Getting Ready for 2nd Sail --May 1, 2014  -- I bought the boat late last August and had already agreed to work the committee boat for the last two races. So we only got to sail the boat once last year before the early, extra-wet fall set in.  All the improvements we made over the winter were based on that one experience.  Now it was time to see if it was going to come together.

I decided to rig the whole boat in the driveway before meeting crew, Tony, down at the ramp.  First problem:  The new coupler didn't fit the ball.  Disassembled the coupler, reassembled it--didn't change a thing.  It fit--strange and mysterious are the ways of trailers.  Of course the lights didn't work--they worked fine last fall. Ninety percent of trailer light problems are the ground.  Checked it and came up with 60 ohms--replaced the wire and connection to the frame--.5 ohms'; yeah.  Lights worked, but not very well.

I'm not a big fan of "squishable" hard connectors.  I prefer to solder the wire

and then cover the fix with water proof shrink fittings.

The the lights  were really dim.  The bulbs were only getting about 8 volts.  The next culprit was a corroded contact in the plug on the bumper.  A little sanding on the contacts and we were up to 11.5 volts at the bulbs.  A new adapter will be added this week.  (Of course a bulb burned out when we launched because I forgot to unplug the lights.)  The obvious solution--detachable lights the way we did it on the C-Lark.  That fix is about a hundred and a half--but then you are done messing with it forever--money well spent.  Pumped a little grease in the Bearing Buddies, checked the tire pressure, and 2 1/2 hours later I got to start working on the boat and rigging.

One other improvement was a shroud stretcher to hook up the second shroud after the forestay and first shroud are hooked.  It is just a little clip on the shroud with a loop of rope.  You stick your foot in the loop, push down and it's easy to fasten the shroud to the tang.

It can be really tough to get the second shroud hooked up; I like to keep it tight so I don't have to adjust it every time. The shackle stays on the shroud plates, and the stretcher just clips on for the one minute you need it.

The topping lift worked great.  Much easier to deal with the main in the parking lot and hold the boom up out of your way.

The 1/8" Dacron cord was plenty stout to hold the boom up.  Now we could rig a boom

tent if we wanted.  It is set up so we could also hoist a flag or burgee.  Worth the few extra

ounces added aloft.

After a full morning of messing about, I was convinced that I could rig the boat and headed for the ramp to meet Tony.

The new main can't get here soon enough.

Next post:  The pedestal and snubbing winch, raising the mast alone is not for one old man, Jim screwed up the tiller extension.  Will this boat work for two old farts?

Today's Cliche:  The chances of failure increase exponentially as the number of people or parts increase. (jgs)  Corollary:  One guy with a rock is more reliable than a committee with a computer. (wvs)