Thread: Three Billy Goats Gruff!

That's super news BobWes. The Dutch oven too.

mmmmm Dump Cake.

MIK

Here is the link to 3 Billy Goats on my Flickr


3 Goats at the Small Reach Regatta 2012 by Clint Chase Boatbuilder, on Flickr

Christophe has the same crease in his sail in most of those pics. I hadn't noticed that on the water.

Here is a blow up of a nice shot showing us in action

CandC_boomsflex by Clint Chase Boatbuilder, on Flickr

I am forgetting about my crease issue until the new boom is on, the throat is fixed, and I have a 4:1 downhaul rigged.

Paulie, do you have a photo of your boom lashing I just read about somewhere...(my head is spinning with all the info right now). It sounds like I need it to keep boom from jettisoning out of boat when I hoist the sail.

You can see that everyone in this photo is racing! Ellie comes from a racing family so is boring holes in the sail with laser thoughts to make sure Clint has the lee tufts flying nicely!

Clint and Christophe must do moar sailing together! Moar! Moar!

(Notice my sweet nonflexy FRANKENBoom!)

Originally Posted by Boatmik

Hey Paulie,

I went out with the new owner of Peter Hyndman's Gruff in Feb. He was having problems with gybing and feeling unstable. Moving apart solved the instability problems. To solve the gybing I introduced the idea of watching what the boat was actually doing and respond rather than madly rush to the other side. Also to bear away as the boom went over.

MIK

Paulie, Watch my video with my wife and I sailing GIR. We rolled to windward a times before we separate to opposite sides of the boat. If you fast forward to 7:00 you will see a windward roll then we correct our positions and the boat settles down nicely.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTQDLR9GBws&feature=plcp]Goat Island Skiff - named GIR - YouTube[/ame]

When sailing to windward in strong winds my wife sits on the middle seat with one foot on the daggerboard case. That way see can slide in and out along the seat to help balance and in big puffs or she can hike her upper body out over the rail just by pushing her leg on the daggerboard case. Sometimes she sits with me on the rail when the water is flat. During all this I am sitting on the rail right at the oar locks, sometimes just in front or just behind depending on wave conditions.

I have practiced gybes using Mik's suggestions and it works well. For a challenge I have even done it standing up and ducking the boom as it swings over. I can feel the angle of the boat with my feet and just lean in the needed direction with the correct amount of force applied to the appropriate leg.

I like the way the camera gets water in its ears from time to time

Mine do the same thing!

Originally Posted by CCBB

Paulie, do you have a photo of your boom lashing I just read about somewhere...(my head is spinning with all the info right now). It sounds like I need it to keep boom from jettisoning out of boat when I hoist the sail.

Unfortunately, no. And no time today to go sailing.

But there isn't much to it. Small bowline through the hole in the end of the boom where the sail is lashed. Big bowline around the mast -- lots of slop so it slides up and down and doesn't bind. Just enough line in between to hold the boom so there is maybe 18" of sail before the mast.

I don't bother to untie it when I pull the mast. I just make sure it is free of the halyard cleat. Same when dropping the mast in. I just lay the big loop on the seat and drop the mast through it, then slide it up over the halyard cleat.

It's not a precision instrument. It just keeps the front end of the boom from running forward while raising and lowering the sail. The whole thing goes slack when I apply downhaul; the downhaul tension gets the boom into final position and holds it there. (Kind of like the super low-rent reefing setup I showed you -- more "old fishing boat" than "fine racing yacht".)

I may have to tighten it up if Woodeneye is correct and the downhaul can be slid back to act more as a vang. But that's an experiment for the future.

I'll get a pic as soon as I can.

Speaking of lashings, what type do you use to attach the yard at throat and peak?

Originally Posted by Dennis M

Speaking of lashings, what type do you use to attach the yard at throat and peak?

Dennis, Dyneema/Spectra 7/64" to 1/8" stuff from Sampson ropes.

CCBB, I should have been more clear. What type of knot do you use to attach the peak and throat to the yard? I've tried a number of things, cowhitch through the eyelets and up through a bee hole in the spar and tied off with a reef or stopper knot. I've tried rolling hitches, too, but I am not satisfied with the security of these and they do not seem to be optimal for tensioning the head of the sail. Thanks.

I can't speak for Clint, but my lashings look exactly like the drawings on MIK's lug rig setup page. 3 wraps of cord through the grommet and around the yard, tied off with a reef knot. 3 wraps of cord through the grommet to holes at the ends of the yard, again tied off with a reef knot. One lashing did come untied once, but I had been messing with it just before. I think it is secure enough if I don't screw around.

I used 2.8 mm Spyderline (Spectra core, poly shell, New England Ropes) which is massive overkill for strength. (I think the breaking strength is something like 2500lbs.) But the stuff is cheap if you buy a 75' roll, so I had a lot of it. And I know it won't stretch and loosen over time.

When I apply the downhaul, the sail stretches and the yard bends. The throat moves down the yard more than an inch. I need to lock that down with saddles or something.

Originally Posted by paulie

I used 2.8 mm Spyderline (Spectra core, poly shell, New England Ropes) which is massive overkill for strength. (I think the breaking strength is something like 2500lbs.)

This stuff is amazing. I use the 1mm spiderline for my Laser outhaul and for other little bits like hanging blocks for the Cunningham and rudder downhaul. It looks all wrong because of the small size, but it stood up for the whole season and it has very low friction, incredible strength and is super tough. There is no wear at all and looks good for another season! Cheap too.