Hi Lloyd,
For my intents and purposes the Fractional rig has worked out really well. I do not have all the numbers in front of me right now but I increased the rig by a little over 4.5 feet with almost all of that in the P measurement (mainsail hoist)
Banjo Girl a Hodgdon built boat suffered from lee-helm and was fairly underpowered in the light stuff. Under the advise and guidance of Niels Helleberg (R.I.P.) we came up with a rig plan for Banjo Girl.
The rig plan is not unlike Serena that is for sale at the present although my rig differs in that it is aluminum rather than Carbon fiber. Had I to do it all over again I might spend the extra and go carbon fiber.
She is much better in the light stuff, balances very well and I have sailed her for miles without having to touch the helm. I've also installed an inner-forestay and at times sail her with a genoa and staysail. (she likes this)
If it really pipes up, I'll strike the genoa and sail her with reefed main and staysail.
She will heel quite a bit with too much sail up when the wind comes up but the helm usually stays pretty neutral, I suspect she would stand up better if we had a carbon fiber mast...
The Hodgdon boat's rigs are a little different than the Molich boats. The mast is moved about 1 foot further aft and they have a smaller E dimension (boom length). I also think that the mast on Banjo Girl had either been shortened by the previous owner by 1-2 feet or delivered this way. In my correspondence with Ted Reed about Sensu (the last Caravelle built by Hodgdon) I learned that his rig was a bit taller than mine.
From experience, I can tell you that the boat balances very well and has neutral helm even when it is blowing. I do have to reef earlier than before and the rail will be awash going to weather. I think with todays better sails, running rigging and lighter mast sections it makes sense to put a taller rig on these boats. I don't know if the fractional rig would work out for you as it did for me but I like it.
I can send you some sailplan stuff if you would like. ...I'll have to go through some older files to find them though.
Good Luck with Wind Song. I'm enjoying reading about your getting to know her and make improvements.
JZ
