Sail combinations

[StuM]

> Oh yeah, and some form of main batten that does not play macrame with the lazy jacks would be nice too.

Bungee cord from the spreaders to the lazy jacks can sometimes reduce this problem

[GILow]

Originally Posted by StuM

> Oh yeah, and some form of main batten that does not play macrame with the lazy jacks would be nice too.

Bungee cord from the spreaders to the lazy jacks can sometimes reduce this problem

I have read of this. I should summon the courage to climb the mast and try it.

Gulp!

[GILow]

Originally Posted by carstenb

Matt,



If you want to avoid this, you might want to look at the Dutchman mainsail flaking system

MVBinfo · Dutchman Sail Hardware







There are an number of threads on CF - pros and cons -

Too right. Almost anchor level debate too. Thanks for the tip. I will give StuMs idea a try first though. Should have done so before now but have been too gutless to climb the mast. But I have run out of excuses I have to look it over before the Tasmania trip.

[svTOTEM]

Interesting to read differing views on sail combinations for going upwind. One point not covered is sail overlap “metric”. The % overlap is the ratio of a sail’s longest perpendicular (LP) to fore-triangle base (J) dimension.

-For LP, measure from clew to the point on the luff that is perpendicular to the clew. With sail stretched out, hold the dumb end of tape measure at clew and sweep the other end of the tape along the luff until you find the shortest distance – that is the perpendicular, LP measurement.
-For “J”, measure from the front of the mast at the deck level, to the intersection of headstay and deck.
-Overlap % = LP / J

So if the “J” is 10’, an 80% headsail has an LP of 8’; a 130% headsail has an LP of 13’. Foot length is always longer than LP. For any given LP, the higher the clew the longer the foot length.

[Nicholson58]

Originally Posted by Adelie

I would go with the main and genoa, more total area. Once you get a sense of how fast you are going try hoisting the staysail, but I don't think it'll add anything and may hurt. I would be happy if it helps. Let us know.

As far as bubbling the front of the main when the main and genoa are sheeted in hard, it's not a problem. When I used to race with one of the local rock stars we did that regularly going upwind, gave the best velocity made good so we did it.

The trick is not oversheeting the main. We used telltales on the leech of the main. Before hoisting the main tape some yarns to the trailing edge. When sailing sheet genoa in hard, not on the spreaders, but out a touch. Then point up until the genoa telltales near the luff stream properly. Then sheet the main in until the telltales on the leech stream properly. For leach telltales you want the telltales to stream back pointing aft. Play around with this and see how it works for you. If some stream and others stall then you may need to play with the twist of the sail by adjusting boom vang, topping lift etc.

Great calls, good advice Adellie.

Assume light to moderate wind on the nose:

GO close hauled with the greatest area you can raise. The genoa will always push the luff of the main to windward but the luff is in the shadow of the mast anyway so you don't care. If you don't have a soft luff you are over sheeting the main. It is more important to fly the main off and keep the leech tells flying. As an old racer, my advice is to make sure the genoa clew is situated fore / aft so that the top, middle and lower tells fly. Do not be afraid to let the inside tells run a bit soft, just short of lifting. You might think you are pinching but you need to find the fine line between power & pinch. As with the mast, the forestay will lay a wind shadow in the first couple of feet of the luff. Once the jib is proper, tweak the main so the leach and aft 1/3 of the main approximates a nearly parallel surface to the aft most surface of the genoa. The main's leach must not be hooked to windward. Assuming your main is not blown out, you can achieve this by adjusting the mast rake, the cunningham, sheet and the outhaul.

Get in the groove and record your speeds and combinations, sea state, drift and jib car position. You will want to know this some time in the future when you can't figure out who tied the bucket to your keel.

If you are game, set the cutter staysail. If the sail is quite flat, you may be successful. As with the jib & main, try to make the staysail surface about parallel to the adjacent genoa. If you are truely close hauled, the boat will probably slow down. The exception to this can occur if your sails are in good condition and the slot between the mast and forestay is great enough to permit the staysail to work. If this combination slows you, then crack off 3 to 5 degrees and reset. There will be a point where the staysail adds noticably to speed.

On another point, if you are running, set the genoa and yankee wing & wing and pole one clew out. Many long distance cruisers will use this set up with the main furled or scavenged. The boat will be stable and fast and you will not need to work to fly sails or steer. Some folks even add a second pole.

[GILow]

More great stuff from both. Thank you. I think I might need to print this out. Easier to follow. Did so with one of the anchoring guides and found it very useful.