Hi Folks:
Now that I have almost 2 months of sailing on the "new #37", I wanted to share some thoughts and observations, in the hope that they might be useful for future Daysailer skippers. So, for what it's worth:
-I'm constantly tinkering, it's great fun, although sometimes I overdo it, overcomplicating the rig. Well, live and learn. I've got more sail controls and convenience on the water, at the cost of more time rigging /unrigging my boat at the ramp. Arrival at ramp->Sailing away total time has steadily increased from 30-40 mins to an hour. That being said, I like my new rig, so it's worth it to me. What did I do?:
a) 20:1 boom vang. Works great to help "steer" the boat upwind and do it's usual thing downwind. But this is the big rigging complicator, it adds 10 mins or so, even using snap-shackles wherever I can. I'm still tinkering - fine-tuning the cascade lines, and thinking of ways to simplify the setting-up procedure.
b) Boom outhaul. I started at 2:1 and quickly realized that it needs another block. 3:1 is Ok for now and it works great. Just a bit fiddly when I'm taking the mainsail off the mast, since I have to remember to loose the outhaul. No big deal and an outhaul really helps me upwind.
c) Open cheek block on the boom for the topping lift. This one is a great convenience, my toppping lift is tied off at the masthead, comes down to a cheekblock at the end of the boom and then forward to a little horn cleat at the middle of the boom. The cheekblock has an open back, so I can just pop the topping lift on and off when I rig/unrig the boat - and there's a little lip so I dont have it pop out when I don't want. Advantage is that I can easily change the angle of the boom underway - there are times (broad reaching) when I want the end cocked upwards a bit, making a nice fat "belly" (GL is gonna argue with me here), and also when I'm motoring I pull the boom up for convenience, I'm a tall guy. And if I'm beating close-hauled, I like some slack on the lift, so it doesnt catch the mainsail. Anyway, works for me.
d) Cunningham/Boom Downhaul. I've rigged a 2:1 cascade by the mast, on the cabin-top, to pull the tack of the mainsl downwards. As I don't have a Cunningham cringle (hole) in my mains'l, I just loop the free end of the cascade over the lowermost mast slug and then shackle the end to a padeye on the back of the mast, below the sail track. It works, 6 inches of pull yanks the mains'l draft forward nicely. But... I'm not racing, so I dont have to worry about keeping the gooseneck above the band, so why not use a boom downhaul? So I've been experimenting, simply running the same free end over the gooseneck to pull it down. Jury is still out, but if I like it I may rig another small block beneath the gooseneck especially for the downhaul. Anyway, the whole thing adds another 5 mins to my rigging/unrigging. I'm developing a love/hate relationship to the sliding gooseneck!
e) Reverse Purchase jib downhaul. I "stole" an idea from the forum:
viewtopic.php?f=12&t=4274&p=20346&hilit=reverse+purchase#p20342Works well, although I wont say great. I certainly does what I want - brings the jib down fast and securely (no shrimping!), and even better it keeps the jib from riding up the stay when I'm on mainsail alone. Which has been often, as I don't raise the jib while reaching if I'm solo in more than 12ish knots of wind (it gets tiring, even with GL's wonderful ratchet blocks. I don't have jibsheet cleats yet). No worries about extra weight aloft, as I'm using a small double block for the jib halyard and downhaul, and the reverse purchase block (the one that runs up/down by the stay) lives at the stemhead when the jib is up. But.. it's one more thing to remember - loose the downhaul when I'm raising the jib, one more thing to rig (2-3 mins), and it sometimes snags. No big deal when it snags, just pull on the halyard, but it's an annoyance. However, I quickly learned not to run the downhaul up through the jib's snap-shackles, will snag for sure! Overall, the good outweighs the bad and it's perfect for when I''m single-handing. Also let's me sail up to the ramp area full-blast, and quickly drop all plain sail. Fun!
-I'll be happy to take/share photos or answer questions on any of the above rigging, if anyone is interested.
-In other news, jumper stays aka diamond stays SUCK. They came original with my mast, and I've left them on thinking I'd give them a chance. Also, they're hard to take off, so I was lazy!
Well, sheer hate has overcome my laziness. I'm constantly getting my main halyard, jib halyard, mainsail, topping lift, etc tangled in the jumper stays. The jumpers completely screw the leading edge of the top 1/3 of my main when ever I'm running or even broad-reaching. And they don't do what they're supposed to do - prevent forward bend! Explanation - I can bend my mast backwards just fine with the boom vang, even with the jumpers, because the jumper struts sweep back a bit. Fine, I think, should keep my masthead in place when I'm running. Nope! I ran down my local lake in an 18-knot breeze - both wing-on-wing and broad reaching (tried both) and the top 1/3 of the mast bent in all sorts of funny directions, mostly sideways and often to the windward! Yes, I had the mast jack properly tightened... Forget that, goodbye jumpers! As a side note, I was parked next to a Thistle while rigging my boat on Sunday and those things have TRIPLE jumper stays, from boom to masthead! I threw up a little bit in my mouth..... Beautiful boat ,though!
-I've been taking it easy on the heeling angles. I know I want to sail the boat flat as possible anyway, but the truth is that I've been luffing the sail a LOT because I'm just not confident about putting the boat on her ear without a reassuring chunk of lead in my keel (or another hull.. I grew up on Hobie Cats). Well, this past Sunday cured me of any worries, I spent my entire time upwind with the rail buried, even shipped green water over the coaming a few times. No big deal at all, my fat behind perched up on the windward rail kept things well under control (insert lead-ass joke here). Even 20-30 gallons of water sloshing around the bilges didn't affect anything. I know, everyone writing on this forum says the DS is stable at high angles, but seeing is believing. Next time though, with a good wind, I'm dragging my crew out on the rail with me, let's stay flat and faster.
-Also in other news, my EP Carry motor continues to be wonderful, it's done everything I've asked of it including pushing me upwind in a 20-knot breeze (while I raise the sails). Only one issue, don't ever let the connectors get wet, motor wont start. Frantic blowing on the connectors does the trick, but it can be a bit hairy.
-Last tidbit, I finally got my "First Mate" aboard:
- Sailing with Trusty Dog
- TaffyTom-640x480.jpg (65.58 KiB) Viewed 17676 times
Meet Taffy, the AfterGuard Mutt. She soon figured out that the afterpart of the cockpit was all for her and spent a great Saturday on (and in) the water with me. Looking forward to more to come!
Best,
Tom
P.S. How to beat upwind without the jib? Roll-tack, baby! I don't nail it every time, but it usually does the trick. And makes me feel like a 10-year old kid on an Opti again