I've been thinking ... how do you go about adding a forestay or short
headstay or what do you call it stay ,,, for a storm jib?

Ok, connect to mast and run wire to deck .. duh?

The deck connection ,, this is where I get lost. Doesn't the stay base need
to be bolted through deck to some type of bulkhead of something? What do
you do if there is no bulkhead below?

How can you support the stay base in the forward part of the deck?

On Fri, 03 Mar 2006 19:15:23 GMT, "Thomas Wentworth"
wrote:

I've been thinking ... how do you go about adding a forestay or short
headstay or what do you call it stay ,,, for a storm jib?

Ok, connect to mast and run wire to deck .. duh?

The deck connection ,, this is where I get lost. Doesn't the stay base need
to be bolted through deck to some type of bulkhead of something? What do
you do if there is no bulkhead below?

How can you support the stay base in the forward part of the deck?

It is usually called a baby stay or inner forestay. The most
effective way to provide support to the attachment point is to have a
welded lug on the backing plate under the deck. From the lug a short
length of rigging wire and turnbuckle runs to a support in the bottom
of the hull similar to a chainplate on the centerline. This gets in
the way of the V-berth area of course so it is sometimes made
detachable with a quick disconnect lever so it can be removed when not
needed.

Thomas Wentworth wrote:
I've been thinking ... how do you go about adding a forestay or short
headstay or what do you call it stay ,,, for a storm jib?

Ok, connect to mast and run wire to deck .. duh?

The deck connection ,, this is where I get lost. Doesn't the stay base need
to be bolted through deck to some type of bulkhead of something? What do
you do if there is no bulkhead below?

How can you support the stay base in the forward part of the deck?


depends on the boat of course. If the deck fitting is say 1' aft of
the anchor locker bhd. then a short tie rod won't interfere with the
V-berth too much. Otherwise

Depends on the boat of course. If the deck fitting is say 1' aft of
the anchor locker bhd. then a short tie rod won't interfere with the
V-berth too much. Otherwise you could consider a deep beam across the
deck (less preferred unless you make it really strong). Then there is
the option of having the inner forestay deck fitting just 1' aft of
the forestay, but the upper attachment point some distance down from
the masthead.

Or you can buy a proper cutter

Evan Gatehouse

In a previous boat I owned, it had a baby stay attached much the way
Wayne described it, a pad eye on deck, and a wire with turnbuckle in
the v Berth. It gets in the way of course, but it is a solution. In
my current boat, an Olson 40, there's a baby stay, not to run a cutter
sail on but to give the mast bend, and keep it from pumping in waves.
It's attached thru the deck, (a bit nuts, but works) to a hydraulic
piston attached to the keel stringer. It can be tightened in the
cockpit.

On the same boat there is also a rig for a cutter, though not a storm
jib. It's a pad eye mounted to a 1 inch track which is simply bolted
to the deck. I'm sure this isn't a high wind situation, but rather
some kind of cutter rig light air trick, not exactly sure, and I
haven't had the boat long enough to give it a try. But it will be fun
to do so.

good luck

Luc