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  • 20 Jan 2026 05:06
    Reply # 13587092 on 9327660
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    I wouldn't get rid of the sail catcher. You can never muzzle the jibs properly with lazyjacks - sail catcher is an important accessory for a SJR in my opinion, not for sailing but for protecting and controlling your sail when reefed or fully furled, especially those jibs which will pop out of the lazy jacks and flutter. You'll see.

    I think now you might be partly on the right track (Ueli's observation is correct, and the diagonal crease in that upside down jib in my photo backs it up) that the severe creases in the jib might not be caused by the jibs being upside down but by what it looks like that the booms and battens might be just hanging, with a negative rise instead of a positive rise. You won't know until you have hoisted the sail properly and tensioned the parrel downhauls a little. (Don't forget also at some point if you haven't already done so, you will probably want to add a standing downhaul to the boom. Once you have that, you can hoist the sail against it and get it to peak properly, and then take some photos).

    I won't make any bets about the mains being upside down or not, but you'll know soon enough.

    One step at a time, you'll get there, might not be as bad as it looks.

    Last modified: 20 Jan 2026 05:38 | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 20 Jan 2026 04:28
    Reply # 13587081 on 9327660

    Ueli


    After starring at my phot for too long, I think you are right. I think that the main sail is upside-down. I think that is causing the pitch of the Batten to point the wrong direction and therfore the luff of the jib panel is supper loose.


    Graeme

    this approach seems like proper steps to isolate and verify the problem. There are few days without wind down in the gulf of Mexico but, there are times with less then 20 blowing.  I will try and Hoist the sale all the way up and get some more photos before I go taking anything apart... (it sure takes some time to lace that thing up.)

    Speaking of witch. I think I will lace the top sail separately from the main and jib panels as to not to have to take it all apart if I have to do this again, but that is alot of string up top... I guess I asked for it when I put in all them grommet. 

    I like the idea of getting rid of the sail bag . I have an extra Batten that I think I will use instead of the boom as to keep the long pole out of the way. I might just clip it to the lazy jacks. It never hurts to have a big stick around. 

    Last modified: 20 Jan 2026 04:31 | Anonymous member
  • 20 Jan 2026 01:12
    Reply # 13587029 on 9327660
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    I see the top panel is laced on separately and it is not beyond possibility that the entire lower assembly was laced on upside down - if so, it looks as though it would be easy to remedy.

    However, I wouldn't jump to early conclusions.

    My initial guess (it's only a guess) is that the mains will prove correct but the jibs might be all upside down. But take it one step at a time.

    Here's the approach I would take.

    The mains are much easier to tune up, so forget the jibs for the moment and make whatever adjustments are necessary to get the mains setting nicely with semi-circular creases in the baggy panels, on a nice windless day. Try to get the mains panels sorted first. If you can't, and if it is because they are upside down, then it will become obvious and you can flip the entire lower sail. I wouldn't expect that to be the case, but the starting point is to get the the mains sorted, or determine that they are upside down (less likely).


    The jibs are more difficult to fathom. When the mains are sorted (if they prove to be right) then and only then you can focus on the jibs. Are they all creased in the same way, or just one or two? Can you tune the creases out by repositioning with respect to the battens (but not upsetting the mains)? If not, then consider flipping one, or all of them as a package.


    That's the procedure I would follow. By "tuning" I mean adjusting panels along the battens and or adjusting the fixing positions of the parrel downhalls, one panel at a time.

    When adjusting a parrel downhaul fixing position, changes will affect the main and jib panel simultaneously, so if you have got the main panel setting nicely, with the luff approximately lined up with the mast CL, then the parrel fixing position needs no further adjustment and then you will know that the  fault will be the associated jib itself, or its position on the batten.


    Adjusting the slingpoint position on the yard can also be considered. This tends to upset the entire sail if it is incorrect. Currently, your top panel looks quite good and I see you have a standing parrel on the yard which seems to be about right - at least for the sail in it's partly raised condition. So leave that for the moment, but just keep in mind that small adjustments to the yard slingpoint position, and also adjustment to that standing parrel, can have quite an effect over-all. As I say, the top panel looks pretty good at this stage, so leave the yard as it is for the moment.


