[granche1]

Hi all. I just sailed my 1986 37 from Ecuador to Nuka Hiva. I used my 135 genoa or the asymmetric for the entire crossing. Throughout my trip south and west, I have used my staysail very little, primarily because I am not sure how to properly rig the sheets. With the guaranteed stormy passage to New Zealand looming ahead I want to get this sorted out right.

Perhaps someone can walk me through where the sheets lead?

I have 2 t-tracks on top of my cabintop that have small shafer lead cars but I am not sure where to lead the sheets from there. There are some holes that lead under the dodger into a couple of rope clutches.

The starboard side clutch is full with the mainsheet, main halyard and 2 reefing lines. The fifth outboard most hole leads to a camlock type block with no known function.

On the port side, there are 2 holes under the dodger that lead to a 3 line rope clutch. This clutch is unused and one of the labels says spinnaker on it though I do not use it for my asymmetric. I have one non self-tailing winch on each side of the companionway.

What I normally do is put the portside staysail sheet through the rope clutch and the starboard side through the empty camlock block. Since it is such a pain to thread the sheets through the holes and the rope clutch, I leave the sheets rigged but since I rarely have occasion to use the stay-sail, they are just tied at the base of the mast where they are baking in the sun. When I want to use the sail, I have to go untie them and then retie them to the clew.

I dont like this setup with the sheets being led trough a rope clutch and a cam block. How do you guys do it?

Grant Gardner
s/v Viandante

 

[brokesailor]

I don't lead mine thru any clutches. Just lead it thru the Schaefer lead cars straight back to the winch. On my boat you have a fair lead to the STBD most winch on the cabin top. ( you have 2 winches on STBD and one on port?). On the port side I did not have a fair lead so the yard put a fair lead on the structure that the traveler sits on the Port outboard. From there straight to the winch.
If not actively using the staysail just leave the whole mess in its bag on the inner forestay. If you think you will need it deploy it with the headsail. When the wind pipes up roll up the headsail and your left with the main and staysail in service.

 

[granche1]

Thank you Brokesailor. I only have one winch on each side and no fair lead that does not go through a clutch. Not ideal.

Does anyone have a similar setup to the one I have described? If so, how do you work it?

 

[capnJudd]

It sounds like you are having much fun already.

But you haven't taken control of your boat yet. The previous owners always do random stuff, and it is up to each of us to rig something we understand and we are confident in. I'm glad to hear you are now busy with this task. In the case of my 1987 PSC 37, none of the previous owners had completed the cutter rig setup, and I bought it only last year... after 26 years of the baby stay and running backstays existing (pretty well uselessly). It had no tracks for the staysail sheets, no entry through the dodger, no winches, and no cleats for the sheets. The previous owners liked it as a sloop, apparently. Your previous owners did something to keep themselves happy, but you don't have to figure out their systems; you have to have one that fits your own purposes.

After much thought and consulting with PSC I have decided not to install the staysail tracks, seeing as how they would involve 16 new holes in the roof and introduce new clutter to the walking space. Instead I have put in a pair of barber-haulers. The granny bars (mast pulpit) do not allow for any athwartship control of the sheets anyway, so the only control action on this boat model is downwards. My barber-haulers simply connect to the granny bars. From there, the sheets sneak past the dodger by going snug up against the inboard edge of the two humps that the traveler sits on. Immediately aft of that is a rope clutch leading to a special winch. Since it is too cramped under the dodger to rotate a conventional winch handle full circle, I have designed an alternate mechanism that operates more easily. Whatever your current situation is, I recommend that you complete this sort of design and construction before you leave Ecuador. Alas, this advice appears to be too late.

Your boat seems to have a lot of stuff brought back to the cockpit. That decision is one that often gets rethought and revoked or rejiggered. The previous owners may well have left you a setup that no longer makes total sense, so don't waste too much of your brain trying to figure out how it is supposed to be used.

 

[niftynickers]

Grant,
Your set-up sounds very much like mine on Nifty Nickers.My staysails sheets also lead thru the cabin top blocks and to the clutches near the winches under the dodger.Since the staysail sheets have very low loads they are easily controled by the rope cluchches by the roof top winches.I have found that t he staysail is far more reliable off-shore than a genoa especiailly at night when sailing short-handed.Then again I'm old and not in a big hurry.
Di and Chuck S/V NiftyNickers C37 #139

 

[brokesailor]

Nifty: did you ever sell Nickers or did you have her repaired?

 

[niftynickers]

Hi Broke,

We still own NiftyNickers and all the storm damage has been repaired.She no longer has a radar arch or solar panels but she is back to seagoing shape and we are sailing and enjoying her.

fair winds,
Dianne and Chuck Burke
C37 #139

 

[brokesailor]

Nifty: that is great news! So happy for you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[wsmurdoch]

There is a jpeg of the PSC 37 Rigging Guide in a thread at the other Pacific Seacraft forum. It might be of use to you.

pacificseacraftowners.org ? View topic - Documents and Data Thread

Bill Murdoch
1988 PSC 34
Irish Eyes

 

[granche1]

Thank you all for the help on this. I rigged up the stay sail and used it on the crossing from the marquesas to fakarava. I found that almost any way that I led or adjusted the sail and cabin top blocks, the sheets or staysail would rub on the shrouds. The sail is practically new so im not sure it was ever used. Is this sail supposed to more than fill the fore-triangle? The clew extends a couple feet behind the mast. It looked cool with the staysail and genoa both flying but I did not like the chaffing. Any hints on how to run these sheets and avoid hitting the shrouds?

Thanks for thinking and explaining'

Grant

s/v Viandante

 

[34crealock]

Grant, it is the same on my 34, if I run the sheets out side the shroud then I can't go to windward without rubbing, if I run them inside and then ease the sheets they rub inside. I put plastic snap on covers over the shroud and just let them rub and there is no chaffing showing after 20 hours of use. There must be a rigging solution and I expect someone will inform us.

 

[brokesailor]

Could this "staysail" actually be a yankee? I don't think my staysil extends that far back.

 

[granche1]

The sail came out of a bag marked "Staysail" and is a hank on. Since I have a roller on the front, there would be no way to put it up there without taking down the foil. I do have another sail that is marked "small staysail" but I have yet to try it out. Should a staysail not come back past the mast?

Grant

 

[brokesailor]

Grant I'll rig mine up this weekend and post pictures.

 

[wsmurdoch]

Could this "staysail" actually be a yankee? I don't think my staysil extends that far back.

Staysail dimensinons are in an earlier posting. (Google is your friend.)

http://www.sailnet.com/forums/pacific-seacraft/45827-staysail-measurements-37-a.html

Bill Murdoch

 

[johnbanfield]

Hi,

I added a staysail setup a couple of years ago. Not saying it is the best way, but it is working for us.
I added two tracks on the cabin top , fore and aft not angled, mostly because it was easier to install.
I didn't want to add another line to the 8 that are already running to the stbd halyard winch, so I led the stbd staysail across the cabin top to the port side with two cheek blocks.
I installed a nice shiny new self tailing winch to port to handle them both. Works really well when tacking as you throw the old sheet off and grab the other without moving.
Our staysail is on a roller - when we upgraded our main furler we moved the old one back.
I got the sail built after figuring out the track length and position so that it would work with all the hardware. It was still almost too long in the luff because I changed my mast rake, so I would recommend taking actual measurements (twice) to give the sailmaker and ask them to be a little conservative.
I just went with a cross cut from Lee sails in Hong Kong. Happy with the sail.

Cheers,
John




Cheers,
John and Alison
Sv Liberty
1981 PSC 37