This is the Garhauer MT-2 recirculating ball traveler set-up mounted on my 1983 Hunter 33, Trinket. The track, which is quite beefy sits just above the wood trim piece of the sliding hatch when its in its forward position, just out of reach of my forehead as I head down the ladder facing forward (the wrong way). The set-up is for the most part semi-custom. Garhauer takes measurements you provide; desired height above deck, and width of mounting point and produces the entire kit to suit for about the price of just the risers from the big name, non-custom companies. I had Garhauer make up a 4 sheave block for the car which enables me to make up an 8:1 tackle.

To complicate matters I brought both the port and starboard control lines off to starboard and back to the cockpit coaming in the cockpit. Lines are lead over outside corners using Garhauer 30 series Halyard lift blocks running over the top instead of under. The smaller end of the side plate is tipped up to act as a guide. Two sets were used to bring the lines away from the grab rails.

Also visable in this picture are my version of swinging companion way doors. Mine are scribed in to the openind and are solid mahogany mounted on non separating hinges. But this is the subject of another post.

Mid-Boom Traveler from cockpit

Just visable in the corner of the picture are the Genoa track (also Garhauer) and the red main sheet as it too comes back to the cockpit, brought over the coach roof edge in the same manner as the traveler control lines. The Halyard lift blocks used as over the top blocks are more visable here. The white plastic mounting pad was cut to conform to the curve of the cabin top with a 10 inch table saw blade. Bolted construction of the lift blocks instead of riveted was requested to enable me to swing up the end to act as a line guide guide.

Control lines coming down cabin top.

At the top of the picture is the cleat for the anchor (yes, lead back to the cockpit where I can haul it up using the winch). The red line coming through the swivel mounted cam cleat is the main sheet. Next to that are the port and starboard traveler control lines coming through small cam cleats. Just below those is visable the control line for the Garhauer recirculating ball genoa car, coming through a cam cleat mounted on the vertical face of the coaming.

Traveler, genoa lead, main sheet, and solid boom vang (also Garhauer) as well as furler control line and anchor are all adjusted from behind the wheel. This is a lot easier than tripping over bodies sprawled around the cockpit. It also enables me to make small adjustments as I watch the sails. This seems to be the ultimate set-up for the lazy sailor.

Complete cockpit control

This is the headliner above the galley on the port side. The smaller rectangular plate is for the traveler riser mounting. The other two plates are for the winch and line clutch array. At 5 10 my head easily clears the nuts. My preference is to have hardware out in the open where I can see what it is doing.

Basic installation of the traveler was straightforward. I just set it in place assembled and banged in a dozen more holes through the boat. The one step remaining to complete is doing the holes properly. The holes will be opened up and filled with thickened epoxy, filling the void between the deck and head liner and providing a barrier to the plywood (yes, plywood) deck core. Then the holes get re-drilled and the riser mount plates get re-bedded with GE silicone.

The only negative to this set-up is the effort required to haul in the main sheet. The mid-boom mounting point for the main sheet requires considerable force; hence the 8:1 tackle on the main sheet. The frictional losses of all the sheaves the main sheet goes over add to the effort required, but it still beats having to leave the wheel every time a an adjustment is needed. At $450. the Garhauer traveler is more than worthwhile.

Backing plates.