by GreenLake » Sat Nov 07, 2015 8:17 am
I'm totally with you on the deficiencies of your setup.
My setup has a cleat that's on it's own swivel arm and it releases by an upward pull. Because I also have a ratchet block at the boom, I cleat the main less often.
I'm using a Ronstan 55 Orbit ratchet block, and, with only 90 degrees turn, am satisfied with it's holding power, as well with it's automatic setting (engages if there's enough pull on the line). If you were to replace your single block with a ratchet you'd be in business.
The manufacturers differ a bit in how the controls work on ratchet blocks. The Ronstan is too fiddly to operate while busy sailing, but happily, their automatic mode has proven itself to be a "set and forget" kind of deal for me. The holding power of the Ronstan is about double that of comparable blocks from other manufacturers (according to test result from a practical sailing mag).
Your setup with center boom sheeting is different from mine. With a 180 degree pull, you would engage the ratchet a bit sooner, and the holding power would be stronger, which is great when you want it, but also means it's stronger when you don't want it. I'm mentioning this, as it may make the feel a bit different on your boat compared to mine.
If you can re-use the existing fiddle (that is, if it allows the cleat to be disconnected) you would only need the one ratchet block and one swivel-base with cleat facing up, but just about any modern fiddle block looks like it would be an improvement to the original as shown on your photo.
I ended up putting the Ronstans on the jib sheet cars as well, something you could consider down the road. In that setting, the pull is at 90 degrees on your boat as well as mine, so they should feel the same. If you were to start with a Ronstan for the boom and find its holding power too strong or the autosetting too eager for 180 degree turns, then you could always move it to the jib fairlead. My main motivation was to accommodate younger crew or less experienced crew that I couldn't trust with releasing a jib sheet from a cleat promptly enough for the conditions. As a side effect, I can hold both lines while single handing, which is useful in some situations.
~ green ~ lake ~ ~