Doyle Universal Power Sail

[jdoorly]

Wecome to the Zero's, Alan. That small yet fast portion of Daysailers with Code Zero spinnakers. Enjoy!

BTW, I got the idea from Roger...

[Alan]

Thanks, Jay. I got the idea from Roger too. Maybe we could add a little zero to one corner of the Daysailer burgee. Is there a Daysailer burgee?

[Alan]

Woohoo! Got the word that the sail is done and on its way, almost a month early.

Got the Ronstan furler and the bowsprit parts already. Now all I need is sheets and blocks and cleats. I read through the thread again today, studying what everyone has done so far. I may be able to cobble something together from parts in my box of shiny stuff, in the "it seemed like a good idea at the time" compartment. However, I would welcome any thoughts on that particular aspect.

[ChrisB]

Alan,

I used Race Lite RL-305 swivel blocks from Duckworks Boat Builders Supply because they were heavy duty enough (1700 lbs) and reasonably priced. They are attached to the horizontal part of the coaming using Race Lite RL-318 spin straps (also from Duckworks), SST screws, and 3M 5200. For the sheets I used 1/4" New England Sta Set Poly from West Marine. 1/4" is hard on the hands when the wind picks up but doesn't drag down the clew of the sail in light air. The sheets cross the cockpit to Clamcleats on the windward side so I can adjust the UPS without leaving the rail. The clamcleats are also screwed to the coaming and bedded with 3M 5200. I've had some pretty good pulls on my UPS sheets and this setup has never sliped or let go.

Chris

[K.C. Walker]

Congratulations Alan! You’re going to love it.

I use New England Ropes Bzzz line for sheets all over my boat and love it. I think it’s an incredible bargain in high tech sheet line. It’s got a great soft feel in hand, it’s lightweight, it runs through blocks beautifully, it doesn’t kink and tangle as a double braid does, it’s held up really well, and best of all it’s reasonably priced.

I considered using a tapered sheets to get really light weight or even to use Flight Line from New England Ropes but in the end I went with the 7 mm Bzzz line rigged as a Y sheet using eighth inch Amsteel as the pigtail that I attached to the UPS clue using a soft shackle. It’s worked out great and even in the lightest breeze the sail flies just fine. The below tutorial shows how to make the pigtail using single braid line. The Bzzz takes a bit of coercing to get the eighth inch to go through it but it’s not that bad.

To make my Y sheet I made an eye splice in the 1/8 inch Amsteel to attach my soft shackle and then spliced the other end through the Bzzz at the midpoint using this video. However, instead after going through the Bzzz and making the splice I buried the bitter end in the Amsteel making it a single line. It worked really well and I’ve done the same set up on my jib sheet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=en ... gLSyzlfQUk

I really like, and I mean REALLY like, having auto ratchets for the UPS sheets. I hunt eBay for bargains and have done well. I just picked up two closeout new 52 mm Holt-Alan auto ratchets for $25 each plus shipping, as opposed to $90 each at APS. These will replace the three-year old Ronstan 40 mm auto ratchets (eBay $20 each) I used last year, one of which is starting to go bad. On my big UPS the 40 mm ones were okay but I think I will enjoy an improvement by increasing the size.

[Alan]

This is a tentative setup of blocks and cleats for a Doyle Utility Power Sail. The bow is to the left in the photo. The cheek block on top of the coaming is a stand-in for an autoratchet block.

tentative UPS sheet blocks.jpg (181.88 KiB) Viewed 25468 times

Thanks once again for the advice, gang.

I've been mulling over Chris's and K.C.'s solutions. Does this look workable to you guys? In the photo above the bow is to the left. I've set up a swivel block (coincidentally, the same brand and model as Chris's and sourced from Duckworks) and a cheek block and a cam cleat and some line, all left over from abandoned ideas.

The swivel block is set up almost the way I read Chris's description, but outside the coaming instead of on top of it.

The cheek block is a stand-in for an autoratchet cheek block because I don't have them yet. I'm thinking of Ronstan 57 mm, or maybe Harken 55s because the ratchet release load is adjustable.

