Posted by crwindy@…> (crwindy@…>)
Someone once listed a web site with great instructions on trimming the gun mount
spinnaker on the Freedoms. Does anyone remember where it was or have a copy of
it?
Thanks,
Craig F36/38 CHLOE
Posted by ADScott (ADScott@…>)
It was written and posted by Rick Simonds. I’m betting Rick will
respond; if not, drop me a line and I will send it to you. It is
probably the very best set of instruction ever written on the subject!!
Al Scott
F-32 MECORIAN
Posted by clivaday (clivaday@…>)
GUNMOUNT SPINNAKER INSTRUCTIONS BY: RICK SIMONDS
Setting up the spinnaker:
-
Open the clew stoppers.
-
Pull the bag out from the bow pulpit. There are some carabineers
attached to the spinnaker bag to allow the bag to hang from the
lifeline. There is also a line about 5’ long on the aft end of the
bag that prevents it from being pulled forward as the sail slides
through it. Tie that line to the toe rail. Check that the rein on
that side of the boat ended up ABOVE the bag and ABOVE the lifeline. -
At the bow pulpit find the head of the spinnaker and, if needed,
pull it up near the mouth of the bag. Remove the spinnaker halyard
from the welded-on loop on the gunmount and attach it to the head of
the spinnaker. -
If you’re going to be putting the spinnaker up fairly soon, pull
both clews out of the mouth of the bag so they are outside the bow
pulpit by maybe a foot. Sometimes when the clews are being pulled out
of the bag by the clew lines they can hook on the bow pulpit tubing
so it’s easier to pull them out by hand whenever possible. If you’re
just setting up the spinnaker so it’s ready to go but it will be
quite a while before it will be used, leave the clews in the bag. -
Find the tripline in the aft end of the bag and run it through the
block on the toerail. Tie a stopper knot in the end of the tripline.
Run the knotted end to the cockpit.
Extending the pole: -
Have the clew lines, the extension lines and the reins coiled and
ready to run. Open the stoppers for both clews and both extension
lines. Make sure the reins are out of the cam cleats on the cabin
top. -
The port extension line extends the pole to starboard and the
starboard extension line extends to pole to port. Pull the
appropriate extension line and let the other extension line (I’m
calling that one the “lazy” extension line) run out through the
stopper. The pole can’t quite be extended by hand, use the starboard
winch for this but it should be just barely needed. As the extension
line is coming in 5 other lines (2 clews, 2 reins and the lazy
extension line) are going out. If the extension line gets very hard
to pull something is wrong, there’s a snarl in one of those 5 lines
somewhere or a stopper is still closed. Stop and find the problem.
You should be able to extend the pole directly from its storage
position on top of the lifeline. The pole is harder to extend at
first because it is way off balance, the aft end of it is droopy and
this causes more friction in the gunmount sleeve. As the pole extends
it gets more balanced and gets easier to pull so be daintier with the
winch as you get close. The aft end of the pole should rise above the
lifelines all by itself as the end gets forward of the first lifeline
stanchion but every now and then you may have to walk forward and
lift the aft end over lifeline. The pole may partially drag one clew
out of the bag as it extends but, assuming you’re going to set the
spinnaker right away, this is actually more of a help than a problem.
-
Each extension line is marked with a whipping to show when the
pole is extended to its midpoint. When both whippings are at the
stoppers the pole is extended to its center point. There is also a
painted a band on the pole the same length as the gunmount sleeve at
the portion of the pole that will be covered by the sleeve when the
pole is extended to its midpoint. The painted band on the pole
actually works better than the extension line whippings for knowing
when to stop. Just watch as the pole extends and stop when the last
of the paint disappears into the gun mount sleeve. Close the
extension line stoppers when the pole is where you want it and firmly
pull the lazy extension line by hand to snug it up. Better yet, try
closing the stopper on the lazy extension line when you still have
about 4" to go extending the pole. The lazy extension line ends up
snug automatically. Having some tension on both extension lines
guarantees the pole will stay centered in the gun mount. It isn’t a
big deal, the pole is balanced in the gunmount and it takes some
pretty big forces to make it move but snugging up both extension
lines is easy enough to do and prevents any movement at all. Keep the
extension line stoppers closed while using the spinnaker and only
open them after the spinnaker is down and it’s time to retract the
pole. -
Pull the appropriate rein to rotate the pole square to the wind.
Lock the reins in the cam cleats on the cabin top. The reins don’t
have to be tight, they can have a foot or two of slack in each of
them. -
The starboard winch is not needed for the rest of the spinnaker
set so you can leave the extension line on it if you want. Probably
better is to remove and coil the extension line now to keep the
spaghetti in the cockpit from getting overwhelming, you’re about to
make a whole bunch of it!
Setting the spinnaker: -
CLOSE BOTH CLEW STOPPERS. CLOSE THE HALYARD STOPPER.
