In for a penny, in for a pound - on Lazy Jacks & Other Religious Icons.

We too, for many years, ran lazy jacks with a hollow-leech, battenless
mainsail. Eighteen years with the same sail around the world, and never
a chafe problem. Unlike full-battened sails, the sail went up and down
in a loose pile. But, it was captive in the lazy jacks when dropped.
And, the lazy jacks could be stowed forward when not in use, so the
sail cover was easy to put on and take off. The critical thing is a
properly designed jack line system.

Five years ago we installed a Leisure Furl boom with a full-battened
sail. It was difficult to initially set up the sail properly, and the
boom must be at the correct angle each time the sail is furled. And, we
have had batten problems four times - once at the leech and three times
on the hoist. If not set up properly the sail starts to move forward or
backward on the boom and must be refurled. And, we almost always must
head into the wind to reef or furl. In big seas at night this is not
nice. The good, is that when set up properly, the sail can be put
completely away in about 20 seconds, with no jack or reef lines to
handle. And, the sail can be set at five reefed levels.

Getting the lazy jacks off the boat was great. However, the furling
boom brings its own hassles. If I were to do it again, I would be
tempted by in-mast furling. However, I believe the simple hollow-leech,
batten-less sail, with lazy jacks, is the best way to avoid mainsail
problems while cruising.

Bill Healy
Amadon Light

P.S. The trisail, bagged at the base of a separate mast track, has been
hoisted twice - to see if it were still there. A single sheet is taken
to one side or the other, and goes through an oversized snatch block
and then to a primary winch. The lazy jacks were stowed forward each
time I made believe we were using it. I know it is given wisdom to have
one, but I would love to get it off the deck.
.



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Received on Thu Jun 09 11:20:35 2005