Mast rake correction update

[cs]

Just thought I would post an update here. If you remember there was a slight problem with my mast rake and the sail was not quite cut right. I've corrected the mast rake by cutting out the front of the mast box and letting the mast come into the cabin slightly. Worked great and the mast is not positioned correctly. I still have to re-cut the jib, it is out also, but the wife feels that she can re-sew it for me.

Before:

After:

Chad

[kydocfrog]

Well, that certainly does look a bit better, although the original Baltimore Clipper look had a certain amount of charm.

Just out of curiosity, given the rather massive keel available to mount into, did you put some sort of new step or other block to actually set the new location of the foot of the mast?

DocA

[cs]

I did add a 1" piece at the base to raise the mast a little bit.

Chad

[Barry Pyeatt]

Hang in there Chad, you are getting a lot closer to actually sailing this beast. Looking like a proper Weekender now. 8)

I'm curious though about the jib being the wrong shape now. If it were cut to the dimensions from the plans, how is it wrong?

Straightening out the mast to correct the rake was creative. I'll have to remember that one as an additional technique to suggest for the next one that has the same challenge.

Is the main just temporarily laced to the mast in this photo? There are some good alternative lacing patterns available on The Gaff Rig pages that will work well if you don't want to use mast hoops. The alternate back and forth lacing pattern works well on a Weekender and is self adjusting to the taper of the mast while under way. A number of the builders have used it with great success. You may want to set an outhaul on the foot of the sail at the end of the boom to control the tension on the foot as well. Will help a lot with mainsail shape.

[cs]

The manisail is laced onto the mast as per The Gaff Rigged Handbook. I may experiment with different ideas later.

As far as the jib being cut wrong, these sails were a gift to me and they came off of another weekender. I'm begining to wonder if they started life elsewhere and the weekender was modified to fit the sails. The foot on this jib is 104" where as the plan calls for 76". Going off of memory here so if I miss the measurement I apoligize, but there is 28" difference in the jib and what is on the plans.

Chad

[Barry Pyeatt]

Chad,

That measurement would make the jib a lapper. It should work just fine in light to moderate air. It will extend back to just about the forward shroud. It would require that you use seperate jib sheets rather than a clubfoot but will give you a better balanced sailplan under the majority of your sailing conditions.

That is essentially the dimensions that almost all the builders end up with that want a larger jib for better performance. Mine is 108" on the foot, Capt. Jake's lapper is just about that size as well as are a number of others. They all work well.

Some of them have been modified or assembled initially for use with a luffwire roller furling system that makes it easier to manage the sail and to furl it easily when single handing the boat.

In sailing on Puget Sound and the lakes here in the Northwest, the lapper really does perform well. But in high wind situations you would need to go to a smaller jib or just a reefed down mainsail.

You might just try it out and see how it works for you before cutting it to a smaller dimension.

[cs]

Thanks Barry. I may put it up this weekend and see how it works, before cutting into it.

Do you have some photos or details of how this is set up?

Chad

[Barry Pyeatt]

I don't think you will be sorry if you use it.

A doubled line serves as the individual sheets. I like to attach a clip at the center to allow me to just clip onto the clew when I'm getting set to go. The line should be at least 5/16" which is plenty heavy enough to handle it and twice as long as as the distance from the clew when set on one side or the other and then back to the opposite side when laid around the leading edge of the mast plus about 4-6 feet additional to reach the cam cleat and have a tail to hold onto when the sail is let out running down wind. Two blocks are used, one on either side and can be attached to the rear shroud about the height of the top edge of the chainplate. Or attached to a shackle just above that on the bottom eye of the turnbuckle. This gives you a pretty decent angle for the sheet to run back to the sides of the cockpit. I would attach a bullseye on the deck to keep the sheet running true and to prevent it from getting lost on you. Then either a cam cleat on a 3/4" high base or a horn cleat will make cleating the sheet off on either side easy and positive for use. I recommend a cam cleat with a fairlead attached to the top to keep the line captured at the cleat itself. Duckworks sells pretty affordable cam cleats with fairleads attached. You will find that mounting them further back than just at the main bulkhead makes working with them easier. The 3/4" block under them raises them just enough to make working with the sheet quick and positive to set the sheet in the cam cleat.

This will provide plenty of line for you to use the lapper to either side. You will find that it is easy to let it out to run down wind and flatten it substantially to work upwind.

Added benefit is that you can work with barely a whisper of wind against your face and hardly a ripple on the surface. The helm will be better balanced and tacking will not be an issue once you get used to working with the seperate sheets. The lapper grabs a lot of air and really helps drive the Weekender. Keep movable weight forward to keep the bow down and working in the water so load items in the cabin and keep them forward rather than crowding a lot of weight in the cockpit and under the seats.

[cs]

Thanks Barry. You hit on what I need to do. I was wondering how to run it without having to buy 2 new cheek blocks and waiting on them to get here. I can attach a block to the rear shroud (I've a quick release at the shroud and can attach a block there) and than run the sheet back to the cockpit and cleat it off. Later I may buy some cam cleats, but for now I will use the horn cleats I've made.

I think I can make this work.

Chad

[Dave R1]

Chad, here is a shot of the starboard side of Julie K. The red line is the jib sheet.

This is the clew of the jib. This little strop or whatever you want to call it is simply an eye and a stopper knot that just fits through the eye.

The jib sheets are made from a single piece of line with an Alpine Butterfly loop tied in the middle. The stop goes through the loop and then through the eye in the strop.

Almost like buttoning a shirt. I've never had it come apart accidently but I can hook it and unhook it with one hand if need be. There's no hardware banging around beisdes the grommet in the sail. It's easier on my bride's noggin too when she rides on the foredeck.

See here for how to tie the Alpine Butterfly. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpine_butterfly_knot