Not solely for sunbathing
The trampoline on a multihull is not simply a place for sunbathing, although it does work very well for that task. There are also serious structural considerations as the nets can get pounded with water while sailing in any kind of seas.
We have now been on a number of different cats and have had the opportunity to see both a wide variety of trampoline materials and different methods for attaching the tramps to the boats. Our 2-piece trampoline is connected to the boat via a “boltrope*” on all outer outer edges and then is lashed together in the middle. Perhaps for as long as we have owned the boat, a small portion of the boltrope has started to “peak out” of its track. It didn’t look like it was getting any worse but we still thought that it would be beneficial to add a bit of support to the area, if only for a backup. After all, falling through the tramp while underway would suck and doing so while underway with the engines running would seriously ruin your day.
You can see in this photo the portion of the boltrope which has slid out of its track. Rebecca is in position under the boat, ready to help remove 2 of the bolts attaching the boltrope track to the boat.
The bolts were removed and the holes were drilled a bit larger. Question: Why is it that the batteries in a drill are never charged enough to complete a job?
It took a bit of effort to source ones that were long enough but two strong shackles are now in place as a backup to the bolt rope.
*A boltrope is typically sewn onto the edge of a sail and slides into a track. In this case, it is sewn inside the edge of the trampoline.
Happy Canada Day!
“Why is it that the batteries in a drill are never charged enough to complete a job?” — Because the skipper (captain) forgot of course!!!!!! It ALWAYS is!! Blatant dereliction of duty. 🙂 🙂
On a more sensible note, why did you not put the shakles through the eyes in the corners of the trampolines? This would be much safer and support it better, I would have thought. Just an idea.
Mike
Re: batteries… of course!
Re: shackles…. Grrrr! That was our initial plan! After drilling out the first hole though we found that the head of the shackle was too big to fit through the grommet. What you see in the photos our improvised Plan B. 🙁
Mike, I wonder if taking the line out of the last 2 grommets might give enough room for the shackle like Mike B suggests. If there’s too much play horizontally, consider a small line between the two shackles.
It also looks like the shackle going through the larger hole is going through fiberglass of the boat itself. Since there’s so much movement in a shackle, that hole better be much larger and sealed with epoxy wherever the glass was exposed. Anything less will be asking for water to enter the glass through that hole.
Happy Canada Day!
The line isn’t what is stopping the shackle from passing through the eye. The grommet itself is just too small (or the shackle head too large). In addition to that, the line can’t be removed without redoing the entire thing as that is the start of the lashing, not the end. I am pretty sure the area where the shackle goes through is solid glass so I don’t think sealing to prevent moisture would be an issue. Feel free to correct me on that. I didn’t show it in the photos but the corners of the trampoline are also supported by similar shackles through the fiberglass. At the moment, there is virtually no load on the shackles. The bolt rope holds the tramp in place. Only if that fails. will the shackles be under load.
HAPPY CANADA DAY to you, so nice you are there representing us. I am home in Kingston for a bit. So I’m celebrating here.
Enjoy the trip home, Jenifer.
Pretty good fix, too bad the shackle wouldn’t fit. You could cross lash with something small and thin to each eye on the tramp and still pass the red line through it all.
Not sure I understand how that would help anything, Ken. Can you elaborate? See my answer to Jeffrey’s comment above.
The weak point is still right there where the boltrope has pulled out. Almost looks like if your heel stood right there you could pull more of the boltrope out.
If you lashed from the right shackle (in the picture) to the left eye and vise versa with a strong thin lashing and left enough space for the red line to still pass through the shackles and the eyes you would be eliminating “some” of the flex at the damaged area of boltrope.
With the red lines flexability (needed) it’s not doing “enough” to hold that tramp tight to the boltrope track.
Mike,
Can’t see the other side of the shackle but if you reversed them and put the thumb turn side down would it be more comfortable to accidently step on with bare feet?
True. I have both these shackles and the ones in the corners installed this way so that I can easily see that they are closed tightly. Of course, if I put them on the other way and then moused them closed, that could be OK too I guess.
I just replaced the nets on DreamCatcher and it easier than I thought.
We have a 1996 boat and the grommets and nets were blowing out near the anchor. We did it on the water and it wnt quickly. The boltrope had a tendency to come out if not perfectly fed through the track. You may want to pull yours out and slide it all the way back in again. It should stay in place after that, especially with the extra shackles. Some dish soap on the boltrope helps.
Hi John
I “really” don’t want to reinstall it, but your advice is solid. Can you tell me where you purchased your new tramp?
I ordered them from Sunrise in florida. They have the pattern for the PDQ’s and they fit perfectly.
http://www.multihullnets.com/
I think you may have it in your favorites.
You could just slide the aft side out and leave the reat alone. Of course you will need to unlace the middle. On our trimaran I flipped the nets over to equalize the UV degradation.
Cool. Yes, that is who we linked to in the post.
Unfortunately we would have to undo the entire tramp to fix that track as the lacing begins where the shackles are and it is one continuous line.
“After all, falling through the tramp while underway would suck and doing so while underway with the engines running would seriously ruin your day.”
I clearly remember the first time I set up a safety tether for my young daughter (~3 years), and realized it was just the right length to hold her by the propeller of the Stiletto’s outboard. It was shortened in seconds.
Those tramps are pretty strong. Two years ago while beating up the Delaware in terrible steep chop, I had to go forward because the jib shackle (cheap crap purchased in Cape May, not known for sailing supplies) had stripped AND the roller furler was temporarily out-of-service. Yes, I was clipped in. However, I miss gauged a wave and got launched a bit from just in front of the mast. While I could have managed some kind of a landing on the deck near there, everything was wet and I figured I would have ended up on shins or knees, which would have hurt like hell. I instead performed an intentional forward flip/tumble on to the tramp, which startled my wife just a bit. I calmly re-tied the jib, which was what my daughter was used to, since she has been around my rock climbing antics from an early age. It was quite comfortable; however, I’m not repeating the stunt, ever, and I don’t suggest it.
Regarding your fix, I hate that, when you have a perfectly good plan… and it doesn’t fit by 1/2 millimeter. What I would consider, since the shackles are WAY stronger than you need, is grinding just a bit off the sides until they squeak through. Then the direction of pull will be perfect, just as you intended. And put the pins underneath; that was the first thing I noticed–I know I would step on that eventually.
Grinding off the shackles, or shopping for new ones, might have to be done. If (when) we get around to changing it, I’ll take everyone’s advice and switch the shackles around.