I’m adding a spinnaker to my old Nacra 5.0. My mast came with the old style metal bale at top of the mast and a small hound 18 inches above that. The halyard would run up the mast, under the bale, through a block on the hound, back through the bale and angle down to the head of the spin. This is like the I-20 and N-500 manuals show.

However, I see most boats rigged using a short length of line around the mast as the “bale”. This line carries a block and that block also has a fixed length of line up to the masthead to carry the load.

If I stick with the metal bale I’m worried about abrasion of the halyard as it rides on the bale. I’m not racing and just want to get this thing on the water. Can I use the old style without fear of tearing up my halyard or should I switch out the metal bale for a line?

I have the bale on my 20, never given me any trouble. I think converting to the line is a little neater/cleaner but I haven't seen any abrasion at that point. My halyards wear out from chaffing at the cleat way before the bail can do damage. Laziness and having to fill holes in the mast keep me from changing over.

I used your photo and edited it to look like how mine is run. the red is the vectran/spectra the green is cover added to resist chaffe and the black blob is the block.


After looking at your attachment, I do have mine run differently. I have a legnth of high-mod line spliced through the cheek block that comes don the mast and terminates on a block just below the bail. I added an piece of sacrificial cover that guards the line at the bale. So I guess my setup is sort of hybrid the block runs just below the bale and the spin halyard turns through the block.