Raising the sail question (I know, I know it's been asked before, but..)

[Tasman]

G'day everyone,

Long time lurker, first time question.

A bit of background on myself is that my sailing experience used to be limited to hobie type sail craft. Eventually I wanted something else and as soon as I heard about the Compac Suncat and saw a picture of one with my own eyes, I fell in love and knew I needed one. After some research I finally imported a second hand Suncat to Australia which I have sailed here a few times now on Sydney Harbour. However, I seem to have an issue with raising the sail. Or more to the point, raising the gaff halyard high enough the raise the boom clear of the gallows and get tension in the luff.

I have done my research first on this site before asking this question. I've used plenty of lube on the track and tried to raise the peak halyard with the gaff at different angles. I've tried vertical and horizontal but I'm still not sure if I've got it right. And in the absence of a manual, I'm not quite sure how far up it's supposed to go anyway.

So, I would greatly appreciate if somebody could answer these questions for me:

1. When the gaff is fully raised up the mast, how close should the gaff be from the halyard block? I seem to be able to only raise it to about 6 inches from the block, no further up no matter how hard I try.

2. Does the gooseneck have to be above the long pin, or below the long pin?

3. Are lazy jacks supposed to play some role in supporting the boom to get it clear of the gallows? And,

4. When sailing close to the wind, should the leeward lazy jacks be released to allow the sail to fill?

To some of you these may seem like strange questions to ask but in the absence of a manual or any other compac owners here in Sydney (at least that I've seen, and if there are, seriously, PM me and I'll shout you a case of beer if you can spare some time to go for a sail with me to show me the ropes) then I've got no where else to ask.

Regards,

Trent

[Tim Gardner]

Read this pdf File by Edward Steinfeld.  It has tips on sail raising in a suncat.

Here's the Link

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6htC0vnn485WGQzR3V1V2JhRmc/view?usp=sharing

Hope this helps,

TG

[Tasman]

Thanks Tim, I'll have a read.

[Bilge Rat]

G'day mate,

Assuming you're boat is rigged correctly. . .  I will add that on my  boat when the sail is mostly all the way up it does require a fairly strong tug on both halyards on those few final pulls to get the sail up and tight such that the boom clears the gallows.  I've also used sail kote to lube the mast and all hardware and that certainly helps the whole affair.

[rogerschwake]

  Trent I'm going to try to answer your questions the best I can.
  1. I had problems getting my gaff high enough so the boom didn't hit the gallows. With a block put where your throat halyard is now attached, then fix the end of the halyard end opposite the check block near the top of the mast. This gives you a 2-1 advantage and make the throat and the gaff halyard go up at about the same speed.
  2. I keep my boom above the long pin location. Lost my long pin long ago and don't miss it one bit.
  3. When you get the sail up there should be no tension on the lazy jacks. My lazy jacks have one of the lines that normally end at the top of the mast go trough a cheek block then down the mast through a turning block and back to the aft end of the cabin top and a cleat. This makes it adjustable because you don't want any tension on the jack lines while your sailing.
  4. Like mentioned above you don't want any tension on the jack lines, they have no function in sail shape.
  Hope I didn't confuse you to much and this helps, if not keep asking questions and we'll work it out.

  ROGER

[Floridagent]

Regarding question 3:  There should be no tension on the lazyjacks while sailing. But, lifting the boom above the gallows with the lazyjacks before raising the sail can make it much easier to raise the gaff all the way.  Then, loosen the lazyjacks for sailing. 

Before lowering the sail, loosen the downhaul and hike the boom with the lazyjacks once again to keep it from banging into the gallows or falling below the gallows to the lee and having to retrieve it and heft it on to the gallows by hand.  The taut lazyjacks also help contain the sail and the gaff when lowering sail.

[rogerschwake]

  Thanks that's just what I was trying to get across, need a lot of help most of the time.

  ROGER

[Tasman]

Thanks everybody for the tips.

I'm starting to thing that, certainly from the rips of skin from my hands after trying another sail, that I might need to change the rigging, or at least wash it.

Roger, thanks for the tip in regards to rigging the halyard. I'll see if it's something my skills are up for.

Thanks again all

(so nobody here is a Sydneysider? Damn)

Cheers,

Trent

[rogerschwake]

  The wife and I are thinking about a visit to that faraway land of yours in the next year or so. Haven't found any airlines with trailer hitches on there planes to pull a boat but the extra baggage charge would be out of this world. If this should ever happen we'll have to met up. Glad  my ideas helped and wish you all the luck in the world with that Sun Cat.

ROGER

[Tasman]

Well if you eventually get down here make sure to PM me. Would love to take you out on Sydney harbour.

[rogerschwake]

  Sorry to tell you, but I was out voted and we are not headed your way. Instead we are going to England and Spain the way it sounds. I don't get much of a say on our trips, hope you have better luck. The Adrenal doesn't go on the sailing outings, something about not liking the bathroom facilities. Maybe sometime in the future we will go that direction.

ROGER

[Tim Gardner]

Roger, ADRENAL? I guess she who must be obeyed lights fires under your a$$? Heh heh

[rogerschwake]

 Miss spelled admiral and spell check helped me out, but I didn't check the checker. So how made the biggest mistake, if I ask the Admiral you know the answer would be me.

ROGER

[Tasman]

No problem, enjoy your trip!