Laser 2 Main Halyard too short

jfdmarshall

New Member
Hi,

I just bought a secondhand Laser 2. The mast is a 2 part mast and there is a problem with the main halyard length. The steel wire is not long enough to come through the hole in the bottom of the mast and make it onto any of the row of teeth which it is meant to be hooked onto - the metal part barely makes it out of the hole at the bottom of the mast. I believe that the previous owner was cleating off the rope part somewhere on the deck. I am not keen to put all the force of the mainsail onto a thin sheet. I think that Laser 2's have been produced initially with a 2 piece mast and then with single piece mast. Maybe this explains the 1-2 inch difference. Is there anyone out there who has experience of this issue. I had the suggestion to saw off 1-2 inches from the offset from the top part of the mast, allowing it to condense further, but that seems like vandalism, although it would solve another issue, which is that the mainsail luff also seems to be 1-2 inches short. Any advice on how this situation has come about very welcome.
 
First, you should hoist the main with the boom not attached to the mast. You will get the wire loop on to the rack, the question then is how much you need to push down on the boom to get the gooseneck pin in place. If you get a deep crease from the tack to the top batten, add a longer shackle or two to the halyard.

One-piece Laser 2 masts have been around for only a few years, and this shouldn't affect your halyard in any way. The "classic" masts have had different topmast fittings over the years, but they're all the "right" length. It is possible that your halyard was home-made and the maker made a mistake.
 

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