MAIN TRIM ON H 340

[Ersin]

I don't know, I'm too late or not to come to that forum?But my problem is,HOW I TRIM MY MAIN ON MY H 340?The boom always goes high,especially on beam reach.Since I have to trim boom paralel to surface or/and to the 2. batten,there are two handicaps...1-We have arch under the boom.2-We have 16 ft. boom.And the boomvang attached to boom on 1/4 of its length near the mast and need huge power to hold it.(And strong hardware of course,- that we haven't)I have to trim firmly by the boomvang.But in fresh wind its impossible for me to tight and very hard for the boomvang to hold (I have regular one with ropes).Once the conection of it to the mast base casting broke off.And Huntermarine told me that it's users fault.Souldn't tight it so strong (?)If so,what's the boomvang for?If so HOW I TRIM MY MAIN ON BEAM REACH ? Does traveller help?(don't have yet)Or is that the way for H 340 to sail with boom up?Thank you all...

[Doug T.]

A traveller would help a little, but on a broad reach or run, the boom vang is critical to keep the boom from rising. If the vang breaks, it's not the user's fault, I would consider it to be a design or manufacturing fault.I presume you have a typical 4:1 purchase on your vang. You can put in a doubler very easily to make it 8:1. Of course, the connection points must still be strong enough to handle the loads -- if they broke before, they'll probably break again until you come up with a better way.You could also put in a solid vang.....

[Carl and Juliana Dupre]

Hi, Ersin. Good to hear from you again, and know that you are still struggling with your H340 in those strong Aegean breezes!We are also unimpressed with our standard soft vang; pulling the boom down on a broad reach in a fresh breeze makes the vang line so tight it is like a guitar string! We don't trust the cam cleat on the vang assembly and have led the vang line back through the deck organizer to the Port side winch.We are on the verge of buying a Garhauer solid vang which is very strong and has a 20:1 purchase. That should be plenty of leverage to bring the boom down. Then the question is the strength of the mast and boom fittings. Our 340 is a 2001 model, and the vang-mast fitting appears to be very strong; it looks like the same fitting as the one that connects the boom to the mast. The boom connection is our only concern, but we don't have to contend with the wind that you do. We will be fine.We would suggest checking out the Garhauer rigid vang (HTTP://garhauermarine.com). In addition to the vang assembly itself, they will also custom-build mast and boom fittings, although you may need to do some drilling and tapping to install it. They will discuss size and strength of fittings with you.Good luck!Carl and Jules/v 'Syzygy'

[Peter Brennan]

Install a solid vang such as the garhauer. This gives a 20:1 purchase and also eliminates the need for a topping lift. The compoany asks you to supply templates for the mast and boom areas where the vang will be installed and then fashions rugged stainless steel plates to fit the template. You drill and tap for eight screws on each fitting. It is not going to break. With that vang we can strap the boom down flat at any angle to the wind and regardless of wind strength. With that vang you don't really need a traveller unless you want to get the boom on or to windward of center. The vang made a huge difference in performance on our boat at all points of sail. And best of all, it is not terribly expensive, between $300 and $400 for a beautiful piece of equipment. Our boat is an O'Day 37.

[Stuart]

for the Garhaurer yet? We've got a 1999 340 and I'm also on the verge of installing a Garhaurer.Somewhat confused by the instruction sheet they sent, have you measured

[Carl and Juliana Dupre]

Stuart: Just placed the order earlier today. For our boat; $270.We ordered the vang to match our current mast and boom fittings. This is very different from the measurements that you need to take if you are going to install with totally new fittings.The measurements that we needed to report are:-Boom tang thickness: 3/8 inch-Size of hole in boom tang: 1/2 inch-Distance from bottom of boom to centerline of tang hole: 3/4 inch-Pin size on mast bracket: 1/2 inch-Distance between bracket ears: 3 3/8 inches-Direct line distance from mounting hole in boom tang to mounting hole in mast bracket: 51 inchesAgain, if you will be purchasing the vang to install with all new fittings, the list of measurements will be entirely different. If you have questions about what to measure and how to do it, call 909-985-9993 and ask for Mark Garhauer (family business; ain't that neat!), and he can explain it to you.Carl and Jules/v 'Syzygy'

[Stuart]

Planning to order mine next week, will talk with Garhaurer to confirm measurements. Really helped to see how you handled.stuart

[Don Guillette]

Ersin: The boom vang is used to adjust DRAFT POSITION. It is used in conjunction with the cunningham, mainsheet, mast bend and outhaul all of which adjust draft position. It is one thing to know what they do but more important to know what happens when in ease or trim them. By increasing tension on these controls you move the DP forward and by easing tension you move it aft. The boom vang is also used to adjust TWIST along with the mainshhet. Increasing tension on these controls reduces twist and decreasing tensions increases twist.The boom vang also prevents the boom from rising any time the boom moves over the side of the boat. At that point of sail the mainsheet loses its effectiveness because of the pulling angle.The traveler is used to adjust the angle of attack and has nothing to do with the boom rising.Here are your mainsail control settings for a beam reach in medium air:Traveler - leeward of centerMainsheet - ease until luffs and then trim to just stop luffingHalyard - medium tensionOuthaul - medium tensioncunningham - medium tensionVang - max tensionDraft depth - fullDraft position - 50 to 55%telltails - all streaming, top just stallsmast bend - mediumtwist - mediomleech line - mediumcrew - windward/forwardslot - wideIf your interested in more detail, take a look at the Sail Trim Chart and The Sail Trim Users Guide sold by Sailboatowners.com

[Ersin]

First of all,I want to thank you all...I understand that I need a real/strong vang such as Garhauer 20:1.But I have still some suspicions about attachment of it.If attached to mast base casting it'll broke it off very easly than the orginal one (which I had that incident before).And also the connection point to mast is another story,there are many incidents reported in archieves about broken boom attachments of vang on H340.But I'm going to have a Garhauer anyhow..PS:Yes,Carl and Juliana I'm still fighting with the Agean breezes,which I had this year fully 6 months.(and a race which had 4. next time with a Garhauer hope better place to win)

[Don Guillette]

Ersin: The Garhauer rigid vang is attached to the mast with 6 - 5/16" bolts and to the boom with 6 - 1/4" bolts. There are 3 ways to attach the vang. One is with pop rivets and the other is to tap the hole. I'm not crazy about either but if given a choice I'd lean toward the pop rivet. You'd need a large tool to install the pop rivets. I don't like the tap method on the Catalina because the mast and boom are thin and I could only get 3 threads, which I don't feel is enough.The best attachment method is to use RivNuts or Rivet Nuts. They are used by the aircraft industry. They resemble a "top hat". They have a threaded insert in the tube. You need a special tool to install them but you can make a tool that works just as well. If these RivNut ever pulled out, which is unlikely, they would take a lage chunk of the mast and boom with them!!

[JC 2]

Why DON'T you have a traveller? This is EXACTLY why there is such a thing-- to pull DOWN on the boom even when you have to let it out a little. Without a traveller you are just adding expence and confusing the issue with hassle.JC 2