Double ended mainsheet advice needed

[Ed Stockman]

Last season (2015), I bought a 2012 Sun Cat. The mainsheet is double ended. I have some experience sailing cat-rigged boats but am not accustomed to the double ended mainsheet configuration. I sail on lakes in New England where squirrelly, gusty winds often require me to dump air by letting the sail out.
I like the idea of moving the mainsheet away from the companionway entrance to the stern area but during my brief sailing at the end of last summer I never felt comfortable sailing her.
I need advice sailing a double ended mainsheet.  Any and all advice will be helpful.  The line is very long and letting it out takes more time than I'm comfortable giving under certain wind conditions.

[Craig Weis]

"  I have some experience sailing cat-rigged boats but am not accustomed to the double ended mainsheet configuration. "

I can't visualize what this configuration really is.

I'm no help.

This was again posted at 11:05 on Sun Cats and earlier on General Announcements. ...


Ed Stockman
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Double-ended mainsheet advice needed
? on: Today at 11:05:38 ?
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Last season (2015), I bought a 2012 Sun Cat. The mainsheet is double ended. I have some experience sailing cat-rigged boats but am not accustomed to the double ended mainsheet configuration. I sail on lakes in New England where squirrelly, gusty winds often require me to dump air by letting the sail out.
I like the idea of moving the mainsheet away from the companionway entrance to the stern area but during my brief sailing at the end of last summer I never felt comfortable sailing her.
I need advice sailing a double ended mainsheet.  Any and all advice will be helpful.  The line is very long and letting it out takes more time than I'm comfortable giving under certain wind conditions.

skip. What does double ended mean? Is that the mainsheet passing through multiple pulleys on two blocks?

[Craig]

I have had double ended sheets on both my Suncat and my current Horizon cat. Have never had a problem. They do take a little getting used to but I really like the idea of having a sheet tail and cam cleat handy on either tack. Never had a problem with releasing to adjust the sail. I generally luff up to handle sudden gust. A lot quicker than releasing the sail. make sure you have the sheet blocks supported by a spring so they stand up. Makes releasing easier and protects the coaming.

[Dave]

I agree it is handy having the sheet on both sides.  I find I have to be aware of lengths as there is a tendency for the sheet to gather on one side.  Just try to pull both sides equally, even if it requires trimming the lee side.

I do find the arrangement gets in the way of the outboard.  I loop the sheet over the top of the boom gallows on the outboard side to keep it out of the way when using the motor.

[moebedick]

I agree,it takes a while to figure out shifty winds and sudden heavy gusts with the Suncats main sheet. I did most of my sailing in Narragansett Bay where sudden gusts over thirty mph can give a sudden,extreme heel. I was as nervous as a cat trying to control things when I discovered simply turning into the wind a bit flattened everything out nicely. Now I just worry about trailering,launching,setting sail,navigating,packing the sail,starting the motor,getting on the trailer...

[Ed Stockman]

Skip, Craig, Dave and Moebedick - Thank you.

I would still like to hear from other Sun Cat sailors on how they deal with their double-ended mainsheet.

[Bilge Rat]

I'm new to the Sun Cat and double ended mainsheet as well. I wondered the exact same thing as you.   Like others have said, I've found it to be more of a convenience feature. Depending on what side I am sitting on for the tack I use the one closest.  There's really not much more too it.

[Bilge Rat]

Craig: I like the idea of having the sheet blocks supported by springs to avoid scratching the fiberglass. Is this something you retrofitted yourself? If so, do you know what size springs? Anything else needed to do this retrofit?

-Shawn

[Tom L.]

I have an older Sun Cat that has the main sheet and a  traveller on the bridge deck. Over sheeting the main is something to avoid. It slows the boat down. The good thing about the sheet being on the bridge deck is that the sheet is always in front of the skipper.

I do prefer the sheet to be right in front of me as I sail the boat not at my back. To me that's a big problem with the end of boom sheeting. By looking forward I can usually see the gusts coming and like others have said it is more effective to feather up into the wind than to dump the main sheet. I also let the traveller down to about 12" of the end of the bridge deck on both sides to keep from pinching into the wind. When tacking the traveller automatically slides across to the other side of the bridge deck. When running I put the car as far out to the leeward side as possible. That helps to hold the boom down and remove some of the twist in the main when off the wind.

These gaff rigged cat boats are great to sail. and so easy to tack. Only one string to pull.

Tom L.

[BruceW]

Craig: I like the idea of having the sheet blocks supported by springs to avoid scratching the fiberglass. Is this something you retrofitted yourself? If so, do you know what size springs? Anything else needed to do this retrofit?

-Shawn

I need this on my single-pull setup right now. Is it something I can add, or do I need to replace the whole gizmo?

Bruce

[rogerschwake]

  My Sun Cat has mid-boom sheeting that works great for me. I also went with a two speed setup from Garhauer for my main sheet that makes jibbing some what easier and fine tuning better. Choose for your self, I like to tinker around with things and others like to keep it simple.

ROGER

[Craig]

The spring(s) are available at most marine hardware stores and can be easily retrofitted by unshackling the block and fitting the spring between it and the coaming.