DSII in Heavy Weather

[Guest]

I bought a DSII at the end of last summer and had time to take her out only a few times on Long Island Sound. I was out in 15-20 knot winds with 2-3' seas and she sailer fine. Has anyone out there sailed one in heavier weather? Anyone altered the mailsail for reefing? My centerboard is had to lift and this winter I'm going to remove it and inspect the cables and ropes. Ay experience in installing block and tackle to allow a solo sailor to easily adjust the centerboard from the helm?

Paul Diglio (paul.diglio-at-erols.com)

[Guest]

I also bought a used DSII this year. I was able to sail it quite a bit both single-handed and with my wife. The last time I went out single-handed (also in Long Island Sound) the conditions were slightly worse than you describe. I found that I missed my wife a lot (I needed more rail meat to keep the boat upright). She only weighs about 115 pounds, but that makes a big difference. My main has reefing points which I used to shorten sail for the first time. It made a big difference. I also doused the jib. It sailed OK, but of course I wasn't trying to sail efficiently; survival was more like it. Before I reefed though, I found that rounding up into the wind would save me from capsizing. On the subject of the centerboard, mine is also very balky sometimes. I plan to overhaul it this winter along with the rest of the boat. It's a common problem that I've seen in other discussions in this discussion group. There are several threads on the subject. I'm hoping that simply cleaning the centerboard and lubricating the pivot point will solve the problem. Some folks have undertaken a complete rebuild/redesign of the mechanism. That's a little more than I want to take on. Good luck with your DSII. I really enjoy mine.

Frank Skewes (fskewes-at-ebmail.gdeb.com)

[Guest]

I also have a daysailer and I didn't notice the reefing points.Can anyone tell me were they are?

Nathan (Natedog710-at-aol.com)

[Guest]

One respone to my question on another site claimed reef points 40" up from the foot. You would need to have a sailmake alter your sail or sew them in yourself as I do. I'll be putting in 10 points including the clew and tack.

Paul Diglio (paul.diglio-at-erols.com)

[Guest]

I bought a used Day Sailer II last summer and sailed it on Martha's Vineyard. I was likewise dissatisfied with the way it handled in heavy weather (useless upwind on jib alone, overpowered on full main alone), so I am having a sailmaker install a slab reefing cable and reef points over the winter.

With regard to the centerboard, mine has also been balky when the going is rough, and I think I'll follow your advice about trying to lubricate and free up the pivot.

It sure would be nice if the board could be controlled from the helmsperson's position in a blow.

Alan Willens (willens-at-usa.net)

[Guest]

Hi All,

Are your sails the original O'Day DS II sails? If your sails are like mine, vintage 1980, they feel as soft as bed sheets and can not be flattened for higher wind conditions. "Blown" sails remain full - providing less drive and more heeling.

I bought a used set of sails from a DS racer. Used race sails may not get you to first place, but they have years of cruising life remaining. Beyond
wear and tear, look for a sail with a lot of resin - sail material contains a resin to help it hold its shape. Don't worry about the "spider-crack" wrinkles, or folds. I purchased a set from a local DS fleet member and had a sailmaker add reef points ( I chose 5 feet up the luff for 60% SA) and it has made a world of difference in boat handling. If you make your own reef points make the tack and clew as strong as the orginal. The sail loft only used three other reef patches which is enough to hold extra material at the foot.

Fair Winds,

John C

John C (pf_flyer_1-at-yahoo.com)

[Guest]

Hi Al,

You have me baffled. I'm not all that sail savvy, being primarily a stinkpotter. What's a slab reefing system?

Frank.

Frank Skewes (fskewes-at-ebmail.gdeb.com)

[Guest]

Hi Al,
Slab reefing entails a pulley and hook for the tack end and clew end of the sail. Typically there are reef points so many feet up the sail. First you attach the hook at the clew located at the leech (aft) end of the sail and pull it down to the boom. This raises the boom up. If the reef point is very high, you might need to lower the mainsail some while doing this. Then you attach the hook to the tack located at the luff (bow) end of the sail and pull it down to the boom. After this haul the mainsail up tight and tie the reef points around the boom if necessary and adjust the cunningham and boom vang if so equipped.

Hope that helps,

Paul

Paul Diglio (paul.diglio-at-erols.com)

[Guest]

Before you go putting patches & grommets in your sail in order to install slab reefing check your boom.