-
With the clew stoppers closed pull the clew lines so the clews are
maybe halfway to, but not closer than 2 feet from the ends of the
pole. This can probably be done by hand, no winching should be
needed. If the clews lines simply won’t pull the clews are probably
snagged on the bow pulpit inside the bag, the only thing you can do
is walk up to the bow and pull them out. I find it important to leave
the clews 2 feet away from the end of the pole or more when setting
the spinnaker because the geometry of the clew lines on the pole is
not perfectly symmetrical. As the gunmount is rotated the leeward
spinnaker clew will be pulled closer to the pole and the windward
clew will extend itself farther from the pole. Leaving the clews at
least 2 feet from the ends of the pole allows the pole to rotate
after the sail is first put up without fear that one side will bind
up. It’s one less thing to worry about when setting the sail and
later, after the sail is up and flying, the clew lines can be tweaked
as needed. -
Wrap the spinnaker halyard around the port winch only one turn and
do not wrap it through the self tailer. Check that the trip line is
ready to run. Check again that the clew stoppers are closed. Check
again that the spinnaker halyard stopper is closed. -
Pull the halyard by hand just letting the winch freewheel. It will
be moderately difficult at first but very rapidly get easier as the
spinnaker starts coming out of the bag. If at some point it simply
stops coming out of the bag check if the tripline has fouled. Pull as
fast as possible. If you pull as fast as you possibly can while the
pulling is easy you’ll not only save yourself some winch work but
onlookers will “Ooh” and “Ahh” when the spinnaker pops open almost
perfectly in place. Normally the spinnaker will not be full as it
goes up but very soon after the “bullseye” (the reinforcing patch
that attaches the tripline to the spinnaker) is out of the bag the
sail will pop open. Pull fast to try to get as much up as you can
before it opens, once it’s open you won’t be able to pull by hand
anymore. Often you will make it all the way. If the clew and halyard
stoppers aren’t closed you’ll find out about it immediately and
dramatically and onlookers will “Ooh” and “Ahh” in a VERY different
way -
After the spinnaker opens the closed halyard stopper will carry
the load on the halyard while you wrap the halyard around the winch a
few times then through the self tailer. If needed, winch the
spinnaker up the rest of the way. There’s an orange whipping on the
halyard that ends up at the winch when the sail is all the way up.
Flying the spinnaker:
With the possible exception of compounding the gelcoat I can’t think
of a more tedious activity than blathering about esoteric nuances of
sail trim. Don’t worry. I’m not going subject you to that. Here are
just a few random, probably obvious observations on flying a gunmount
spinnaker.
-
When pointing I pull the leeward clew all the way down to the pole
and lift the leeward end of the pole over inside of the lifelines. I
also let the windward clew out until it’s ahead of the forestay. This
is the best pointing you can do, almost always 60* or better,
depending on the smoothness of the sea. This point of sail is fast
and fun. -
When very broad reaching or dead running I let both clews out
about 3 feet when it’s important to see in front of me, like, say,
when I’m in a channel or in traffic. The spinnaker will rise and I
can see under the bottom of it. Farther offshore, depending on my
comfort level about traffic, I might pull the clews down to the pole
to get a bit more effective sail area. That makes for a pretty huge
blind spot ahead, though. Easing the clews like this requires that
there is at least a moderate breeze. In very light air I usually must
pull the clews down to the pole to get the spinnaker to behave better
or sometimes just to keep the spinnaker flying at all. -
Again, the distance the clews are from the pole will change as the
pole is rotated. If I have the sail trimmed for pointing (one clew
pulled all the way down, like in #1 above) I make sure both clews are
loosened before I jibe. If I don’t the pole will stop rotating once
the clew jams into the block at the end of the pole and things get
really interesting halfway through a jibe. Preparing to jibe really
just means checking to see that both clews are at least 2 feet away
from the ends of the pole. That’s all there really is to jibing,
otherwise this sail almost jibes itself. Just use the reins to keep
the pole square to the wind as the boat comes around (there’s never
more than a few pounds of force in those lines, you can literally
pull them with just your fingers) but because of where you’ll be
standing when doing this, please watch your head as the main boom
comes across. -
Beware of the halyard or clew lines if they are not held by the
stoppers, the full force of the spinnaker is on them and that force
can be tremendous at times. In very light air you may be able to pull
them by hand but never assume you can. Wrap the tail around the winch
a few times before you open a stopper then remove the wraps as
needed. When the force on the line is high the stopper will be jammed
too tight to open without winching the line anyway. That’s actually
fortunate because you can’t open a stopper by mistake, you must wrap
the line around the winch just to get the stopper to open. That’s
fine. -
When I’m sailing with only the spinnaker up I found an easy way to
change to the main and jib, assuming you’ve got some time and sea
room. Head the boat on a broad reach. Put ONLY the jib up first (no
main) and then take the spinnaker down. Without the main the boat
tracks downwind very well, there’s no big sail winged out to one side
trying to turn the boat. The jib is so small that the speed drops
down to just enough to have steerage way. That’s good; it keeps the
apparent wind higher which keeps the spinnaker out of the water and
also helps the windvane steer better. After the spinnaker is down
come up to close hauled, even pinch a bit, under jib alone while you
put the main up. Let the boom way out so the main goes up luffing.
Once it’s up you can fall off to whatever course you need. Changing
from spinnaker only to main and jib this way is really easy and works
very well. I’ve done it singlehanded dozens of times. -
I ran aground at full speed all standing only once and that’s all
it took to teach me to always have the lines ready to run whenever
the spinnaker is flying. It was awful. The spinnaker was pulling me
farther up the shoal, flogging wildly, or filling up sideways and
flopping the whole boat one way then the other. Amidst all this I had
to straighten out my lubberly line mess before I could even begin to
get the sail down. I always keep the spaghetti under control now.
Whenever possible I leave the halyard on the winch, in the tailer,
with the 3 or so wraps around the winch. When the halyard is on the
winch I leave the halyard stopper open so I’m ready to get it down
RIGHT NOW, no winching needed. (I can’t always leave it there because
at some point I’ll usually need the winch for tweaking the clew
lines.) In an emergency I can just open the windward clew stopper and
let the whole clew line fly, about the same technique as a racing
boat rounding a leeward mark. In a real emergency I’d cut the
windward clew line if I have to. The spinnaker will flop around
behind the main, it will be flogging like crazy but it’s out of the
way, it won’t get run over and the sail will be de-powered instantly.
I actually ended up doing this that day and it worked but it was
probably pretty tough on the sail. It sure was tough on my nerves.
