I have an 21' American Fiberglass

[Perry Welch]

I spent a good amount of time the summer of 2021 replacing all the standing rigging with Dyneema, and rewiring all the lights, before I put it on the Columbia summer of 2022.
I need to talk to someone that can answer some specific questions about "How To" on some subjects that I do not know all the correct terminology.
Anyone want to give it a try?

 

[dlochner]

We're going to need a better description of the information you want. Photos help a lot.

 

[Will Gilmore]

Photos of your boat will help. How old is the boat? Do you have the HIN (Hull Identification Number), or do you already know the make, model, and year of your boat?

What are your questions? You're being very mysterious.

The American 21. Is this your boat?

-Will

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

First what year is your boat? There is a company named called American Sail but they did not build that boat. American Fiberglass Company built it but it went bankrupt I think in the 1970’s or early 1980’s

 

[jon hansen]

yeah! we'll tell you what we know and make up what we don't know.

 

[Perry Welch]

First off I do not have any use for some one "making up" B.S.
I bought this boat just as Covid started, knowing that I did not know much of anything about Sailing. A guy I know said he would teach me everything I needed to know. He has only been on my boat once, and I have learned more by watching You Tube. He also turned me on to changing out all the rigging with Dyneema. He still has his boat outfitted with Stainless Steel. Last summer I had the boat on the Columbia. This year I pulled it out and redid the bottom paint, and made some improvements to the rigging.
As you can see it is indeed an 21' American Fiberglass. For today I would like to talk about the main sail/boom/mast.
Remember, I do not know the proper names for most items, so please understand. The notch seen in the third pic, i know is of course used to put the boom, and sail on the mast. When you need to lower the sail, how do you prevent the plugs from falling out of the grove.
When the sail is up and you are "sailing", is the glide at the end of the boom suppose to be secured to the cleat near the bottom of the mast, or do you let the boom vang, keep the boom in place? The main sail has the gromets for two positions of "short sail". I have a plan on how I will set up the needed rigging at the aft end of the boom, but what do I do at the mast end to secure the gromet?

 

[Will Gilmore]

First off I do not have any use for some one "making up" B.S.

yeah! we'll tell you what we know and make up what we don't know.

Jon is just joking. You would do well to pay attention to anything he has to say. Few on SBO have more experience then he does.

"The notch seen in the third pic, i know is of course used to put the boom, and sail on the mast. When you need to lower the sail, how do you prevent the plugs from falling out of the grove?"
For a trailersailer, like the 21 America, the designers expect the sails are most often removed when lowered, but you can buy a track throat plug that will fully capture the sail slugs that ride in it.

"When the sail is up and you are "sailing", is the glide at the end of the boom suppose to be secured to the cleat near the bottom of the mast, or do you let the boom vang, keep the boom in place?"
There is a piece of tackle called a Cunningham that can be used to pull down on the gooseneck (the glide/swivel at the forward end of the boom). The purpose is to allow tensioning the sail's luff for fine tuning. A vang is for more control over the over all flattening of the the sail, but the sheet is the primary control that also keeps the gooseneck from lifting. I don't know how the 21 America is rigged, but some boats position the boom below the track throat while a few hoist it above the throat. There is a whole book's worth of knowledge just in how to use these trim controls: vang, sheet, traveler, Cunningham, down haul, halyard, and out haul. Even the way the sail battens are tied in and the topping lift can contribute to special needs in sail trim. Not all sailboats have all of these pieces of equipment. The sheet, down haul, and out haul, are on almost all sailboats.

"The main sail has the gromets for two positions of "short sail". I have a plan on how I will set up the needed rigging at the aft end of the boom, but what do I do at the mast end to secure the gromet?"
These are your reefing points. There may be a reef hook to use on the forward gromets.

-Will

 

[dlochner]

YouTube can teach you somethings about sailing, reading a good book oriented to people learning to sail will be much better especially when learning the language.

The device you are looking for is Sail Track Stop. They come in different shapes, so you need to know the shape of the mast track.

Shortening sail is called reefing. There are a million ways to rig a reefing system. A decent learn to sail book will give you the basics about how and when to reef a sail. Before any of us can advise you on how to rig your reefing lines, we'll need to see how your boom is set up for reefing.

