[Rhodes22-list] Self-Tacking R22 traveler

[Steve]

Peter
Your heavey air drawing is not correct.  You will
never be able to get that type of adjustment with what
you are recommending.  Your analysis of the
information I presented to you is also incorrect. I
suguest you reevaluate this especially if you are
going to do something like this on your boat. 
However, please feel free to do whatever damage to you
boat that you like:-) It's not my concern. Your
missing the whole point of what a traveler does.  I
have seen many boat that have a system like you are
recommending and they do NOT work the same as a
traveler.  If you recommending something for racing;
Stay with the Traveler.  You will never get good
adjustment with your proposed method.  

Anyway, this is my 2 cents & I feel that I'm waisting
my time due to your analysis below. If you are going
to race; stick with what works.  
Steve


--- Peter Thorn <pthorn at nc.rr.com> wrote:
> 
> Steve,
> 
> > 1/4" line is hard on the hands.  In heavy wind,
> you
> > would never be able to pull it tight.
> 
> The main idea with any traveler is to enable
> adjustment of leech tension
> (mainsheet) and boom sheeting angle (traveler) for
> the conditions to control
> mainsail twist and/or flatness.  i.e. centerline
> with twist for light air,
> leeward and flat leech for heavy air.  In heavy air
> you would not want to
> "pull it tight".  Rather, the control tail would be
> uncleated to allow the
> boom to fall off to leeward.  Although I did not
> show it on the first
> schematic, many sailors tie a 5-6" bowline loop on
> the tail to form a hand
> hold for uncleating purposes, like Laser sailors do
> with travelers and
> Cunninghams.  Line thickness is clearly a personal
> preference item, but I
> can tell you from experience this is not a difficult
> control line to release
> if a gust should hit.  Rigs like this one have been
> used for years to
> control many Tanzer 16s (100 sqft main - same size
> as IMF R22).
> 
> 
> > Maybe I'm missing something but it look like the
> mainsheet is
> > connecting to what you call a loop that is sliding
> on
> > the 1/4" line.  This is just not something that I
> > would do and go sailing in 20+ knots of wind.
> 
> Sorry.  Perhaps this was a little unclear.  I've
> improved the schematic
> sketch with another drawing showing both light air
> and heavy air adjustment
> positions (see attached). The mainsheet tackle
> connects to a fixed point on
> the top of the traveler loop with a knot.  At equal
> distances (going either
> way along the loop) there is another knot opposite
> and  between the blocks
> on the bar.   The distance from this 2nd knot to the
> eye on the bar is the
> traveler adjustment.
> 
> > Better to leave the traveler as is and just lock
> it
> > down in the middle of the bar and not use it. 
> Leave
> > the mainsheet loose and you will get the same
> effect.
> 
> Centerlining the traveler in heavy air is NOT the
> correct trim to depower
> the main.  Doing this and releasing the main will
> open the leech and power
> up the boat, (unless you release so much mainsheet
> that the sail luffs).
> The boat will respond by "heeling and dumping,
> heeling and dumping" as the
> sail powers up with an open leech with lots of 
> twist, then you luff the
> main, then sheet in again and start the cycle again.
>  Instead, the traveler
> should drop to leeward, enabling the mainsheet to be
> tight, the mainsail
> flattened, and depowered - with everything nicely
> under control.
> 
> The self tacking rope traveller works well for
> racers who want to set their
> sails for the conditions, but feel the need to focus
> on the race on the
> water instead of the adjustment line of their
> traveller immediately
> following a tack or gybe.  Like Stan's self-tacking
> jib, it's kind of like
> an automatic vs. stick transmission.  Mostly, I
> thought Bob Weber might find
> it interesting for his club racing efforts.
> 
> Like many things in life, trade-offs are involved. 
> This traveller works
> very well and makes tacks much simpler (KISS), so
> many racers like it.
> However, it is marginally more difficult to pull to
> windward while
> close-hauled.  In light air (when you would actually
> want to do this), it
> shouldn't be a problem.
> 
> PT
> s/v Phoenix
> 
> 
> > Name: R22 alternative travelller REV.jpg Type:
> image/jpeg Size: 230190 bytes Desc: not available
> Url:
>
http://www.rhodes22.org/pipermail/rhodes22-list/attch/200401/18/R22alternativetravelllerREV.jpg
> > __________________________________________________
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