Dousing the spinnaker: -
If possible sail on a run or a very broad reach. It is much
easier to get the sail down from this point of sail and then any
other. When reaching it is difficult to get the sail to go into the
bag, when pointing it is practically impossible. When the boat is
sailing on a broad reach beware of the boom! It’s very easy for an
accidental jibe to occur and, if it does, the boom will slam to the
other side of the boat very hard. Even though you are concentrating
on other things always keep some awareness of the boom throughout the
whole process. If it moves even slightly, DUCK FIRST AND THEN FIGURE
OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING. -
If they are not already there, pull both clews down right to the
pole as close as they will go. -
Find the end of the tripline and lay it near you.
-
Make sure there are two or more wraps around the winch (more wind:
more wraps) and the halyard is secure in the self tailer. Open the
halyard stopper. If the stopper won’t open you’ll need to winch the
halyard a few inches to release the pressure on the stopper. Keep
some tension on the line as you unwrap the halyard from the self
tailer. Keep a good grip on it but try slowly easing the tension on
the halyard tail. The spinnaker should start pulling the halyard out
as soon as you ease your pull. It will be easy to control how fast it
goes out by pulling back on the halyard a little bit. If there isn’t
enough wind to pull it out you have to remove some wraps from the
winch. Keep some tension on the line as you remove one wrap at a time
and, before removing another wrap, again try easing the line to see
if the spinnaker will pull the halyard out. Be careful because there
is often tremendous tension on this line. It is possible you’ll end
up only needing one wrap but never, ever remove that last one, always
leave at least one wrap on the winch even in the very lightest wind.
Remove as many wraps as needed until the sail will pull the halyard
out as you ease the tension on it. When it does, smoothly slack the
halyard about 11 feet. The orange whipping on the halyard at the
stopper should end up at the base of the mast. Be careful because it
is very easy to get the halyard snarled on the winch. As the line
goes out each wrap will want to override the wraps below. Holding the
line well above the winch and feeding the tail of the line at a
downward angle will prevent much of this. Also only using one wrap on
the winch, if the wind allows it, will prevent overwraps. The sail
will get droopy and it will be flying way out in front of a boat but
it should fly there just fine, at least long enough to get it down. -
Pull the spinnaker down and into the bag with the tripline. That’s
not as easy as it sounds. The tripline is very hard to pull and there
is also some “art” to pulling it. The art is controlling just how
much tension there is (how much you ease the halyard given the amount
you are pulling in the tripline) at the moment the spinnaker first
starts going into the bag. As the sail first begins to come down the
tension isn’t important. The rope of the tripline will slide against
the underside of the bar on the pulpit very easily no matter how
tightly it’s pulled. The “bullseye”, the reinforcing patch that
attaches the tripline to the spinnaker, is the problem. The difficult
moment, the moment when tension is a really big deal, is when the
bullseye is right at the bar on the pulpit just as the bullseye
itself is beginning to turn the corner from vertical to horizontal,
just as it’s first starting to go into the bag. Too much tension and
the bullseye won’t turn the corner at the mouth of the bag. Too
little tension and the belly of the sail splats in the water ahead of
the boat and gets run over. Once the bullseye has successfully gotten
past the bar on the pulpit and it’s actually into the bag by maybe 5
feet, the tension again isn’t that important.
My method is this:
A) Ease the halyard about 11’ (as in step 4, above.) Watch the
sail’s belly as the sail comes down. When the belly is uncomfortably
close to the water ahead of the boat, stop easing the halyard and
temporarily wrap the halyard in the self tailer to hold it.
B) Start pulling the sail down with the tripline. Pull the
tripline until the bullseye touches the bar on the bow pulpit.
C) Try pulling the sail into the bag with the tripline and, when
that doesn’t work because the bullseye is hooked on the bar, …
D) Remove the halyard from the self tailer. In one smooth, deft
maneuver, ease the halyard a few feet. The wind will push the
bullseye forward, away from the bar. Immediately pull the tripline a
few feet, pulling the bullseye past the bar and into the bag. (The
belly of the sail may dip in the water while doing this.)
E) Continue pulling the tripline like crazy while easing the
halyard out only enough to keep the process going. This should get
the sail’s belly away from the water.
F) Once the sail is about 5 feet into the bag the crisis is over
and the sail will be completely under control. Ease the halyard a lot
faster than the tripline just to make pulling the tripline much
easier.
The mistake I generally make is not easing the halyard enough when
the bullseye is right at the bow pulpit. The sail ends up under
tension and the bullseye hooks on the bar, stopping the tripline.
Takedowns are actually a bit easier in higher wind. The sail will
stay dryer as it comes down if the bottom stays full and it will stay
full with a little bit of wind holding it up. It also pushes the
bullseye forward, away from the bar. If there is very little wind the
sail will go limp and more of the sail’s belly will end up the water
ahead of the boat. I don’t see a way around this except for crew on
the foredeck doing their best to gather up the sail as it comes down.
Fortunately the boat will be moving slowly in light air so running it
over is less likely.
- With about 8 feet to go until the sail is all the way into the
bag, release the clew line stoppers and, in theory, the clews will
pull away from the ends of the pole and into the bag with the rest of
the sail. In practice I sometimes have to walk to the bow and pull
them away from the ends of the pole and stuff them into the mouth of
the bag. If the clews are very hard to pull when you are standing at
the bow either you forgot to open the clew stoppers or, more likely,
your left foot is standing on the clew lines on the deck (how do I
know this?) Back in the cockpit pull the tripline until the head just
disappears into the bag.