Another way to learn about sailing is to walk the docks at your marina and look at boats and ask owners questions about their boat and the rig.

Forums can be great places to deepen your knowledge about sailing, boat maintenance, boat repair, and where to sail. However, trying to go from ground zero to competent sailor based on forum posts will be pretty inefficient and at times seemingly chaotic. A sailing course or a book will give you a much better and solid base to work from.

Here's a link to an online sailing course. I've seen a couple of the videos and Ryan and Sophie do a good job with he basics.There is a fee to take the whole course, it may be money well spent.

Sailing Part 1: Getting Started | Bright Trip

Learn the foundational knowledge needed to get started in sailing.

www.brighttrip.com

 

[stickinthemud57]

Nice looking boat. Looks like fun to sail.

I hope the Dyneema rigging works out for you. It is my understanding that it contracts in the heat and expands in the cold. Hopefully you won't be having to adjust it too much.

While you are looking for a track throat plug, you can jury-rig a sail track stop with a bolt, a flat washer, and a wing nut, preferably SS. Chose a bolt with a shaft just small enough that the bolt can be slid up into the slug slot with the bolt head inside the slug slot. Add the washer and wing nut and tighten. This should suffice. They do sell these with a nice knurled knob, but after dropping a few overboard, I just go with the cheap option.

As for reefing, there will be two large grommets at the aft end of the sail (clew) and the mast end (tack) in line with the smaller grommets in between. Starting with the sail down or partially hoisted, secure the tack end where the boom meets the mast. I don't see a hook in your picture, so you can use the blue rope attached to the underside of the gooseneck (part that connects the boom to the mast) if it is not being used for anything else. Next, tie a rope to the clew and then tie it tightly to a pulley or cleat at the aft end of the boom. This will be your "outhaul", and should be as tight as you can make it. For the grommets in between, use some short sections of line to pass through each one, then around the bottom (foot) of the sail or the boom. These should NOT be tied tightly. They are just to keep the sail neat and out of the way. As for the outhaul, I got fancy with mine and put a 3:1 block and tackle arrangement inside the boom to make it easily adjustable.

The end of the boom should be secured somehow, but I don't see a mechanism for that in your picture, so securing the rope at the underside of the gooseneck to the cleat below it should work. The cleat on the starboard side of the mast might work for the cunningham, but might be too high.

Hope this helps!

 

[Perry Welch]

THANK YOU!!!! Everyone.
All of you basically are saying the same stuff so that tells me I am on the right track. Thank you.
Because of the position of the track throat the gooseneck must be below the track throat. So if I put one of the track stops at the top of the throat it will prevent the plugs securing the sail to the mast from falling out when I lower it. Thanks.

I can get a Cunningham hook from "West Marine". For now I secure the gooseneck to the cleat at the base of the mast with the blue line in the picture, so I will have to add another cleat, or find another way to attach the Cunningham. The cleat on the side is used for the Jib halyard.

About the gooseneck. I would like it to slide better. Can I replace it, or is there something I can lube it with?
I looked up gooseneck on the "west marine " web site, and they do not have anything under that name.

As for the Dyneema, it is working out great. The original way I had them rigged, it only took a few minutes to adjust.
this year I set them up more uniformly, and added a turnbuckles, so now it is faster.

The original standing rigging was "Original", as far as I new, so I had no confidence in its intergrade. It was so much less expensive, and I could do it myself.

I also added a bow sprit, for a Gennaker, and replaced the furling jib with a new hank-on jib.

 

[stickinthemud57]

Curious as to why you would want the gooseneck to slide (except maybe in the course of rigging). On boats I have owned, the gooseneck attaches to a stationary bracket on the mast.

If you want to replace it, you might try determining who provided the hardware for that boat. See if you can find a name stamped on the mast or boom, or failing that, any of the hardware on the boat.

Kudos for going with a hank-on jib. You will definitely get better performance (and more exercise!).

 

[dlochner]

Curious as to why you would want the gooseneck to slide (except maybe in the course of rigging). On boats I have owned, the gooseneck attaches to a stationary bracket on the mast.

Not sure if it applies to this boat, some boats have a sliding gooseneck instead of a Cunningham. To tension the luff, on pushes down on the gooseneck and secure it or there may be a line that goes through a block at the base of the mast.

