Stupid Questions - Volume 1

C

coldnorthtoy

.
Oct 30, 2019
57
Ok, so I apparently have way too much time to think, or just think too
much in general, but I have some questions that I'd love some input on.

In this Volume :p are questions that I'd love the answers to
immediately, as they are either just informational or are on my 'short
list' of tasks. Volume 2 (to follow :p) contains questions that, at
this point in my ... "life's income curve" ... are really just
daydreams, but they are on my list as possibilities nonetheless.

1) Roller-reefing the main - how much is what:
I (sadly) ran through and modelled the PE triangle in Excel to try to
determine the approximate sail area reduction associated with each
foot of halyard drop (see, I told you I had too much time :p) and a
30% reduction (which appears to be a 'standard 1st reef') is at about
4 1/4 feet of drop, but the Vega Handbook talks about dropping the
halyard 2 feet per 'reef;' for those of you that still roller-reef
your main, how do you decided how far to reef?

2) Lines led aft - much ado about nuts and washers:
...How the hell do you put on backing plates, washers and nuts when
you mount all the 'lines led aft' goodies on the cabin top? I've seen
photos of people using a holesaw to cut holes through the inner liner
at each bolt to mount nuts, but I'd rather not have a swiss-cheese
inner liner, thanks. Has anyone created an opening 'hatch' in the
inner liner underneath the under-dodger cabintop area that would allow
access to all the associated mounting goodies? Or how do folks
normally deal with this issue?

Thanks all!

Jonathan
Vega 2221
Victoria, BC
 
B

btfag0s

.
Sep 13, 2002
203
1. Your assumptions for the calculation are wrong, sorry. Several things are
involved, for example:
- wind strength is greater the higher you go, so it's windier at the top of
the mast than at the bottom, it isn't just to do with sail area..
- when you lower your mainsail you are not just reducing the power, you are
also lowering the centre of effort of the wind on the sail, so there will be
less tendency to heel.
- when you reef, the mainsail is usually less flat, so is less efficient for
upwind sailing, and the bag can also catch more wind in gusts as it less
able to spill wind.
- the above are all true, and at variance, making the decision subjective:
- how windy is it likely to be in the next 10-30 minutes
- how lazy am I
- Do I want to sail efficiently or show off?
- How old is the rigging and will anything break if I persevere?

To sum up: I'd drop four feet of halyard, put in the reef, pull up two feet
of slack in the halyard, and tighten the cunningham six inches.2. Do you really need to run lines aft? What are your reasons? All lines, or
just some?

Alisdair
 
C

coldnorthtoy

.
Oct 30, 2019
57
Fair enough; the model wasn't set up to deal with the changes to the
centre of effort; only to give a ballpark, as I hadn't been able to
find any other resources on the matter.

Thank you for your thoughts on the issue; it makes much more sense now.

As for the lines led aft, yes, I am that lazy. :p Really, I do a lot
of single-handing and I am very risk-averse - which likely also has to
do with the fact that the boat is my home - so I would find great
comfort in the ability to drop the sails from the cockpit if needed.
That said, raising them, reefing them (if I choose to go slab) and
controlling shape (in terms of vang, halyard and cunningham) from the
cockpit would mean that I actually do do it.

Thanks!

Jonathan
2221
 
S

stevebirch2002

.
Nov 8, 2001
1,818
Hi Jonathan

Many vegas have the lines led aft, not a difficul;t thing to do. I can show you photos if needed.

Cheers

Steve B
 
D

D_Chown

.
Dec 10, 2006
19
I brought the lines to the cockpit and without damaging that nice coach roof underside.
Wherever a screw was needed to go into the roof I cut one or more ~1" holes from the top, just through the GRP, nearby in positions that would be concealed by whatever was going to be attached (i.e. under winch, clutches and organizers). Then picked out the foam core, and slid in a small piece of hardwood for the screw to bite into. Then filled in with polyester resin with chopped glass. The foam core is about 3/8" thick BTW. The screws then go through the GRP and into the piece of hardwood surrounded by resin. Very strong and neat!
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J

jbergman888

.
Dec 5, 2007
144
Steve B,

I'm planning on leading my lines aft and would appreciate any pics you
can point me to. What hardware is the best to use to attach the
pulleys to the mast? Thanks,

Bruce Bergman
Cygnet # 169
San Diego
 
C

coldnorthtoy

.
Oct 30, 2019
57
Cool. Thanks, David. I didn't realize that the cabintop was foam
core, but now that I think about it (and have been told :D) it makes
sense. Is there still an airspace, though, between the top deck and
the inner liner, or is it all glass and foam?

Your method definitely makes sense, but I think I might just build a
hardwood 'decktop' on which to mount the hardware for each side, and
mount that to the cabintop via 6 or 9 compression-sleeved holes with
through-bolts, perhaps including some form of hardwood 'liner' inside
the cabin with some handrails or storage or pretty designs or
something. :) I would prefer to allow any potential future owners of
2221 to be able to restore her as closely as possible back to the way
Albin cooked her up.

Thanks!
 
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