Retracting the pole:
-
Pull the rein that is on the same side of the boat as you want to
store the pole. The pole will end up just barely inside or just
barely outside the lifeline, either is fine. Exactly where the pole
is pointed is not very important as long as it’s roughly lined up
with one of the lifelines. -
Depending on how snug the extension lines are one extension line
stopper may have to be winched lightly to get it open. Once one
extension line is slack the other extension line stopper should open
easily. Open both clew stoppers and both extension line stoppers.
Make sure all these lines are ready to run. -
Wrap the appropriate extension line around the winch 2 or 3 times
and then through the self tailer (the starboard extension line makes
the pole go to port and vice versa.) Winch this line in and the pole
should retract fairly easily. If it ever stops the problem is either
a closed stopper or there is a snarl in one of the clew lines or the
lazy extension line. I usually retract the pole until the aft end is
about 6"inches ahead of the second lifeline stanchion. About 8" of
the pole will still be sticking out the front of the gun mount. -
If, say, you have retracted it to the port side, the starboard
clew line and starboard rein will have so much slack in them now that
they will be dragging in the water from the bow. (The opposite is
true if you retracted the pole to starboard.) The other rein will
also be very slack. Pull these 3 lines in just to neaten them up and
get them out of the water. Flip the rein up over the lifelines but
leave enough slack in it so it can just lie on deck. The clew line
can just be pulled in very loosely. Leave the clew stoppers open for
now but close the extension line stoppers. -
Neaten everything up. When the pole is fully retracted walk to the
aft end of it and lift it over and rest it on the lifeline. Be aware
that when you lift the pole it will become more balanced and it will
probably slide back by itself an additional 2-4" from the tension
still in the extension line. Make sure your hand is not between the
aft end of the pole and the stanchion or the pole may trap your hand
between them.
It is possible that the pole has dragged one clew out of the bag as
it retracted. If it has, walk to the bow, pull a few extra feet of
clew line out and stuff the clew back in the mouth of the bag. Again,
it’s very easy to be standing on the clew lines as you pull them from
the bow so if the clew line won’t pull try moving your feet and see
if you’re standing on it. If you’re at the bow anyway and you’re not
going to use the spinnaker again soon it’s probably better to move
the halyard back to the welded-on ring on the gunmount instead of
leaving it hooked to the sail. The sail is less likely to be
accidentally pulled out of the bag that way. Unless it’s convenient
don’t worry about this too much.
Back in the cockpit close the clew stoppers. Coil the tripline and
hang it on the lifeline. Coil both clew lines and both extension
lines and hang them in the companionway hangers.
Storing the spinnaker:
-
Untie the stopper knot in the end of the tripline. Coil the
tripline at the aft end of the bag, pulling the line out of the block
on the toe rail as you go. Stuff the coiled tripline and whatever
small amount of spinnaker may be sticking out of the bag back into
the aft end of the bag. -
Unhook the bag from the lifeline and untie the line holding the
aft end to the toerail. Grab the bag about 4 feet back from the mouth
and walk it toward the bow. Push the part of the bag you’re holding
into the bag’s own mouth. Repeat this until the entire bag is stuffed
in its own mouth accordion style. The aft end will end up on top so
next time you want to use the spinnaker all you have to do is pull on
the aft end and the bag will come out. -
To put the cover on the stored bag unhook the halyard from the
welded-on ring. Being careful not to let the halyard get away from
you, loop the strap of the cover under the small stub of pole
sticking out the front of the gun mount. Pull the cover back, letting
the welded-on ring stick up through the hole in the cover. Hook the
halyard back on the ring through the cover. Pull the rest of the
cover back over the bow pulpit. The aft corners of the cover will
wrap around the side pulpit tubing behind the bar and hook back on
itself. The twist lock fasteners hold it on.
Totally random details:
If you want to experiment, nothing says you MUST always have the pole
extended to its midpoint in the gun mount sleeve. Another shape
control for the spinnaker is having the pole off center. I’ve
experimented with this a little and it can be used to adjust for
weather helm. The pole can also be extended forward when close
reaching; the luff will straighten and you can eek out another few
degrees of pointing. Be aware that the reins will have tension in
them when the pole is not centered and, when pointing, they might
have to be lead at an angle more like a barber hauler. I haven’t
worked out the details of this and I don’t have any idea if this is
structurally okay or if we are likely to break something; I’ve only
tried it a few times, always in fairly light wind.
There’s a can of “Dry Film Lubricant” spray stuff under the chart
table. Spraying the pole and the gunmount sleeve every few weeks
helps the whole thing work better.
I’ve used the spinnaker pole (without the spinnaker, of course) as a
downrigger for trolling fishing lines! (We were motoring a long, long
way in a flat calm anyway, totally bored senseless, so …) It works!
We got home with our limit of Spanish and king mackerel and I think
the downrigger made the difference.
Rick Simonds
March 2003
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, ADScott <ADScott@f…>
wrote:
It was written and posted by Rick Simonds. I’m betting Rick will
respond; if not, drop me a line and I will send it to you. It is
probably the very best set of instruction ever written on the
subject!!Al Scott
F-32 MECORIAN
Posted by martel_l2001 (martel@…>)
Excellent advice on spinniker use!! You might also consider using
snap shackles on the guys as this would alow quick release in an
emergency and save cutting a line. It is also useful to tie a knot
in the lazy pole line so you can pull out the pole without having to
look for the whipping. This will only work if you always keep the
pole on the same side when not in use. The origional F25 spinniker
set up called for a continuous hallyard/retreival line which has
some advantages but it needs to be long enough to allow for setting
on the winch or the whole thing can get under tension and out of
control. Dousing on a broad reach can be near impossible as the pole
impedes the chute but unshacking the leward clew may take enough
tension off to save the day.
