Catalina 30 Owner Modifications and Upgrades

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How Low Can You Go?

posted 09-12-2022 by OS2Dude


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The plug that keeps the sail lugs from coming out the mast gates sits fairly high above the boom, making it harder to flake the sail and secure it when coming back in after a day on the water. Several years ago I had seen an ad for covers that would allow the sail to lay flat on the boom, but when I called they were no longer in business, so I decided to make my own. Using some cardboard from a cereal box, I made prototypes that would fit the contours of the sail track and transferred them to some thin aluminum sheets I bought at a hobby store. I cut small pieces that filled in the actual gate cutout in the track so the lugs would not catch when raising the sail. I drilled and tapped some very small bolts I had on hand to hold these filler pieces to the covers and drilled and tapped the mast itself for four 1/4 x 20 aluminum bolts to hold the covers to the mast. I can now flake the mainsail flat on the boom while still being able to remove the sail from the mast if need be.

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