Spreader Boots

[Merrill Aldrich]

Hi - I own an older (1973) Catalina 27 in what I'd call fair+ condition. I'm not experienced with repairing standing rigging, but on my last trip out I noticed the boots on the ends of the spreaders appear to have worked loose, and I've been afraid to take her out since. Dumb question: does anyone have an image or a drawing of how that connection works, so that I might figure out whether this is a structural or just a cosmetic problem? I'm not certain if what I'm looking at is just a cover to protect the sails or if it's actually the structural connector.