At this stage, check that the radio aerial is mounted and that the masthead navigation lights,
work.
Before going on to raise the mast, it is worth spraying the sail tracks on the boom, mast, and
furling genoa foil with a dry silicone spray. This considerably eases the mounting of the sails.
With the mast erected, insert the boom gooseneck - long bit downwards - into the slot or gate in
the mast (Fig 1), with the sail track of the boom uppermost. Insert the split pin (which should be
dangling on a piece of cord from the mast) into the hole in the mast sail track below the gate and
let the boom rest on it. Connect the topping lift to the end of the boom to support it in a
horizontal position, and shackle the main sheet to the tang on the end of the boom and to the
horse – the slider on the rail across the companion way on the 23SL or, on some 23s, across the
transom. You are now ready for the mainsail.
.
Mainsail
Insert the aft corner (clew) of the sail into the groove on the boom and ease the sail along the
boom. Shackle or lash the forward end (tack) to the lug on the roller reefing plate, and lash the
other end to the cast eye on the end of the boom. Shackle the main halyard to the head of the
sail. Insert the head of the sail into the gate and haul the sail up, feeding the sliders or boltrope
into the gate as you go. Make off the halyard on a cleat on the mast.
Insert the second split pin into the hole in the track just above the upper gate. There should be a
boom downhaul which is fitted between the lug on the under side of the gooseneck and the mast
step bolt so that the mainsail, once raised and with the lower split pin removed, can be tensioned
by pulling the boom down with the downhaul (Fig 2).
Originally, the main sail was furled by
inserting a cranked handle into the
gooseneck fitting and turning to wind the
sail around the boom. The kicking strap
function was provided via a large
horseshoe claw, which allowed the boom
and sail to rotate within it. If you have a
claw, it should be lashed to the aft end of
the boom so that it lies about 3ft from the
mast. A downhaul should be fitted between
the claw and the mast step bolt. However, many owners have changed to slab reefing, where the
sail is pulled down onto the boom and not wound round it. In this case, there should be a fitting
underneath the boom so that a kicking strap, with its own jamming block, can be connected
between it and the mast step (Fig 2).
Foresail
As originally supplied, both models had a forestay onto which the genoa was simply clipped by
piston hanks. Many owners have since converted to furling genoas, where the sail is wound onto
a foil which rotates around the forestay. There are many different models in existence, but the
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