The KALEIGH B and her transformation

[jeadstx]

As a note, I see the images upside down (or at 90 degreess) also.

After this last Texas 200 I am going to have to look at upgrading my blocks and cam cleats. My jib cam cleats proved hard to cleat the jib sheets in the strong winds on the Texas coast. My main sheet blocks are original to the boat and it is time to replace them.

John

[seandwyer]

All good points, Green Lake. I'm in the process of transitioning from the original "Crosby" (is that what it's called?) rig, in which the main sheet creates the triangle above the transom, to using a bridle. I did this last weekend with a bit of luck, but I need to experiment with the height of my bridle block (or in my case, a figure eight) where the main goes through. GL--If you have been using a setup similar to Phil Root, have you been able to figure out the hook he uses on the bridle? I guess it shortens the bridle for certain conditions and is easily detached and lengthened for others, but I'm not sure I understand what the exact difference in length would be or when to use which. Nor am I sure I understand where he fastens the other end of the hook's line.

As for the block setup--that's pretty much what I was thinking. I can't imagine hiking out, main in hand, and not inadvertently cleating the sheet due to the effort and angle exerted on the sheet. For safety's sake, TBone, I think you should think about this--maybe see if you can alter the block you have, or look into something else. I'm leaning towards a Harken ratchet, and maybe just leaving the rest of the main's blocks original. They just spin and guide the sheet, so why change them? They seem to be in great condition.

[K.C. Walker]

+1 for Green Lake's evaluation of that mainsheet block.

I will add a stronger rant, though. I absolutely hate that style of block/cleat combination and replaced mine shortly after acquiring my boat. I think they're dangerous in anything but light to moderate breeze. I think they are a capsize waiting to happen in stronger or gusty conditions. Besides that, the smaller sheaves in those fiddle blocks are too small for good low friction sheeting when they're heavily loaded.

[GreenLake]

I was puzzled by the hook as well, initially. I ended up screwing a SS coat hook underneath the rear deck. Can't remember what I screwed it into - might even have been the backside of the coaming there. That left me with the rope triangle. I took a line and put a knot in the middle to which I attached the becket of the lower block (in that setup, at the rear of the boom the main goes through 90 degrees down, 180 degrees up and attaches to a becket at the block where it made the 90-degree turn at the end of the boom, giving a 2:1).

I then fed the two ends of the rope (with the block in the middle) through the two stand-up blocks at either side of the transom and brought the two ends back together.

Now I had two ends and a hook. I solved this by "inventing" a knot that would tie the two ends together and also have a loop that would fit over the hook. The knot is a simple variation of a sheet bend. A sheet bend is used to tie two ropes together and has the same internal configuration as a bowline. (Grab one of the demos from the web if you don't know how to tie one). Anyway, in tying one, there's one rope that you bend into a U and the other end is used to complete the knot. For my variant you bend the second end into a U as well (doubling it) and then you tie a normal sheet bend with one side doubled. When you are done, there will be a short loop sticking out of the knot, that's the one I use to go over the hook. (Because of the way the knot works, it will hold if you pull on either end or the loop).

With a bit of fiddling, you can tie the knot so that you get the loop to be small (barely fits over the hook) and positioned where you want it.

I don't have a photo of it, but you get what I'm after if you double the red line in the picture below before tying, so you end up with a bit of loop sticking up. (The free end of the red line ends up on the right when you do it that way).



Phill gives a suggested height of the lower block from the transom when the hook is engaged. When you unhook, the block will no longer be centered, but pulled sideways, which reduces the amount of mainsheet you need for going downwind. If you forget to release, it seems to not make a huge difference, but it sure helps to have the knot hooked for upwind.

[Thomasjbrothersjr]

KC... That's funny about the topsy turvy comment. I had wondered what you meant. My feeling was it must have been a comment on how the boat looked, dirty and just bought. To be honest, thinking that I was being slighted I was kind of embarrassed. It all makes good sense now. Ps. Sorry I missed the NE Meet Up, we sailed her for the FIRST time up in NH that day. I wasn't sure being out in Narragansett Bay was a good call for us, 100 miles away from home, etc. I was ready though, 2 charts and a bunch of research. It is on my list of summer sails now.

As far as my pictures, I apologize. Like I said in an earlier post they come through perfectly oriented while in my photos, the preview as well as the post when I reviewed it. I feel like this post must kinda look stupid now. I don't know if I can go back and fix them but I will now first bring them into a photo editing program and square them away. Sorry mates.


Tbone

[Thomasjbrothersjr]

Photo test, I put this photo through PHOTOSHOP EXPRESS first. Let me know how it turned out.


And does anyone know this guy? I bet you do.




TBone

[K.C. Walker]

Wow, and no one came to your defense for my rudeness! Sorry you felt slighted. Yup, this guy's right side up and wearing the right hat!

You would have been in good company for the Narragansett Bay meet up. We were all late getting launched this year.

[TIM WEBB]

*THE* Rudy Nickerson?

[TIM WEBB]

Took some getting used to, but I happen to like that Garhauer stand up fiddle block with the "down to release" cam cleat. 'Course, I got long legs and arms and no hiking straps, soooo ...

As to it's being a "capsize waiting to happen", I just don't see that, since most capsizes are the result of unintentional (Chinese?) gybes, not sailing close hauled where one is constantly minding main trim ... ?

[K.C. Walker]

Tim, obviously we have different sailing styles. If the winds blowing like stink my feet are in the straps far away from the main sheet ratchet block, I'm leaning waaay out, and I'm on a reach. I want to be playing the sheet constantly, not having it lock up on me and having to kick the thing. All my near capsizes have been while on a reach. I avoid running except in light air. True, running in heavy air is another capsize waiting to happen, at least it would be for me.

[GreenLake]

I don't hike as aggressively as K.C. but I do sit out on the gunwhales. I've been in situations where I had to sail long stretches in close to, or perhaps actually overpowered conditions upwind with gusts threatening to do more than burying the rail. And yes, the reef was in. It's simply less stressful if I can decide once whether the main is cleated or not, and don't have to watch that it doesn't "volunteer".

[TIM WEBB]

Guess we do KC! For instance, I rarely if ever sail with the mainsheet uncleated. It's in my hand, or at least draped over my knee for sure, ready to make minor trim adjustments or dump in gusts, but always cleated. That way my foreward hand is free to make jibsheet/barberhauler adjustments, which I do much more frequently than mainsheet adjustments while in tricky winds.

When you say "near capsize", what exactly do you mean? Because many times sailing on a reach in high/gusty winds, I've been hit by puffs/gusts, and it felt like it was going to be a knockdown, but I still felt like I was in control, i.e. could react fast enough to keep 'er from actually going over. It's the uncontrolled gybe that scares me and keeps me on my toes - even controlled gybes get my heart rate going up a few ticks!

[GreenLake]

Haven't had issues with jibes... perhaps I've not had enough occasions where I had to go DDW in stronger winds

[TIM WEBB]

Ah, but DDW is not when an accidental gybe is most likely to occur. It's on a broad reach, when even a slight change in wind direction can throw the boom over and broach the boat ...

[GreenLake]

OK, that I need to have explained. It would seem that when you are going dead downwind the wind is closer to the centerline, and a smaller shift might be needed to have it come from the "wrong" side. So, obviously, that "naive" view isn't correct. Would the danger on a broad reach come not so much from direction, but from fluctuations in strength, so that you might get a "velocity header"?