Glenn. Some of your designs have travelers and some do not. Can the non-traveler designs be sailed as efficiently as the traveler designs and if so what techniques would be used to help them do so?
Traveler
- Thread starter Quoddy
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Quoddy,
Non-traveller designs can be sailed efficiently with the use of the vang. To produce say a heavy air setting, vang down to straighten the leech and ease the mainsheet which effectively is like dropping the traveller. The other extreme, light air, ease the vang and sheet the main enough to pull the boom to the windward. It is more difficult to optimize sail trim in light air. The 260 doesn't respond well to the boom beeing pulled all the way to the weather anyway so a traveller is just in the way. Larger keelboats can deal with that better because they have inertia to keep them moving when puffs die off. You might be able to optimize trim faster with a traveller but good results can be had without. Many if not most performance dinghy classes doe not use a traveller.
Non-traveller designs can be sailed efficiently with the use of the vang. To produce say a heavy air setting, vang down to straighten the leech and ease the mainsheet which effectively is like dropping the traveller. The other extreme, light air, ease the vang and sheet the main enough to pull the boom to the windward. It is more difficult to optimize sail trim in light air. The 260 doesn't respond well to the boom beeing pulled all the way to the weather anyway so a traveller is just in the way. Larger keelboats can deal with that better because they have inertia to keep them moving when puffs die off. You might be able to optimize trim faster with a traveller but good results can be had without. Many if not most performance dinghy classes doe not use a traveller.
boom to wearher
Could you elaborate on what it is in the design of the H260 that makes it respond poorly to the boom being pulled all the way to weather? What type of poor response should I be looking for?
Could you elaborate on what it is in the design of the H260 that makes it respond poorly to the boom being pulled all the way to weather? What type of poor response should I be looking for?
How sails work
Hi Quoddy
Imagine for a minute that the mainsail is a flat rigid sheet. As the wind blows against it with the boom to leeward it will be forced both over to leeward and forward. The "over force" causes the boat to heel and tries to push it to leeward. the "forward force" thrusts the boat, well forward.
If you drag the boom to windward the mainsail now produces an over force and a backward force. The jib may be able to overpower the main or it may not. This has application in close quarters as you now have a means of reversing without the engine.
To answer your question, the boat will heel a lot and not go anywhere.
Hi Quoddy
Imagine for a minute that the mainsail is a flat rigid sheet. As the wind blows against it with the boom to leeward it will be forced both over to leeward and forward. The "over force" causes the boat to heel and tries to push it to leeward. the "forward force" thrusts the boat, well forward.
If you drag the boom to windward the mainsail now produces an over force and a backward force. The jib may be able to overpower the main or it may not. This has application in close quarters as you now have a means of reversing without the engine.
To answer your question, the boat will heel a lot and not go anywhere.
Hi Quoddy,
I think that one of the issues with using a traveller for the mainsheet is the length of sheeting from boom to deck/arch block. On a boat with a high boom and sheeting to a block in the middle of the cockpit floor it will always be impossible to bring the boom to centerline while sailing. This is especially true in light airs and if you want more twist in the sail and have eased the vang off. Tightening the mainsheet to bring it in toward the centerline will now also pull the boom down and flatten sail shape. This is where the traveller may need to be moved to weather, even though the boom never approaches the centerline. On Hunter designs with the mainsheet sheeted to an arch over the cockpit the length of sheet is much shorter and need for using the traveller seems to be a lot less. I find ours useful for making minor adjustments to the main without going forward to the winch on the cabin top.
I think that one of the issues with using a traveller for the mainsheet is the length of sheeting from boom to deck/arch block. On a boat with a high boom and sheeting to a block in the middle of the cockpit floor it will always be impossible to bring the boom to centerline while sailing. This is especially true in light airs and if you want more twist in the sail and have eased the vang off. Tightening the mainsheet to bring it in toward the centerline will now also pull the boom down and flatten sail shape. This is where the traveller may need to be moved to weather, even though the boom never approaches the centerline. On Hunter designs with the mainsheet sheeted to an arch over the cockpit the length of sheet is much shorter and need for using the traveller seems to be a lot less. I find ours useful for making minor adjustments to the main without going forward to the winch on the cabin top.
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