Asymmetrical spinnaker beginner

[NYSail]

Hello all,I bought a 1986 P36-2 last year and the boat came with an asym spinnaker with a snuffer as well as a tri-radial spinnaker. I have never used an asym before and am wondering how to run my sheets and tack line as the boat does not have the blocks aft or a block for a tack line. Also, there were not any sheets with the sails.1 - when I pulled the asym sail out it has 2 clews (both marked "Clews"), one with green and one with red. Is one of these actually for my tack line?2 - can the sail be used without a tack line and used basically the same as a jib sail or sort of like my drifter sail on my last boat?3 - What is the difference between the asym and the tri-radial spinnakers? The boat never had a spinnaker pole or any additional set-ups for a traditional spinnaker, which I thought was the tri-radial.Thanks in advanced.........Greg

 

[BarryL]

let's go sailing

Hi Greg,My last boat came with an Asym, and a full sym spinnaker.Let's get together next week and go over the sails andwe'll figure out what you need.Give me a call or send me an email.Barry

 

[Terry Cox]

Hi Greg, the sail loft section of the chandlery...

on this site has some good articles on how to rig, fly and trim your asym spin. It really helped me when I set ours up a few years ago.Terry

 

[Alan]

Your ...

...asym may be a symmetrical spinnaker. Put the two 'Clews' together and run the luff tapes. If they are both the same length then the sail is a symmetrical. If they are different lengths then its an asymmetrical. The shorter luff is the real 'clew', the other is the 'tack'.Tri-radial refers to the layout of the panels used to make your sail. It has nothing to do with symmetrical or asymmetrical.The tack line can be attached to a block on your anchor roller and lead back to a stopper near the deck house winch. This makes adjusting the tack line very easy without having to leave the cockpit.Sheet should be run to turning blocks at the aft end of each toe rail and forward to the winch. Later you will learn about twings and where to add them.

 

[Jadedcrew]

Spinakers

Alan has nailed it. Every thing he has said is fact. Pull out the sails and check them the way he told you.

 

[Bill Roosa]

Tangle foot

Getting all this straight takes practice. With all the lines in the bag plus the lines that control the dousing bag you will be getting tangle foot the first couple of times you deploy the asym. Keep the faith, after you have rerun the sheets a few times you will get the hang of it. Once you get the hang of it things go pretty fast. I found that it was all about how you dowse the chute and not about how you deploy it. A good dowse will set you up for a good next deploy.And you are going to love sailing at 4 knots in 6 knots of wind!!!