Larry
Freewill, F25
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “clivaday” <clivaday@y…>
wrote:
GUNMOUNT SPINNAKER INSTRUCTIONS BY: RICK SIMONDS
Setting up the spinnaker:
Open the clew stoppers.
Pull the bag out from the bow pulpit. There are some
carabineers
attached to the spinnaker bag to allow the bag to hang from the
lifeline. There is also a line about 5’ long on the aft end of the
bag that prevents it from being pulled forward as the sail slides
through it. Tie that line to the toe rail. Check that the rein on
that side of the boat ended up ABOVE the bag and ABOVE the
lifeline.At the bow pulpit find the head of the spinnaker and, if
needed,
pull it up near the mouth of the bag. Remove the spinnaker halyard
from the welded-on loop on the gunmount and attach it to the head
of
the spinnaker.If you’re going to be putting the spinnaker up fairly soon,
pull
both clews out of the mouth of the bag so they are outside the bow
pulpit by maybe a foot. Sometimes when the clews are being pulled
out
of the bag by the clew lines they can hook on the bow pulpit
tubing
so it’s easier to pull them out by hand whenever possible. If
you’re
just setting up the spinnaker so it’s ready to go but it will be
quite a while before it will be used, leave the clews in the bag.Find the tripline in the aft end of the bag and run it through
the
block on the toerail. Tie a stopper knot in the end of the
tripline.
Run the knotted end to the cockpit.Extending the pole:
Have the clew lines, the extension lines and the reins coiled
and
ready to run. Open the stoppers for both clews and both extension
lines. Make sure the reins are out of the cam cleats on the cabin
top.The port extension line extends the pole to starboard and the
starboard extension line extends to pole to port. Pull the
appropriate extension line and let the other extension line (I’m
calling that one the “lazy” extension line) run out through the
stopper. The pole can’t quite be extended by hand, use the
starboard
winch for this but it should be just barely needed. As the
extension
line is coming in 5 other lines (2 clews, 2 reins and the lazy
extension line) are going out. If the extension line gets very
hard
to pull something is wrong, there’s a snarl in one of those 5
lines
somewhere or a stopper is still closed. Stop and find the problem.You should be able to extend the pole directly from its storage
position on top of the lifeline. The pole is harder to extend at
first because it is way off balance, the aft end of it is droopy
and
this causes more friction in the gunmount sleeve. As the pole
extends
it gets more balanced and gets easier to pull so be daintier with
the
winch as you get close. The aft end of the pole should rise above
the
lifelines all by itself as the end gets forward of the first
lifeline
stanchion but every now and then you may have to walk forward and
lift the aft end over lifeline. The pole may partially drag one
clew
out of the bag as it extends but, assuming you’re going to set the
spinnaker right away, this is actually more of a help than a
problem.
Each extension line is marked with a whipping to show when the
pole is extended to its midpoint. When both whippings are at the
stoppers the pole is extended to its center point. There is also a
painted a band on the pole the same length as the gunmount sleeve
at
the portion of the pole that will be covered by the sleeve when
the
pole is extended to its midpoint. The painted band on the pole
actually works better than the extension line whippings for
knowing
when to stop. Just watch as the pole extends and stop when the
last
of the paint disappears into the gun mount sleeve. Close the
extension line stoppers when the pole is where you want it and
firmly
pull the lazy extension line by hand to snug it up. Better yet,
try
closing the stopper on the lazy extension line when you still have
about 4" to go extending the pole. The lazy extension line ends up
snug automatically. Having some tension on both extension lines
guarantees the pole will stay centered in the gun mount. It isn’t
a
big deal, the pole is balanced in the gunmount and it takes some
pretty big forces to make it move but snugging up both extension
lines is easy enough to do and prevents any movement at all. Keep
the
extension line stoppers closed while using the spinnaker and only
open them after the spinnaker is down and it’s time to retract the
pole.Pull the appropriate rein to rotate the pole square to the
wind.
Lock the reins in the cam cleats on the cabin top. The reins don’t
have to be tight, they can have a foot or two of slack in each of
them.The starboard winch is not needed for the rest of the spinnaker
set so you can leave the extension line on it if you want.
Probably
better is to remove and coil the extension line now to keep the
spaghetti in the cockpit from getting overwhelming, you’re about
to
make a whole bunch of it!Setting the spinnaker:
CLOSE BOTH CLEW STOPPERS. CLOSE THE HALYARD STOPPER.
With the clew stoppers closed pull the clew lines so the clews
are
maybe halfway to, but not closer than 2 feet from the ends of the
pole. This can probably be done by hand, no winching should be
needed. If the clews lines simply won’t pull the clews are
probably
snagged on the bow pulpit inside the bag, the only thing you can
do
is walk up to the bow and pull them out. I find it important to
leave
the clews 2 feet away from the end of the pole or more when
setting
the spinnaker because the geometry of the clew lines on the pole
is
not perfectly symmetrical. As the gunmount is rotated the leeward
spinnaker clew will be pulled closer to the pole and the windward
clew will extend itself farther from the pole. Leaving the clews
at
least 2 feet from the ends of the pole allows the pole to rotate
after the sail is first put up without fear that one side will
bind
up. It’s one less thing to worry about when setting the sail and
later, after the sail is up and flying, the clew lines can be
tweaked
as needed.Wrap the spinnaker halyard around the port winch only one turn
and
do not wrap it through the self tailer. Check that the trip line
is
ready to run. Check again that the clew stoppers are closed. Check
again that the spinnaker halyard stopper is closed.Pull the halyard by hand just letting the winch freewheel. It
will
be moderately difficult at first but very rapidly get easier as
the
spinnaker starts coming out of the bag. If at some point it simply
stops coming out of the bag check if the tripline has fouled. Pull
as
fast as possible. If you pull as fast as you possibly can while
the
pulling is easy you’ll not only save yourself some winch work but
onlookers will “Ooh” and “Ahh” when the spinnaker pops open almost
perfectly in place. Normally the spinnaker will not be full as it
goes up but very soon after the “bullseye” (the reinforcing patch
that attaches the tripline to the spinnaker) is out of the bag the
sail will pop open. Pull fast to try to get as much up as you can
before it opens, once it’s open you won’t be able to pull by hand
anymore. Often you will make it all the way. If the clew and
halyard
stoppers aren’t closed you’ll find out about it immediately and
dramatically and onlookers will “Ooh” and “Ahh” in a VERY
different
wayAfter the spinnaker opens the closed halyard stopper will carry
the load on the halyard while you wrap the halyard around the
winch a
few times then through the self tailer. If needed, winch the
spinnaker up the rest of the way. There’s an orange whipping on
the
halyard that ends up at the winch when the sail is all the way
up.Flying the spinnaker:
With the possible exception of compounding the gelcoat I can’t
think
of a more tedious activity than blathering about esoteric nuances
of
sail trim. Don’t worry. I’m not going subject you to that. Here
are
just a few random, probably obvious observations on flying a
gunmount
spinnaker.
