Pulleys on Boom - Balance Lug Rig - Swivel or fixed?

Hey,

Newbie here, I have a set of single ST/ST swivel pulleys and was set to use them for my Piccup Pram build.

However since watching a few videos on how to rig a balance lug rig neither of the two sailors used swivels on the two attachment points (end of boom and mid boom) nor the traveller either.

Would I be wrong to use swivel as suppose to fixed pulleys?

return or keep pulleys?

P.

 

Don't stress about it, some balanced lug enthusiasts don't use hardly any metal fittings, or pulleys, rather going through cordage loops, relying on their knot craft. You can use pulleys if you want to. If you don't want to use them as you planned, keep them and you'll find another use after a few sails. My balanced lugs have pulleys for the downhauls, where a swivel wouldn't go astray. Nothing wrong with a boom end swivel main sheet pulley on a dinghy, but on a bal lug you can move the rig fore and aft via the parrels, and a boom end can be restrictive to shoving the sail aft for upwind work. On my booms I have a movable cordage loop for the downhaul pulley and the main sheet pulley, so I can get efficient pull down / pull in with minimal unnecessary angles. If unused, think of the swivels and pulleys as the beginning of your next bigger boat.
There are balanced lug threads here with photos, one by me, so have a look to get ideas on rigging your spars, and have fun, do whatever you want to, if it works.

 

As the man says, don't stress about it. Its never a bad idea to have a swivel pulley for the lead that goes to hand. As for the rest, it hardly matters except for the rule that you don't want two swivel pulleys opposite each other because of the ropes twisting. And if it swivels and you decide you don't want it to, a couple of turns of electrical tape solves the problem inexpensively and non-permanently.