I have a question for the list that I'm sure someone (or many ones)
has an answer for. While thinking of upgrades for this coming
season I considered an asymmetrical or cruising spinnaker. I
remember a few people talking about flying one awhile back.
My question is how have people rigged the halyard on the R22. A
quick inspection tonight of the masthead hanging in the garage
reveals two sheaves, one used for the main halyard and one for the
topping lift (at least on a conventional main). Has anyone rigged
another block at the head? I have considered converting the topping
lift to dead-ending at the masthead and running it through a block at
the end of the boom to a cleat on the boom. This would free up a
sheave. Comments are welcome.
Dave Walker
s/v Windswept
You're on the right track with your boom topping lift idea. I took a
SS tang, drilled it out for the hole in the end of the boom and
mounted a Harken 423 Cam-Matic cleat and a Harken 284 micro wire
fairlead on the tang.
Then, I bent the tang so the topping lift from the masthead was led
fairly into the cam cleat. This way, you don't need a block on the
end of the boom. My boom topping lift is dead-ended at the masthead
and is adjusted with the cam cleat on the end of the boom. I've been
sailing with this setup for about 11 seasons now.
This will free up a pair of sheaves in the masthead for your
spinnaker halyard. The masthead sheaves will work just fine for a
halyard for an asymmetrical spinnaker. For a tri-radial spinnaker,
you will also need a "spinnaker crane" at the masthead to get the
halyard out in front of the roller-furler.
Roger Pihlaja
S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