When pointing I pull the leeward clew all the way down to the
pole
and lift the leeward end of the pole over inside of the lifelines.
I
also let the windward clew out until it’s ahead of the forestay.
This
is the best pointing you can do, almost always 60* or better,
depending on the smoothness of the sea. This point of sail is fast
and fun.When very broad reaching or dead running I let both clews out
about 3 feet when it’s important to see in front of me, like, say,
when I’m in a channel or in traffic. The spinnaker will rise and I
can see under the bottom of it. Farther offshore, depending on my
comfort level about traffic, I might pull the clews down to the
pole
to get a bit more effective sail area. That makes for a pretty
huge
blind spot ahead, though. Easing the clews like this requires that
there is at least a moderate breeze. In very light air I usually
must
pull the clews down to the pole to get the spinnaker to behave
better
or sometimes just to keep the spinnaker flying at all.Again, the distance the clews are from the pole will change as
the
pole is rotated. If I have the sail trimmed for pointing (one clew
pulled all the way down, like in #1 above) I make sure both clews
are
loosened before I jibe. If I don’t the pole will stop rotating
once
the clew jams into the block at the end of the pole and things get
really interesting halfway through a jibe. Preparing to jibe
really
just means checking to see that both clews are at least 2 feet
away
from the ends of the pole. That’s all there really is to jibing,
otherwise this sail almost jibes itself. Just use the reins to
keep
the pole square to the wind as the boat comes around (there’s
never
more than a few pounds of force in those lines, you can literally
pull them with just your fingers) but because of where you’ll be
standing when doing this, please watch your head as the main boom
comes across.Beware of the halyard or clew lines if they are not held by the
stoppers, the full force of the spinnaker is on them and that
force
can be tremendous at times. In very light air you may be able to
pull
them by hand but never assume you can. Wrap the tail around the
winch
a few times before you open a stopper then remove the wraps as
needed. When the force on the line is high the stopper will be
jammed
too tight to open without winching the line anyway. That’s
actually
fortunate because you can’t open a stopper by mistake, you must
wrap
the line around the winch just to get the stopper to open. That’s
fine.When I’m sailing with only the spinnaker up I found an easy way
to
change to the main and jib, assuming you’ve got some time and sea
room. Head the boat on a broad reach. Put ONLY the jib up first
(no
main) and then take the spinnaker down. Without the main the boat
tracks downwind very well, there’s no big sail winged out to one
side
trying to turn the boat. The jib is so small that the speed drops
down to just enough to have steerage way. That’s good; it keeps
the
apparent wind higher which keeps the spinnaker out of the water
and
also helps the windvane steer better. After the spinnaker is down
come up to close hauled, even pinch a bit, under jib alone while
you
put the main up. Let the boom way out so the main goes up luffing.
Once it’s up you can fall off to whatever course you need.
Changing
from spinnaker only to main and jib this way is really easy and
works
very well. I’ve done it singlehanded dozens of times.I ran aground at full speed all standing only once and that’s
all
it took to teach me to always have the lines ready to run whenever
the spinnaker is flying. It was awful. The spinnaker was pulling
me
farther up the shoal, flogging wildly, or filling up sideways and
flopping the whole boat one way then the other. Amidst all this I
had
to straighten out my lubberly line mess before I could even begin
to
get the sail down. I always keep the spaghetti under control now.
Whenever possible I leave the halyard on the winch, in the tailer,
with the 3 or so wraps around the winch. When the halyard is on
the
winch I leave the halyard stopper open so I’m ready to get it down
RIGHT NOW, no winching needed. (I can’t always leave it there
because
at some point I’ll usually need the winch for tweaking the clew
lines.) In an emergency I can just open the windward clew stopper
and
let the whole clew line fly, about the same technique as a racing
boat rounding a leeward mark. In a real emergency I’d cut the
windward clew line if I have to. The spinnaker will flop around
behind the main, it will be flogging like crazy but it’s out of
the
way, it won’t get run over and the sail will be de-powered
instantly.
I actually ended up doing this that day and it worked but it was
probably pretty tough on the sail. It sure was tough on my nerves.Dousing the spinnaker:
If possible sail on a run or a very broad reach. It is much
easier to get the sail down from this point of sail and then any
other. When reaching it is difficult to get the sail to go into
the
bag, when pointing it is practically impossible. When the boat is
sailing on a broad reach beware of the boom! It’s very easy for
an
accidental jibe to occur and, if it does, the boom will slam to
the
other side of the boat very hard. Even though you are
concentrating
on other things always keep some awareness of the boom throughout
the
whole process. If it moves even slightly, DUCK FIRST AND THEN
FIGURE
OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING.If they are not already there, pull both clews down right to
the
pole as close as they will go.Find the end of the tripline and lay it near you.
