Downwind on a Budget

[elhix]

I'm finishing up the four-year build of a John Shuttleworth 32 cat which is - par for the course - overbudget and overtime... I've got a mainsail on order, plus a self-tacking jib as per the design sailplan but I'm having trouble deciding on my downwind sail. What do people think I should spend my limited funds on? Asmmetric chute? Furling genoa?

[Talbot]

dead downwind and cruising - twin genoa regardless of what boat type. With a cat you can use two whisker poles, rather than setting up a twizzle rig.

I would also consider having a code 0 rigged on a prodder for those times when the wind is not quite from the right direction!

[Cheechako]

Furling genoa. I often didnt even use the main downwind or broad reaching in my cat. No pole needed with the main down. simple and effective.

[44'cruisingcat]

You can often find second hand symmetrical spinnakers very cheap. Fly from blocks mounted on the bows.

[Tropic Cat]

I think it depends on your crew size. I can't believe that the handling any kind of a chute single handed would be recommended. The trade wind sail rigs are as Talbot suggested. I've also heard them called a butterfly rig. Either way it's the same thing, two head sails on furlers which is optimum for single handed, DDW sailing.

[44'cruisingcat]

Yeah, it was a cheap option, but single handing will probably mean more money needs to be spent.

My plan is to have a prodder which can be "tacked" from side to side and fly a reaching sail from it on a soft luff furler. For near DDW work, the tack is pulled to windward, for light air close reaching the tack let down to leeward.

I think this will be an easily handled and versatile set-up, but not the cheapest.

[Nordic cat]

I was out on a cat last saturday that had a Spifurl furler for the asymmetric spinnaker.

It worked amazingly well. Here is part of what I wrote on another forum

We started out with the wind at 120 to 150 degrees, so out came the asymmetric spinnaker on it's Spifurl system, one I had not seen before. The sail comes out of the bag as a furled sail with the small endless roller at one end and a bearing system at the other. The sheets are attached, the roller end clips on to a line on the bowsprit, and the endless furling line which is only 2-3 meters long, is led back to the back of the trampoline for a good secure working position. The halyard is attached, sail raised and unfurled nice and easily.

Once the sail was unfurled, the whole furling system came into view, it is simply a dyneema line between the furler at the bottom and the bearing system that attaches to the halyard. Halfway up this line which is around 12mm/½" thick, a thinner line is attached to the leading edge of the asymmetric sail. What happens is, the thin line is first wound around the dyneema furling line, and then the middle section of the sail is pulled in first, resulting in a very neatly furled spinnaker.

Retrieving and setting the asymmetric was a breeze, in fact much easier than using the pull down bag system that i have now.

This system and a swinging prodder like 44C wants would be the ideal setup for single handing downwind.

Whether you chose an asymmetric spinnaker, a Code0 or a screacher depends on what angles you want to run. On a fast boat like yours, I would go with a slightly flatter cut, as you will be pulling your relative wind forward more than on a heavy boat.

Alan