Difficult to haul mainsail

[Ron]

Sandy -

I used a dremel tool with a small grinding bit to enlarge the halyard exit fitting at the bottom. Do both sides. When the mast is down, lubricate the sheeve at the top. And iI would not be a bad idea to lubricate the mast track occasionally. I spray Sailkote on the slides and bottom 8 feet of track before I hoist about once a month. Perhaps once or twice a year - I hoist a small piece of sail luff with hooks at both ends to first clean the track and then lube it with a clear non-staining teflon lube. As long as you have the Sailkote spray can in your hand, do both trampoline slides as well.

After doing the above - I can easily get my heavier kevlar main sail to the mast top with not much effort. The winch handle is basically used to tension it afterwards. The effects of my two rotator cuff injuries (same shoulder twice, 2nd time un-repairable) are just about gone now. 5 months ago I had trouble lifting 20 pounds!!!

[Ron]

No need to remove the halyard or the exit fitting. You should me able to move it around in the rectangular exit to first grind the top half and then the bottom. Take off just enough metal so that the line does not pull when going thru. The bit should be on the fine side as well.