by jpclowes » Sun Mar 25, 2007 6:27 am
We use a hoist at our club too. There are two schools of thought on it. One (the way I used to do it) put Eye bolts in the deck about where the chainplaits are, with a strong backing plate. (I used a 2X6 about 6 inches long) for the forward points, and use the aft cleats for the back points.
The other way, the way I use now, is I have shackles through the chainplates. The pins in the shackle serve a dual purpose of holding my shrouds to the chainplaits, and lifting the boat. For the back points, a previous owner installed two rings through the transom, just below the quarters. (The rings are held in a strap that is screwed and backed through the transom) I think this is the better system because the hull itself is supporting the boat, instead of the deck.
In either case, I made a bridle out of 3/8 low stretch braided Nylon line, cut in two pieces (one for the stern half and one for the bow half, each end attaching to a lift point,) and knotted together in a kind of overhand knot with loops at the top for the hook from the hoist. The exact balance point of where to tie the knot and loops took a lot of trial and error, as did finding the port/starboard balance point, when attaching the carabeaners. Lift, see where the balance is, set down and adjust. The bridle attaches with 4 carabeaner (sp?) type shackles. This brldle is easy to attach and detatch, and once the balance point is discovered, easy to lift with. If there is a lot of water in the boat after a hard day of racing, you may need to keep some pressure on the bow with a bow line, while lifting.
J .P. Clowes
Eastern Great Lakes Regional V.P.
DSI 14083