Ozzie
I think in the original reference he was talking about the old fashioned reefing system, and not "jiffy reefing".
Yara has the set-up as per the sheet in our technical forum. Only difference with Yara is that both lines end up cleating at the middle of the boom, and I can stand in the cabin and pull on the reefs. The other thing that makes life easier, is that I am using the original main, which has mainsail slides, so that I can hoist and lower without going to the foredeck. On reefing, though, I have to lean forward from the cabin, and pull out the clip which holds the bottom slides.
The newer mainsail has a bolt rope in the luff, and is not so easy to hoist single handed.
Heavy weather sailing
Re: Heavy weather sailing
Ian B
Ex Investigator 563 #50 Yara
Ex Investigator 563 #50 Yara
Re: Heavy weather sailing
Good Afternoon,
I know its been a while since this thread was in use but I am in the process of specifying a new mainsail and reefing is important.
I have had some success with boom rollers on my Hartley 18. It had a crank handle at the mast. It was a matter of retaining control over the halyard, pulling the sail down by its bolt rope and then winding up the slack. Yes, there was a bagginess at the other end of the boom. You also had to remove and replace a horseshoe shaped vang attachment.
More recently I have had sailed many times on a Timpenny 770. It has a fully-battened, loose-footed main (about 5 battens I think and all are parallel to the boom). When we put in the first reef its a matter of changing the attachment of the cunningham to higher up the luff and to do something similar on the leech with the outhaul plus an additional velcro strap. These are heavily reinforced eyelets (I forget their name). The sail just hangs there in between and never gets in any trouble irrespective of the conditions. There are two other reefing points further up the sail and they work just the same way.
I believe roller reefing with could work in combination with these reinforced eyelets. The bagginess becomes a moot point.
With a bolt rope luff raising the sail from being rolled around the boom ususally works best if you unroll the sail a bit first. Pull on the halyard, feed in the sail, secure the halyard, repeat.
Peter
I know its been a while since this thread was in use but I am in the process of specifying a new mainsail and reefing is important.
I have had some success with boom rollers on my Hartley 18. It had a crank handle at the mast. It was a matter of retaining control over the halyard, pulling the sail down by its bolt rope and then winding up the slack. Yes, there was a bagginess at the other end of the boom. You also had to remove and replace a horseshoe shaped vang attachment.
More recently I have had sailed many times on a Timpenny 770. It has a fully-battened, loose-footed main (about 5 battens I think and all are parallel to the boom). When we put in the first reef its a matter of changing the attachment of the cunningham to higher up the luff and to do something similar on the leech with the outhaul plus an additional velcro strap. These are heavily reinforced eyelets (I forget their name). The sail just hangs there in between and never gets in any trouble irrespective of the conditions. There are two other reefing points further up the sail and they work just the same way.
I believe roller reefing with could work in combination with these reinforced eyelets. The bagginess becomes a moot point.
With a bolt rope luff raising the sail from being rolled around the boom ususally works best if you unroll the sail a bit first. Pull on the halyard, feed in the sail, secure the halyard, repeat.
Peter
Last edited by Dr. Peter on Tue Oct 04, 2011 10:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Peter
Pip #127
Pip #127
Re: Heavy weather sailing
Hello Forum Members,
I have had some additional thoughts about this topic and wonder why some of them have not been mentioned.
OTBs (off the beach boats) usually can't reef at all and so use other methods to de-power the sails. I believe these should be part of your sailing repetoire. These include flattening the mainsail, spilling air from the main, depowering the foresail, and moving crew weight.
Flattening the mainsail can be achieved by judicious application of the cunningham attachment. If you don't have one of these then move the boom as far as possible down the mast and tension the halyard. You can get the foot of the mainsail flatter by tightening the outhaul. Another way to flatten the main is to increase backstay tension.
My I563 #127 (Pip) does not have a boom vang but other boats I have sailed do. I looked at my copy of A Manual of Sailboat Trim (Stuart H. Walker, 1985). Walker suggests in heavy air (his words) moderate tension should be applied but in very heavy air 'use marked tension'. The boom end should 'float'. This allows air to spill from the main.
