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I found this thing in my new boat: (What the heck is it?)

It is a shroud tightener.

Okay, Thanks. I guess you put it in the little holes in the shroud connectors? (Sorry, In my day everything was a turnbuckle).

Can you please explain how it is used?

Thanks,

Octaman

Ignore post above. It's a henweigh

Put two sausages on each screw and BBQ



Seriously, each screw picks up a hole in the chainplates and allows you to tension the plate and move the pin to adjust shroud tension. Much easier than trying to pull the plate and pin....actually this is impossible at correct tension of 300# +

It is important that your Henweigh be stored in a Grecian Urn of Extra Virgin Olive Oil while sailing in salt water, for rust protection.

Chip

Oh, I've seen one of those at a redneck BBQ:



Seriously, those slot adjusters work great, I have one made out of wood that I think I got from BWY. Without one, you have to keep unpinning the forestay and using the mast raising system to get the shrouds tight enough.

I think the proper way to describe how to use it is that one bolt goes through the slot adjuster for the lower shroud and the other bolt goes through the slot adjuster of the upper shroud. Then, depending on whether the handle is facing fore or aft, you will be using leverage to tighten one of the shrouds while using the other shroud's slot adjuster connection to the chainplate as the leverage base point.

I raised the mast the other day and noticed that I could not get the forestay pinned. I pushed and pushed on the furler but I could only get about an inch away from the hole.

I winched the mast back down and got some more tools and wood sticks (on my previous boat I used two wood sticks jammed under the bow cleat to leverage the forestay fitting into place).

While I was at it I put a quarter under the mast step just for good form, and started winching up the mast again. This time I let out all the rope to the top of the winch so it stands up real straight and when the mast was up the winch pole was up pretty straight too. I went forward and noticed I was only about a half inch away this time, so I cranked that winch a little bit more. Went forward, only a quarter of an inch to go. So I cranked a little MORE, went forward, and the forestay PINNED!! The winch thing is pretty neat!

The shrouds all feel real tight and I shook the crap out of the mast to make sure it was under load. Everything looked real good.

Later when I cranked the mast back down I noticed the quarter I put under the mast: It was a 2001 Rhode Island State Quarter with a picture of a sailboat on the back and the quarter said on it: THE OCEAN STATE and 1790.

I thought that was a pretty good coin to step the mast with in the future so I kept it.

Dimitri,
Great picture, that made my morning

Obelix

Catigale wrote:Ignore post above. It's a henweigh
Put two sausages on each screw and BBQ

Too small for regular sausages, must be for little wieners only!

[quote="Catigale"]Ignore post above. It's a henweigh

I thought it might be a Leverite . . .

I think I'm going to make one of these soon...I keep seeing pictures of them and people asking about them, and I know I have some tightening to do...

Bill at Boats4Sail made a shroud adjuster tool using a welding vice grip. You drill a and tap hole near the tip of each arm and run a screw through it.
I think it's either a #8 or #10 screw. It's easier to adjust as the screws aren't at a fixed position.
To adjust the shrouds you put the screws through the holes in the shroud plates, tighten the shrouds, then squeeze the vice grips to tighten.
I'd post a pic but mine is in the boat.

Crikey wrote:

Catigale wrote:Ignore post above. It's a henweigh
Put two sausages on each screw and BBQ

Too small for regular sausages, must be for little wieners only!

Nah just make sure u push them on all the way to the nuts