Jib questions

[Goodrun]

When sailing my 19 as close as possible the the wind the jib will always luff before the mainsail does. It seems it does this because it can't be sheeted in as far as the mainsail. If I could get it to sheet in tighter, I think I could sail closer to the wind, but It doesn't seem possible. I have the jib sheets running between the two shrouds on the side of the boat and the sail will rub on the upper shroud wire. I also have an extension on the lower foward edge of the sail that lifts the sail off the deck about 8 ".  Anyone else have this problem and is the jib set up the proper way?

[Craig Weis]

Great question Goodrun. Here is where the Factory Owner's manual and skip differ.

I tried to sail with the head sail sheet between the lower and upper shroud. Wrong!

Then I tried again between the shrouds and in through the loop bolted down on top of my forward cockpit combing. Wrong!

The only way I can sail my Com-Pac 19 now with a 155% lapper up front is to run the sheets on the outside of everything on the boat, down through the sliding block up around the winch [I have placed ss scuff bars on the combing's edge so the sheets would stop grinding and cutting into the fiberglass] and back to my cleats. I actually had jam cleats but found out that these don't work very well. Too late I already drilled the holes and mounted them.

On a reach I can winch in the head sail to it's just two inches off the booted spreader bar. That's as close as I can sail. There are always limits.

Hint: Try to adjust the sliding block so the sheet, if you extend it's length in your mind, was to aim for the center of the head sail.

Oh and, buy new sheet line for the headsail and make them 10 foot longer at each end when centered up in the headsail clew. ["I have no clew where it's going". An easy way to remember the word clew.]
I like to come out of the sliding block, spin off of the winch on the windward side [tac side] and across the open cockpit to the lee side of the boat. Sitting up on the high side I can still winch from that high side. Comfort.
skip.

[Potcake boy]

Goodrun
You do have the sheets rove correctly. Be aware that the shoal keel of your vessel is more of a factor than sheeting angle of your jib. In moderate conditions you will be able to easily note that your course to windward will not improve by sheeting in closer. The simple fact is that you will only incease the leeway. The 19 is minimally canvased and has an underperforming keel. The boat was designed to be roomy, comfortable, shallow draft, trailable, and safe. These design criteria have been very well executed and that is the defining character of traditional Compacts. This is not a race boat - but few of us CP sailors are intense racers. What it is, is a boat to provide you and family or friends an elegant way of getting on the water and enjoy the natural miracle of sailing without the demanding acrobatics of performance edge boats. My 19 sails very nicely except closer than 60degrees to windward, in light or heavy air. That is a fact that I accept as part of the Compaq experience. If you can't accept that then you may wish to consider a different design.

For the above reasons, I have chosen to stay with a furling 110 jib, and use a North G3 in light air. It is a flat smallish spinnaker that allows windward sailing angles, as well as dead downwind sailing with a pole. I also had a new main built by Roley Tusker that is fairly flat loose footed and fully battened. I had my new jib cut to ensure that it is flat (no twist) as I cannot changed sheeting angles with the sheet fairleads. Check the shape of your jib when sheeted close  - you may be hoisting it too high or not high enough. That is the only way to control the shape (sheet angle) unless you have sheet cars and tracks on your boat. I usually sheet in far enough that the leech is close to but not touching the lower shroud, and depending on the wind, not so tight that the sail is too flat to generate forward lift. In light air you need to ease it a bit to get enough lift to keep some headway on the boat, otherwise you will loose all your progress to leeway.

In direct response to your question, I suspect that the pennant you are using on the jib tack is causing the sheeting angle to be too low, putting the most tension on the leech . This situation means the jib is very full in shape and not flat enough for close sailing angles. I would suggest you remove the pennant and see if that solves the problem you described. Keep in mind that your boat will be much happier if you ease off the wind a few extra degrees and you will enjoy easier trim and better boat speed.

For really serious windward work as in having to get somewhere within a timeframe, I use the #6 spinnaker, which was built by Yamaha. If you wish to do a lot of cruising, I strongly recommend this motor as it's two cylinder design is very smooth and quiet, keeping your on the water experience pleasant. If you day sail you can plan your sailing around the day's wind forecast and your motor won't be a really big factor.

Understand and appreciate your 19 for what she is, and you'll not be disappointed. Unless your sailing buddies are adrenalin pumping thrill seekers, your crew will enjoy the experience that they have sailing in this graceful little yacht. If you have a typical sailor's vanity, you will get lots of attention where ever you sail her.

"It's the journey Dude"
Ron

[Gil Weiss]

Well said Ron . . . "It is the enjoyment of the journey rather than how fast you can get from point A to point B.  Sit back, relax and enjoy the ride"!

A very pleased CP 19 driver, Gil

[kchunk]

Hi there Goodrun! One thing you may notice about our boats are that the chainplates attach to the side of the hull. Some other boats you will see will have the shrouds terminating at eyebolts on the deck, inboard of the toe rail. These eyebolts lead to chainplates usually fastened to interior bulkheads. Arguably not the best way to secure a chainplate, however, with the shrouds inboard of the toe rail, this allows a genoa to be trimmed a bit closer.

--Greg

P.S. Ron, are you getting my emails? I think I might have mixed your email address up with "evil" Ron's.