The mainsheet on an Investigator attaches to an adjustable track at the transom. This is not a traveller but it will allow the boom to be set more to leeward. Many catamarans have similar, albeit wider, arrangements. It is amazing now about six inches of offset to leeward calms the heeling of a boat when beating (I race an OTB catamaran). You will find a lot less need to release the main.
If the conditions are quite challenging then try to 'not' cleat the main. A belay around the tiller handle is a pretty good alternative as it can be let go in a puff.
For the jib you can adjust your fair leads all the way back - this should tighten up the foot of the sail and open up the top of the jib leech where it will spill air. A dinghy approach to trimming the jib is to let it out until it flaps and then trim in until it stops.
For those of you with big furling gennies, on the Timpenny I sail it carries a 130%, if we can't depower by letting out the traveller and main, then it is time to furl the genny. I don't know enough about I563s with gennies to comment if they are similar.
Another point - which seems incredibly obvious to me, but might not be because how much ballast is carried in an I563 is to get the crew weight to windward. Move yourself and your crew.
Major question - and this counts for for all sailing - how does it feel on the tiller? This is key. Trimming for a bit of weather helm is the goal. Don't forget the centre-plate of a 563 can be adjusted to help here. I'm sure other forum members can advise.
Apologies to those who know this stuff, but my reading of who our forum members are suggests to me that there is a significant number of newbies. Reefing is not the only option in heavy weather sailing, but I support the opinion stated earlier that if you think you might take in sail soon - don't wait. Do it now. A skill I highly recommend is learning to heave to. This can calm things down quite a lot while wet weather gear and PFDs are found and put on. A reef is put in the main. The motor is lowered and started. Whatever.
Peter
I have had some additional thoughts about this topic and wonder why some of them have not been mentioned.
OTBs (off the beach boats) usually can't reef at all and so use other methods to de-power the sails. I believe these should be part of your sailing repetoire. These include flattening the mainsail, spilling air from the main, depowering the foresail, and moving crew weight.
Flattening the mainsail can be achieved by judicious application of the cunningham attachment. If you don't have one of these then move the boom as far as possible down the mast and tension the halyard. You can get the foot of the mainsail flatter by tightening the outhaul. Another way to flatten the main is to increase backstay tension.
My I563 #127 (Pip) does not have a boom vang but other boats I have sailed do. I looked at my copy of A Manual of Sailboat Trim (Stuart H. Walker, 1985). Walker suggests in heavy air (his words) moderate tension should be applied but in very heavy air 'use marked tension'. The boom end should 'float'. This allows air to spill from the main.
The mainsheet on an Investigator attaches to an adjustable track at the transom. This is not a traveller but it will allow the boom to be set more to leeward. Many catamarans have similar, albeit wider, arrangements. It is amazing now about six inches of offset to leeward calms the heeling of a boat when beating (I race an OTB catamaran). You will find a lot less need to release the main.
If the conditions are quite challenging then try to 'not' cleat the main. A belay around the tiller handle is a pretty good alternative as it can be let go in a puff.
For the jib you can adjust your fair leads all the way back - this should tighten up the foot of the sail and open up the top of the jib leech where it will spill air. A dinghy approach to trimming the jib is to let it out until it flaps and then trim in until it stops.
For those of you with big furling gennies, on the Timpenny I sail it carries a 130%, if we can't depower by letting out the traveller and main, then it is time to furl the genny. I don't know enough about I563s with gennies to comment if they are similar.
Another point - which seems incredibly obvious to me, but might not be because how much ballast is carried in an I563 is to get the crew weight to windward. Move yourself and your crew.
Major question - and this counts for for all sailing - how does it feel on the tiller? This is key. Trimming for a bit of weather helm is the goal. Don't forget the centre-plate of a 563 can be adjusted to help here. I'm sure other forum members can advise.
Apologies to those who know this stuff, but my reading of who our forum members are suggests to me that there is a significant number of newbies. Reefing is not the only option in heavy weather sailing, but I support the opinion stated earlier that if you think you might take in sail soon - don't wait. Do it now. A skill I highly recommend is learning to heave to. This can calm things down quite a lot while wet weather gear and PFDs are found and put on. A reef is put in the main. The motor is lowered and started. Whatever.
Peter
Peter
Pip #127
Pip #127