Make sure there are two or more wraps around the winch (more
wind:
more wraps) and the halyard is secure in the self tailer. Open the
halyard stopper. If the stopper won’t open you’ll need to winch
the
halyard a few inches to release the pressure on the stopper. Keep
some tension on the line as you unwrap the halyard from the self
tailer. Keep a good grip on it but try slowly easing the tension
on
the halyard tail. The spinnaker should start pulling the halyard
out
as soon as you ease your pull. It will be easy to control how fast
it
goes out by pulling back on the halyard a little bit. If there
isn’t
enough wind to pull it out you have to remove some wraps from the
winch. Keep some tension on the line as you remove one wrap at a
time
and, before removing another wrap, again try easing the line to
see
if the spinnaker will pull the halyard out. Be careful because
there
is often tremendous tension on this line. It is possible you’ll
end
up only needing one wrap but never, ever remove that last one,
always
leave at least one wrap on the winch even in the very lightest
wind.
Remove as many wraps as needed until the sail will pull the
halyard
out as you ease the tension on it. When it does, smoothly slack
the
halyard about 11 feet. The orange whipping on the halyard at the
stopper should end up at the base of the mast. Be careful because
it
is very easy to get the halyard snarled on the winch. As the line
goes out each wrap will want to override the wraps below. Holding
the
line well above the winch and feeding the tail of the line at a
downward angle will prevent much of this. Also only using one wrap
on
the winch, if the wind allows it, will prevent overwraps. The sail
will get droopy and it will be flying way out in front of a boat
but
it should fly there just fine, at least long enough to get it
down.Pull the spinnaker down and into the bag with the tripline.
That’s
not as easy as it sounds. The tripline is very hard to pull and
there
is also some “art” to pulling it. The art is controlling just how
much tension there is (how much you ease the halyard given the
amount
you are pulling in the tripline) at the moment the spinnaker first
starts going into the bag. As the sail first begins to come down
the
tension isn’t important. The rope of the tripline will slide
against
the underside of the bar on the pulpit very easily no matter how
tightly it’s pulled. The “bullseye”, the reinforcing patch that
attaches the tripline to the spinnaker, is the problem. The
difficult
moment, the moment when tension is a really big deal, is when the
bullseye is right at the bar on the pulpit just as the bullseye
itself is beginning to turn the corner from vertical to
horizontal,
just as it’s first starting to go into the bag. Too much tension
and
the bullseye won’t turn the corner at the mouth of the bag. Too
little tension and the belly of the sail splats in the water ahead
of
the boat and gets run over. Once the bullseye has successfully
gotten
past the bar on the pulpit and it’s actually into the bag by maybe
5
feet, the tension again isn’t that important.My method is this:
A) Ease the halyard about 11’ (as in step 4, above.) Watch the
sail’s belly as the sail comes down. When the belly is
uncomfortably
close to the water ahead of the boat, stop easing the halyard and
temporarily wrap the halyard in the self tailer to hold it.B) Start pulling the sail down with the tripline. Pull the
tripline until the bullseye touches the bar on the bow pulpit.C) Try pulling the sail into the bag with the tripline and,
when
that doesn’t work because the bullseye is hooked on the bar, …D) Remove the halyard from the self tailer. In one smooth, deft
maneuver, ease the halyard a few feet. The wind will push the
bullseye forward, away from the bar. Immediately pull the tripline
a
few feet, pulling the bullseye past the bar and into the bag. (The
belly of the sail may dip in the water while doing this.)E) Continue pulling the tripline like crazy while easing the
halyard out only enough to keep the process going. This should get
the sail’s belly away from the water.F) Once the sail is about 5 feet into the bag the crisis is
over
and the sail will be completely under control. Ease the halyard a
lot
faster than the tripline just to make pulling the tripline much
easier.The mistake I generally make is not easing the halyard enough when
the bullseye is right at the bow pulpit. The sail ends up under
tension and the bullseye hooks on the bar, stopping the tripline.
Takedowns are actually a bit easier in higher wind. The sail will
stay dryer as it comes down if the bottom stays full and it will
stay
full with a little bit of wind holding it up. It also pushes the
bullseye forward, away from the bar. If there is very little wind
the
sail will go limp and more of the sail’s belly will end up the
water
ahead of the boat. I don’t see a way around this except for crew
on
the foredeck doing their best to gather up the sail as it comes
down.
Fortunately the boat will be moving slowly in light air so running
it
over is less likely.
- With about 8 feet to go until the sail is all the way into the
bag, release the clew line stoppers and, in theory, the clews will
pull away from the ends of the pole and into the bag with the rest
of
the sail. In practice I sometimes have to walk to the bow and pull
them away from the ends of the pole and stuff them into the mouth
of
the bag. If the clews are very hard to pull when you are standing
at
the bow either you forgot to open the clew stoppers or, more
likely,
your left foot is standing on the clew lines on the deck (how do I
know this?) Back in the cockpit pull the tripline until the head
just
disappears into the bag.Retracting the pole:
Pull the rein that is on the same side of the boat as you want
to
store the pole. The pole will end up just barely inside or just
barely outside the lifeline, either is fine. Exactly where the
pole
is pointed is not very important as long as it’s roughly lined up
with one of the lifelines.Depending on how snug the extension lines are one extension
line
stopper may have to be winched lightly to get it open. Once one
extension line is slack the other extension line stopper should
open
easily. Open both clew stoppers and both extension line stoppers.
