IP35 Boom Refit to Single Line Reefing

...Radeen taking the boom to shore...

We have been dealing with the Island Packet internal boom shuttle cars for over 15 years. Guess what? They really do not work well. Just ask any two digit IP owner and they will tell you that they have a terrible time with the reefing system. Well enough is enough with this system. We have decided to remove this poorly designed system and replace it with the standard and simple single line reefing system like on most yachts. You see, the designer of IPs, Bob Johnson, never really went cruising and he never even spent a few weeks out on anchor living on his yachts,

The boom shuttle cars

He also never went sailing on them out in the ocean in 20-25+ knots making a passage to the Bahamas and then try his own reefing system. If he would have, then Island Packet yachts would even be far better then they are . But, since the designer was not an ocean sailor, we the IP owners need to make these yachts better based on our own sailing and cruising experiences, and that is what we are doing. This project we are calling "shuttle cars be gone" because inside the Island Packet boom there are two shuttle car blocks with pulleys. These shuttle cars are there to provide a purchasing power to the reefing system. Well guess what? They jam up, they twist, they knot up, they do not run freely, so we will toss them overboard and give up on living with Bob's system.

A simple single line reefing sketch

Our solution is to run traditional single line reefing system where the reefing line starts in the cockpit, runs to the mast base, then turns up to the sail reefing point, then down into the boom around the pulley heading back to the end of the boom where it exits and goes up to the aft reef point and then down to the boom where it ties off. Notice, there is no block or shuttle car inside the boom, nothing but a straight line from front to back. To reef, we will simply lower the halyard to a market point just a bit lower than the reef, we will then take up the reef line on a winch making it tight, and then we will raise the halyard and be reefed. To take out a reef we will simply toss off the reef line and raise the sail. No need for a crew member to go onto the deck and pull like a wild man on the "Bob" reefing lines that are jammed up inside the boom. Simply raise the halyard and shake out the reef. Simple!

We really did drive it to Mack Sails

Thanks to Mack Sails, we took off the boom on the mooring ball and took it to shore via the dinghy. Then like crazy sailors, we drove this 14 foot boom to Mack Sails via our car with it hanging out the trunk about 5 feet. It was a crazy idea, but we "got er done!" Tomorrow Mack Sails will deliver the boom back at 8am and we will reinstall the boom. New sheaves will be installed, plus the casting needed to be drilled out and the sheaves needed to be thru bolted so they will not lift UP when reefing. The shuttle car system pulls down but the single line reefing will pull up. So, project  shuttle cars be gone will be a simplified reefing system. We think this will work very well. We will find out soon.

Here are some photos of today....

The IP 35 Gooseneck, a solid design

These front sheaves need thru bolted

Taking apart the gooseneck, we lifted the boom with a halyard

The Island Packet 35 boom is a NB32 casting

These front sheaves will be thru bolted allowing us to pull UP on them

Look at the size of the gooseneck pin!
Nice shape for 33,000 nautical miles

Radeen with the boom on deck, she is such a great helper

Boom be gone, this may work when we take off the mast for the French Canals?

Radeen and the 14 foot boom in the dinghy heading to shore

Yup, it fits onto the car, really????

We had to stop off and mail out our B&G grear via US Post

YAHOO....our new NavPod arrives and it fits

Our boat is starting to look like home as we keep working on it

We are loving Stuart Florida, we just booked into here for a month, why not?

Our new home as we work on the refit with Mack Sails

Radeen is making great meals: Kale salad and chicken

The fire pit at the clubhouse, what a great place

So, our refit is going well, we are soon turning the corner hopefully tomorrow as we will reinstall the boom and then focus on the NavPod at the helm. There we will install the new Zeus2 and the Autopilot control plus the new Ram Mic. Once that is installed, the electronics upgrade is complete. Exciting times, thank you for following along, we enjoy all your comments and emails.