mizzen on a 240

[BART FORD]

I have thinking of adding a small mizzen stay sail on the back of my boat. It looks like the trailering post would be a perfect place. Can anybody tell me something about a mizzen? How do they work? Would this be beneficial to the performance of the boat? Would it help the boat into the wind while at anchor?

 

[Steve Dion]

You have left me breathless!

A mizzen mast for a 24' boat?The first thing are the loads that are involved. The rigging that is required for this type of an arrangement is going to cost you more than you entire rig is worth.If you are looking for something to help you from sailing around at anchor you can rig up a "Riding Sail" that can be rigged to your back stay. Much easier too.

 

[Rob Mitchell]

Riding Sail

Since there's no backstay, I would recommand a small riding sail (parachute?) to the post that supports the mast during trailering. Another option to keep the boat from sailing around at anchor is to tie a line to the bow eye with a canvas bucket on the other end submerged a few feet. Don't forget to retrieve it before pulling the hook.

 

[Frank]

My evil plan....

I plan to modify a sailboard rig so it will plug into the mast crutch supports. If this give the boat lee helm I think I can solve that by raising the rudder slightly. I have the sail and the boom, so I need to find a cheap windsurfer mast. If you like I'll send you pictures when I'm finished. I don't think it will work great, but I'll have fun tinkering with it.Frank

 

[Ray Bowles]

Frank, Watchout when you raise the rudder!

I had forgotten to clamp the rudder down after beaching last summer, on our 95 H26, and as we set sail it raised up about 6 to 10 inches at the most. The boat was totally unsteerable! I don't mean difficult to steer, I mean there was no way I was strong enough to make steering changes and we were only moving at about 5 knots. The boat has a tiller.RayS/V Speedy

 

[Frank]

Yes, I noticed

My rudder often acts as my depth finder in the shallow waters I sail. I never lock it down so it can easily kick up. After sailing for a few hours the rudder sometimes backs up about one inch and this gives me serious weather helm until I snug it back down. Some adjustments in my rudder angle make a big difference for my boat. And if the rudder gets kicked up more than six inches the boat becomes very hard to steer.