Make sure all these lines are ready to run.Wrap the appropriate extension line around the winch 2 or 3
times
and then through the self tailer (the starboard extension line
makes
the pole go to port and vice versa.) Winch this line in and the
pole
should retract fairly easily. If it ever stops the problem is
either
a closed stopper or there is a snarl in one of the clew lines or
the
lazy extension line. I usually retract the pole until the aft end
is
about 6"inches ahead of the second lifeline stanchion. About 8" of
the pole will still be sticking out the front of the gun mount.If, say, you have retracted it to the port side, the starboard
clew line and starboard rein will have so much slack in them now
that
they will be dragging in the water from the bow. (The opposite is
true if you retracted the pole to starboard.) The other rein will
also be very slack. Pull these 3 lines in just to neaten them up
and
get them out of the water. Flip the rein up over the lifelines but
leave enough slack in it so it can just lie on deck. The clew line
can just be pulled in very loosely. Leave the clew stoppers open
for
now but close the extension line stoppers.Neaten everything up. When the pole is fully retracted walk to
the
aft end of it and lift it over and rest it on the lifeline. Be
aware
that when you lift the pole it will become more balanced and it
will
probably slide back by itself an additional 2-4" from the tension
still in the extension line. Make sure your hand is not between
the
aft end of the pole and the stanchion or the pole may trap your
hand
between them.It is possible that the pole has dragged one clew out of the bag
as
it retracted. If it has, walk to the bow, pull a few extra feet of
clew line out and stuff the clew back in the mouth of the bag.
Again,
it’s very easy to be standing on the clew lines as you pull them
from
the bow so if the clew line won’t pull try moving your feet and
see
if you’re standing on it. If you’re at the bow anyway and you’re
not
going to use the spinnaker again soon it’s probably better to move
the halyard back to the welded-on ring on the gunmount instead of
leaving it hooked to the sail. The sail is less likely to be
accidentally pulled out of the bag that way. Unless it’s
convenient
don’t worry about this too much.Back in the cockpit close the clew stoppers. Coil the tripline and
hang it on the lifeline. Coil both clew lines and both extension
lines and hang them in the companionway hangers.Storing the spinnaker:
Untie the stopper knot in the end of the tripline. Coil the
tripline at the aft end of the bag, pulling the line out of the
block
on the toe rail as you go. Stuff the coiled tripline and whatever
small amount of spinnaker may be sticking out of the bag back into
the aft end of the bag.Unhook the bag from the lifeline and untie the line holding the
aft end to the toerail. Grab the bag about 4 feet back from the
mouth
and walk it toward the bow. Push the part of the bag you’re
holding
into the bag’s own mouth. Repeat this until the entire bag is
stuffed
in its own mouth accordion style. The aft end will end up on top
so
next time you want to use the spinnaker all you have to do is pull
on
the aft end and the bag will come out.To put the cover on the stored bag unhook the halyard from the
welded-on ring. Being careful not to let the halyard get away from
you, loop the strap of the cover under the small stub of pole
sticking out the front of the gun mount. Pull the cover back,
letting
the welded-on ring stick up through the hole in the cover. Hook
the
halyard back on the ring through the cover. Pull the rest of the
cover back over the bow pulpit. The aft corners of the cover will
wrap around the side pulpit tubing behind the bar and hook back on
itself. The twist lock fasteners hold it on.Totally random details:
If you want to experiment, nothing says you MUST always have the
pole
extended to its midpoint in the gun mount sleeve. Another shape
control for the spinnaker is having the pole off center. I’ve
experimented with this a little and it can be used to adjust for
weather helm. The pole can also be extended forward when close
reaching; the luff will straighten and you can eek out another few
degrees of pointing. Be aware that the reins will have tension in
them when the pole is not centered and, when pointing, they might
have to be lead at an angle more like a barber hauler. I haven’t
worked out the details of this and I don’t have any idea if this
is
structurally okay or if we are likely to break something; I’ve
only
tried it a few times, always in fairly light wind.There’s a can of “Dry Film Lubricant” spray stuff under the chart
table. Spraying the pole and the gunmount sleeve every few weeks
helps the whole thing work better.I’ve used the spinnaker pole (without the spinnaker, of course) as
a
downrigger for trolling fishing lines! (We were motoring a long,
long
way in a flat calm anyway, totally bored senseless, so …) It
works!
We got home with our limit of Spanish and king mackerel and I
think
the downrigger made the difference.Rick Simonds
March 2003
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, ADScott <ADScott@f…>
wrote:It was written and posted by Rick Simonds. I’m betting Rick
will
respond; if not, drop me a line and I will send it to you. It
is
probably the very best set of instruction ever written on the
subject!!Al Scott
F-32 MECORIAN
Posted by guillemot32 (guillemot32@…>)
Al. I’ve owned a Freedom 32 for about 5 years in the Seattle area. It
has the gun mount option complete but I’ve never installed it.
Finally getting it aboard but lack the details for installation and
use. Would appreach any written info you have. Let me know best way
to get it sent. Thanks George
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, ADScott <ADScott@f…> wrote:
It was written and posted by Rick Simonds. I’m betting Rick will
respond; if not, drop me a line and I will send it to you. It is
probably the very best set of instruction ever written on the
subject!!Al Scott
F-32 MECORIAN
Posted by guillemot32 (guillemot32@…>)
Oops I see that you’ve posted the instructions. Thanks George-
– In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, ADScott <ADScott@f…> wrote:
It was written and posted by Rick Simonds. I’m betting Rick will
respond; if not, drop me a line and I will send it to you. It is
probably the very best set of instruction ever written on the
subject!!Al Scott
F-32 MECORIAN