BENETEAU First 18, Assembly Manual

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Lowering the keel
Warnings!
Never sail with the keel in any other, but completely lowered, sailing position
– 16,5 - 17 turns from
the upmost position. Only in this position, the keel is securely fixed in the keel-box.
Even though the force on the handle is reasonably small, hold it strongly at all times. If it will slip from
your hand during lowering of the keel with the clutch in unlocked mode, it will unwind rapidly and can
seriously hurt your palm.
Never unwind the keel to the point of losing the tension on the rope, but always count the number of
turns (16,5 - 17 turns). Loos rope can slip off the head of the keel, which could cause a lifting system
to stop working.
Tightly hold the handle, unlock the clutch and slowly and in full control lower the keel. Always count
the turns!
Sailing position of the keel is 16,5-17 full turns from the upmost position .
Never lower the keel to the point of losing the tension on the keel rope! The keel shall remain
lowered about 10 degrees backwards to remain in a stable position. It's important to understand that
the weight of the keel keeps it in place, and lowering the keel too much could cause keel movements
during navigation. Loos keel rope could also slip from the keel-head and jam into the keel spacers,
which will result in a malfunction of the lifting system.
Lifting the keel