Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Sewing ‘Sandpiper’s’ Jib

Tack cringle

Yesterday I tried ‘Sandpiper’s’ furling jib, and it worked a treat – no snagging of the line, and the action was very smooth. One of the advantages of a furling foresail is that it does not need a lot of tension on the halyard because the luff of the sail is kept straight by virtue of being snug within the groove. In fact, ‘Sandpiper’s’ jib set perfectly, without the tack being under any tension whatsoever, because the tack cringle had not yet been fitted. I was able to ascertain the exact position for a cringle, and today I set it in place. The only improvement I could make to the sail would be to strengthen the leech to ensure it will withstand a strong blow and to give the sail longevity.


The forestay around which the furling rod rotates must be taught to prevent the furling rod from bowing. A taught forestay also facilitates the furling action. The required tension is achieved by adjusting the shrouds, rather than the forestay which does not have a bottle screw. ‘Sandpiper’ does not have a backstay, nor does she need one, and at the moment, she does not have a topping lift. I shall most likely add a topping lift, because it will help when it comes to reefing the mainsail. The weight of the sail and boom is primarily taken by the topping lift while the sail is rolled around the boom.


If I can find time tomorrow I’ll do some maintenance on the mainsail which I’ll be able to do indoors. This typical showery April weather is hindering out-of-door boat maintenance, but the rain is most welcome, on account to the drought.

2 comments:

Paul Mullings said...

Hi Bill, You seem to be making good progress now so launch day cant be too far off.
I am a bit concerned with your reports of poor weather and hope it improves soon as we will be there in 8 days - it is absolutely beautiful here, not a cloud in the sky and a pleasant 20 degrees!!
I guess you have already found this site http://www.wwpotterowners.com/index.html
I was interested in this mast hinge fitting it seems just the job to ease raising and lowering. http://www.wwpotterowners.com/Modification22.html

William Serjeant said...

Thanks Paul,

My wife mentioned today that she had seen a report that this May will be the coldest for 100 years! If you are staying for a while you may need to bring your thermals!

At the moment the temperature is 8 degrees Celsius, but a stationary low pressure over the UK is bringing heavy showers.

Maybe the Azores high will come this way to bring sunshine - best to look on the bright side.

I have seen the Potter Owners' website, thanks.

Cheers,
Bill.