C&C 27 Association Forum

Jeff - thanks for the tip on the brackets to avoid the furler.  Always helpful to hear from fellow Mark I owners. Makes the forum useful, despite the interference on the channel.
Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

After I removed the masthead cap, I shipped the cap to Klacko Spars in Oakville, Ontario.  Danny Klacko worked at C&C on the 27s back in the day and still has some of the original castings of the masthead should you need to replace yours.  For a reasonable $260 US, I got 2 new aluminum sheaves and some refurbishing to widen the masthead to accommodate the all rope halyards. 

I had the yard replace the forestay.

Next up, I will work on replacing the wiring in the mast.
Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

I am pleased to report that my jury rigged my jib from my spinnaker halyard and had no issues with my furler all season.

At haul out last week, I was finally able to unstep the mast with the yard crane.  Now, I have easy access to the masthead.

Projects for the winter:
1. Replace sheaves at the masthead to permit transition to all rope halyards.
2. Replace forestay which I suspect had seen excessive torque at the hands of the previous owner.
3.  Inspect remaining standing rigging and replace as necessary
4.  Replace electrical wiring thru mast

Anything else I should consider while I have the mast un stepped?

Thanks!

Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

I was unable to get any crane time at the yard this Spring prior to launch.  So, I am currently running my jib halyard from the block for the spinnaker halyard.  To date, no issues with the roller furler from this configuration.  Note that the Mark I has internal halyards for the jib and main only.

Now my plan is to unstep the mast at haul out, so I can address any and all issues at the masthead and replace the standing rigging.

I will update this thread with any pertinent info.     
Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

Mike,

Are you the proud new owner of Parsifal? Welcome to the Fleet! What Hull Number is Parsifal?

Happy to share notes and experiences with the Mark 1 if you are interested.

Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

Mike - I am still interested.  I will give you a call one AM this week, not too early allowing for time difference.
Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

Mike - I am interested.  How best to contact you
Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

Chris,

Thanks for the info.  But you are killing me.  45 minutes to replace 5 halyards!  I am already several hours into this project, and 45 minutes just for crane time alone.

I was able to replace my main halyard myself, using 90 feet of 10 mm line which passes smoothly thru the rope clutches which grab and hold nicely.

With very little clearance due to the roller furler, jib halyard remains a different story.  Like you, I will be converting to all rope for the jib halyard.  But, I will go rope to rope, maybe 1/4" spliced to 3/8".

I am wondering what lengths for each of those sections.  Any chance you have those measurements off your old wire to rope halyard?

Thanks! 

 
Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

First, I want to thank you for the reply.  Until now, I have been wrestling this on my own, without another C&C owner with whom to share ideas and ask questions.  So again, thank you!

I should have clarified in my post, that the halyard wrap was certainly a problem for the previous owner.  And while it took me some time to figure it out, and with the aid of a keen eye from my "neighbor" in the yard, we realized the previous owner had incorrectly rigged the jib, leading to halyard wrap.  Since repairing the halyard and properly rigging the jib, I have not experienced any halyard wrap.  But thanks for the pointer to the halyard restrainer - now I know where to go should this problem re-surface.

I should have also clarified WHY I want something approaching a 1/2" line back to the cockpit.  Because of the existing blocks, which are perfectly serviceable and most importantly do NOT leak.  I do not want to swap them out for something to take a thinner line.  Instead, I was thinking I would take the hit on weight from an over-sized halyard in order to remain compatible with the existing blocks. 

The rope portions of the halyards I removed, though of unknown provenance, consistently measured between 3/8" and 7/16"

I managed to replace the main halyard at the end of the season, and it performed well on a couple of sea trials, but nothing to say yet about how durable it will be.  That line was 10 mm New England VPC Hybrid and easily passed thru the blocks, winches, etc. 

So while not ideal, I am trying to size the new jib halyard within sufficient tolerances to be serviceable with the existing hardware, both sheaves and blocks.  I realize this might only provide me a couple of seasons of serviceable life out of the new jib halyard, but at this point, I will accept that. 

At present, I have no jib halyard, so I need to complete this replacement, even if sub-optimally. My sailing season here is very short and I was not planning to tackle standing rigging this season.  Not at the outset anyway.

I thought, maybe incorrectly, that I could decrease the chafing over the masthead sheave by going with the rope to rope halyard, something akin to 1/4" line, and getting the two lengths correct so that the thicker portion of the halyard never has to pass over the masthead sheave.  I should mention, that when trying to remove the existing wire to rope jib halyard, the rope section simply would not pass over the masthead sheave.  No way, no how.  I had to cut the thimble off the wire and then pass the wire over the masthead sheave, with a messenger line attached.  By getting away from wire, I hope to never have to do that again.

Again, thanks for "listening" and any tips or advice are greatly appreciated!

Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain

Steve,

I am no authority on the size of the fleet here, as there is much of the lake for me still to explore.  I can tell you that there are only ~25 boats in my mooring field and yet there is another 27' along with mine, I think that one is a Mk III.

And among the 100+ boats on the hard for the winter at the local shipyard, there is another Mk I.  Far from anything scientific, this is a "convenience sample" in the truest sense. There are at least another 3 major yards and harbors on the VT side of the lake and I cannot even venture a guess at the NY side.

It would be interesting to know the number of C&C 27s on Lake Champlain, but I would have no idea how we would go about determining that number.

I understand your interest to retire here.  We just love it - the skiing in the winter and the sailing in the summer.  Since we bought the boat, we have either skiied or sailed for 34 straight months and counting.  There are some fantastic properties on the lake - and no, I don't own one...  We tried when we re-located here from DC but could not make a lakefront property in the target school district fit within the budget.  As a retiree, you might not be so concerned with schools etc, and could find a secluded spot at a better price than around Burlington where we were looking.

And something you likely already know.  I think you can sail Whippet up the St Lawrence from Etobicoke to Montreal, then you can sail down from Montreal to Lake Champlain.  I have heard tell of such adventures, so I hope that I have that correct.

Let me know when you do and we will meet up. 
 
Brian Tivnan
C&C 27 Mk I, #45, Vermonstah
Lake Champlain