 

[Will Gilmore]

The Cunningham is a mod. It usually is not necessary, depending on your sheeting, etc. On a small boat with end-boom sheeting, it is nearly a must, but with mid-boom sheeting, a Cunningham is a addition installed for high performance sail trim.

I suggest reading as much as you can about sail trim techniques and taking those lessons out on the water to practice. Try to get a sense of your boat and learn everything you can about the various ways to adjust sail trim and why.

-Will

 

[Perry Welch]

My main sail is outfitted with two reef points, plus a gromet near the tack to make more trim adjustments of the luff. I am learning, but as an inexperienced sailor I would like to setup my boat so I can take it out in some stronger winds. For now I have limited my sailing for days the winds are 10mph or less. If I can shorten my sails and go out in stronger winds I will get more practice/experience. Without the rigging I need to trim I won't learn anything sitting on the dock..

 

[stickinthemud57]

My main sail is outfitted with two reef points, plus a gromet near the tack to make more trim adjustments of the luff. I am learning, but as an inexperienced sailor I would like to setup my boat so I can take it out in some stronger winds. For now I have limited my sailing for days the winds are 10mph or less. If I can shorten my sails and go out in stronger winds I will get more practice/experience. Without the rigging I need to trim I won't learn anything sitting on the dock..

From a previous post:

As for reefing, there will be two large grommets at the aft end of the sail (clew) and the mast end (tack) in line with the smaller grommets in between. Starting with the sail down or partially hoisted, secure the tack end where the boom meets the mast. I don't see a hook in your picture, so you can use the blue rope attached to the underside of the gooseneck (part that connects the boom to the mast) if it is not being used for anything else. Next, tie a rope to the clew and then tie it tightly to a pulley or cleat at the aft end of the boom. This will be your "outhaul", and should be as tight as you can make it. For the grommets in between, use some short sections of line to pass through each one, then around the bottom (foot) of the sail or the boom. These should NOT be tied tightly. They are just to keep the sail neat and out of the way. As for the outhaul, I got fancy with mine and put a 3:1 block and tackle arrangement inside the boom to make it easily adjustable.

I definitely recommend watching some YouTube videos on this. Once you get the basic idea down, you should have no problem applying that knowledge to your particular setup.

 

[Perry Welch]

OK guys, I am working on all the information you gave me about rigging the mail sail.
Now lets talk "Center board".
When I had it on the stands I was hoping to get that answer to some questions about how it is setup, and how far I should lower it when sailing.

Because of the overhead limitations, and a few other obstacles, I was not able to lift the boat high enough to see if the center board had some mechanism that would prevent it from falling out the bottom if I lowered it to far. I was able to get a measurement on it. I believe it is something like 38" long.
So what useful information do you have to pass my way?

 

[jon hansen]

• SAIL TRIM USERS GUIDE
• SAIL TRIM CHART

buy this , right here on sbo, you need these simple learning tools

you will love them! . and they're cheap

way better than youtube cause you take it with you
and it's the best teaching tool out there

master all that; get you PHD in sailing by studying frank bethwait's 'high performance sailing'

why this material you might ask. because 95% of becoming a sailor is a great grasp of the wind. you need to understand the wind. you have just been asking about the boat so far.

 

[Will Gilmore]

The CB is simple. It is your lateral resistance that makes the sail actually work when sailing in any direction that isn't dead down wind (DDW). There are nuances to adjusting the depth for the purposes of reducing drag when sailing DDW, and for changing your center of lateral resistance (CLR), don't worry about that right away.

There are usually mechanisms in place, length of CB pendant, designed stop, crashing into the front of the CB trunk, that keeps the board from dropping too far. It is likely held in with a pin, so it won't just fall out.

-Will

 

[stickinthemud57]

I can say with confidence that your centerboard (technically a swing keel) will not fall out from lowering it too far. These are usually held in place by a long bolt and raised and lowered using a hoist of some kind.

As for position, try it all the way down at first. If you are experiencing excessing weather helm, try raising it slightly and see if that helps.

 

[Perry Welch]

Hey Stick
If you would bother to look at the picture, you will see that the center board is a Dagger, NOT a swing. The only pin in it is the one on top of the Dagger that connects the cable that raises and lowers it.