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Roger Long wrote:
I previously posted about my desire do save the cost and mast real
estate of a winch for the roller furling jib halyard since it is
infrequently used. I posted this sketch:

http://home.maine.rr.com/rlma/Halyard.jpg

which elicited no technical comments but started a long thread about
how I was negligently and foolishly endangering my children and
everyone else by requiring anyone to leave the security of the
cockpit.

wrote:
I'd encourage you to bear in mind that not everyone who posts to usenet
is a confident sailor who has spent some time doing things at sea.

Ya think?

I'm glad you are happy with your arrangement. I'd offer that on a boat
this size, one can get as much or more force than needed without any of
this by simply choking the line at the cleat, putting one's foot hard &
high against the mast, & alternately drawing the halyard outward like a
bowstring while snubbing it up between strokes.

I'd offer that you have no idea how much halyard tension is desirable on
a keelboat of this size, and I'll bet you haven't tried "putting one's
foot hard & high against the mast, & alternately drawing the halyard
outward" in any kind of seaway.

Picture this... how much force would be on a line used to *tow* the boat
at 5 1/2 or 6 knots, thru a bit of lumpy water? Are you going to sweat
that line tighter with your hands & feet, with no added purchase? Is the
halyard tension greater or less?

... you will soon find yourself wondering why anyone
bothers having little single-speed winches at all (and their cranks to
deal with too), let alone more running rigging to take their place.

Indeed, I wonder about that already.

Actually, Roger's idea for a running tackle to gain enough halyard
tension to get the sail to set properly is a good one. I've used a
similar arrangement (albeit on smaller boats) and even tailed the extra
purchase to a split control line (one on each side of the cockpit, so as
to be able to adjust halyard tension on either tack... a racing
refinement). No reason why it wouldn't work on Roger's boat, although
one might want to put some kind of shock cordon the tackle, or restrain
it to a track, to hold it in place & not cause damage and/or injury
while the halyard is flailing around.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King

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