The cam cleat is maybe overdoing it, but I've got two of them already, so what the heck.

The line is 1/4-inch Sta-Set because I happened to have it, but my creaky fingers are definitely leaning toward 7 mm Bzzz.

And I want to make the Dyneema soft shackle just for the fun of it. Still got to pass the time until April...

I'm hoping to keep lines out of the cockpit for now, partly because there's less of a tripping hazard and partly because there will be two to four people in the boat. Seems to me that this setup will do that, and also give a 180-degree turn around the autoratchet.

Make sense?

[K.C. Walker]

My UPS is cut to be sheeted at the spinnaker turning blocks, near the transom. When I was discussing this with Josh from Doyle, he said that was the standard set up. They did a great job and the sail sets just right from that position. I bring the sheet forward from the turning blocks to a block on a second car on the jib sheet track.

I haven’t decided about cleating. So far, I haven’t cleated it, which is why I like the rachet blocks. I do sometimes snub it off by wrapping it either one half or a full turn around a horn cleat, though. This seems to work so far.

For me, your cheek block location looks to be the premium hiking out location which I would find to be a problem.

[Alan]

Hmmm. The sheet cleat location didn't come up when I talked to Paul from Doyle in New York - our conversations were mostly about luff and foot length.

I see your point about hiking out - the block location in the photo is right about where I'd be sitting to have the mainsheet in hand. I should probably move the turning blocks aft.

Are your autoratchets the turning blocks, or the second blocks on the jib sheet tracks?

[K.C. Walker]

The auto ratchets are on the aft deck which gives the 180° wrap and are swivel style.

[Alan]

A nice tidy solution.

(clears cart at online marine parts store) It's amazing how much money I've saved since I started asking people here for their ideas, instead of just racing off and buying stuff.

[ChrisB]

Alan,

Does your boat have the stern cleats? If so, before I drilled any holes, I would tie a 24" piece of line to each of the Race Lite blocks and experiment with placement of the the turning blocks that best suit your UPS. Since I had mine cut like a light air genoa, my blocks are further forward than the standard location for a spinnaker block. Also, it looks like the cam cleat in your setup would require pulling the UPS sheet aft to engage it in the cleat. If you are going to be close or beam reaching with the sail or if you sail solo, you will want to be able to cleat and uncleat it from the windward side of the boat. Since I don't roller furl mine, to douse the sail I head downwind, lock the tiller, and gather in the blanketed sail from under the boom. I wanted to minimize the number of blocks and fairleads the sheet passed through to minimize the opportunity to foul the sheet while I was taking it in. If you plan to roller furl yours, that's less of a concern.

- Chris

[GreenLake]

Chris,

that's a nice suggestion. When I rigged my spinnaker (a very used one) I didn't want to commit to drilling. I ended up getting small blocks designed for lashing, rather than bolting on and just tied them to the stern cleats. That improvised solution has survived two seasons so far, just to show you the power of the "don't mess with a working system" maxim.

[Alan]

Chris,

Good point about the stern cleats. I did a lot of measuring before I ordered the sail, but it was focused on luff length, with foot length as a byproduct. It looks like I'll have to wait for the sail to show up, then hoist it and make things fit. I do have stern cleats, so attaching the aft blocks to them sounds like an ideal way to figure out the permanent location.

The sail was shipped from Florida last Thursday, so maybe just a couple of days more...

[K.C. Walker]

Alan,

You should contact Doyle and ask. If they know it’s going on an O’Day Daysailer, which has standard measurements that they know, and you gave them your I and J, they should have cut the sail to sheet at the spinnaker block. Of course, the stern cleat is pretty close to that location.

[Alan]

K.C., I took your advice and asked Doyle. Paul from Doyle says he uses the spinnaker locations, but didn't offer specifics on my sail. On the other hand, delivery of the sail is scheduled for tomorrow, so I guess I'll find out soon enough.

Chris, I'm definitely wanting to close and beam reach, so I guess I'll need to think about how to control the sheets from the windward side. It should be a lot easier to figure out with an actual sail rigged.