Many (all?) Day Sailers came with booms that have roller reefing for the main (you can roll the main on the boom). If you pull aft on the boom while the goosneck fitting is in the luff groove of the mast the boom can be turned. [Even if your boom does not have this capability you can still roll the main up on it] The major change you have to make (while using this technique of shortening sail) is you have to remove the midboom block from the boom and run the main sheet from your main cleat directly to the end of the boom.

Whenever shortening sail (no matter how you do it) I would recommend that you lower the sail to keep the boom at its normal 'height'. This lowers the center of effort on the sail and cuts the 'heeling' force as much as, if not more than, reducing sail area.

Keith Bay (kabay-at-execpc.com)

[Guest]

Hi Everyone.
My DSII has roller reefing, and it works OK. (I've only used it once or twice.) The thing is I don't have a rear traveler. My mainsheet goes from the boom straight down to the cleet. (well through a few blocks anyway) roller reefing is possible because I have a horseshoe shaped reefing collar that fits over the boom that you clip the main sheet to. (My top block has a snap shackle on the top to make this easier.) It works OK. It slides a little bit if you are on a run downwind and have the boom far out and not much tension on the sheet. It came with the boat, so I don't know where it was bought.
As far as my centerboard goes I haven't had much trouble getting it down, but it is a real pain to get to stay up. (I am told I have a different centerboard than the standard one, good thing I haven't tried to race in the class yet.)

J.P. Clowes (jpclowes-at-hotmail.com)

[Guest]

Re: Message from J.P. Clowes,

I have considered the same thing, but don't like the way the boom droops after roller reefing (Lord knows, the boom is low enough without reefing). I asked my sailmaker to install slab reefing tack and clew and reef points over the winter. Haven't tried it yet, but it seems like a more elegant, if more costly solution.

If anyone is interested, let me know and I'll post the results once I have tried it out later in the season.

Alan Willens (willens@usa.net)

Alan Willens (willens-at-usa.net)

[Guest]

I have found that when sailing on the mainsail alone, it is virtually impossible to come about without getting into irons, and I can't point well upwind. I haven't found this to be so true on other sailboats. I wonder what it is about the DS design that causes this.

Also, in addition to reefing the mainsail, has anyone considered carrying a storm jib? I would think that in heavy weather we might want both a storm jib and a reefed mainsail. Does anyone know where a smaller than normal jib for a DS could be purchased, and what size to get?

Ken C (kcobb-at-bspmlaw.com)

[Guest]

It's funny that you mention the problem of coming about with the only the main being used. I'm new to sailing and this past weekend was a bit windier than I felt comfortable with, so I went out with only the mainsail on my '82 DSI. I found it nearly impossible to turn without stopping straight into the wind. I was so discouraged and just though I need to learn a lot more about sailing, but maybe it wasn't just me.

Tim Otis (tim-at-otis.mv.com)

[Guest]

When I first bought my DSI I went out with an experienced sailor who had raced different classes of smaller boats. He couldn't come about successfully without the jib up, and remarked to me that the DSI was less capable of sailing without a jib than the other boats he had sailed. So, yes, I think it is in the design. It means that for heavier weather we have to rely on mainsail reefs and possibly storm jibs or jib reefs as well.

Ken C (kcobb-at-bspmlaw.com)

[Guest]

I have been corresponding privately with Ken Cobb in response to his query about sailing in a hard blow, and am posting this here as I saw a post from another member who also had the problem of not being able to come about in a blow on main alone. After having my DS II essentially unconrollable with main only last summer, I concluded that the only practicable solution for me was to reduce the size on my main. I had a sailmaker put in grommets and sail reinforcement in the luff and leech of the main about two feet up from the foot. She also put in four traditional reef points distributed along what would be the reefed foot of the sail, mainly for aesthetic purposes (It works fine without them, but isless neat. I added a slab reefing hook on the boom at the gooseneck and a cheek block and cleat on the boom to make a simple slab reefing arrangement.

I have had to use the reef gear twice so far this season and the boat has become a joy fo sail in a stiff breeze, instead of a bear to wrestle with.

A roller-furling jib would pribably be a further improvement, but would add complexity and probably considerable cost to what is, at heat, a simple, inexpensive boat.

Alan Willens (willens-at-usa.net)