    That's the "order of procedure" that I would follow.  You will have that sail up and down many times in the course of a day or two, but you'll get there by logic and careful stepwise adjustment. Then all will be well. (A couple of nice windless days is what you want). You will be able to read the mains pretty easily. Apart from those terrible diagonal creases, the jibs are a lot harder to read until the sail is fully inflated, that is why I suggest get the mains and parrel-downhauls sorted first, then concentrate on the jibs last.

    Been there, done that.

    You'll get there.

    (You mention the sail catcher or "bag" - that should not be affecting anything and you can sort that out later. The sail will work perfectly well without it, but when reefing or stowing the sail it is a real boon on a SJR as the jibs are impossible to muzzle properly even with lazy jacks. Personally I see no point in a lazy jack cradle if you have a sail catcher - all you need is a pair of lifts at the mast and another pair out towards the end of the boom (but not so far back that battens or yard can get on the wrong side of them). This means when the sail is fully raised, lifts and lazyjack barely impinge on the camber of the sail. However I guess that does no harm - lazy jacks and sail catcher is "belts and braces" - no harm in a bit of redundancy, I suppose).

    Last modified: 20 Jan 2026 01:58 | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 20 Jan 2026 00:42
    Reply # 13587024 on 9327660

    All great advice.


    There is a possibility that all things are upside-down. Hahaha. It was a windy day and I couldn't get to much more sail up without stressing the crappy dock lines I got on there. I had to tie the sail bag back because I didn't have the sheeting tied up yet. The home design of the sail bag was a flop, but it was fun trying new things. I will modify it to match existing bag design. (I'm open for recommendations!)


    I sewed this sail many years ago so my memory is fuzzy but if I remember right, I put the button pockets on opposing sides of the sail. If that is the case, then one of the two sails is upside-down. 


    I'm going to wate for a calm day and loosen some things up and see how it sits and gather some more information. I'll report back with my findings.


    Thanks all for the help and encouraging words. It's such a good community here and I'm so proud to be a part of the junk rig association 

  • 19 Jan 2026 20:43
    Reply # 13586931 on 9327660

    I'm wondering if the creases on the jiblets simply indicate a weak halyard tension. To start trimming, try holding the boom/batten with some makeshift line, somewhere farther from the mast, and tighten the halyard. Then you could try pulling the top corners of the main panels towards the jiblets with some string. Maybe that will help find the cause?

    Last modified: 19 Jan 2026 20:52 | Anonymous member
  • 19 Jan 2026 19:39
    Reply # 13586913 on 9327660

    the mains might be upside down. otherwise the creases would mark the other diagonale.

    ueli

  • 19 Jan 2026 15:35
    Reply # 13586795 on 9327660
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    I  don't know what you mean about "the more barrelled shape". The jibs would be rectangular and symmetrical, and upside down wouldn't matter, except that there is a small batten rise, so that means they are slightly rhombic and there is a right/wrong way up, which obviously does matter. Because the batten rise is relatively small on that sail, it is surprisingly difficult to tell which way up they are after making the jibs, which is why it is important to mark them at the time each one is made, before assembly of the sail.

    It does look as though they are upside down, but I am not totally convinced, puzzled because in my case you can see that crease is along the other diagonal compared with your creased ones.  I can't think of any other explanation, but if you say you did mark them, then don't start pulling things apart straight away.

    One of those main panels doesn't look right either, but that might be because it might be positioned incorrectly on one of its battens (fore and aft), or perhaps your parrel downhaul arrangements need altering (fore and aft) in case they are pulling a batten forward or aft. Small changes in the attachment of those parrel downhauls can make quite a difference, I found. (Also two of the battens are caught up around the wrong side of the starboard aft "topping lift", that's not helping matters either. Those aft lifts should be attached just forward enough on the sail catcher that battens can't get on the wrong side.)

    To begin with, I suggest try adjusting the position of the jibs and the mains, fore and aft along the  battens - and the positioning of the parrel downhauls, - small amounts could make quite a difference -  and see if you can tune out any diagonal creases in the main panels. If you can get the main panels setting nicely and any of the jibs persist in showing a permanent diagonal crease, then you would have to consider that it might be upside down.

    I think it is possible that at least two of them are upside down, by the look of those creases, but try adjusting their position along the batten before doing anything drastic.

    If you are lucky the entire four jibs might prove to be be upside down and if that were the  case you could flip the set of four all at once. 

    It's a bit hard to know where to start. If you can't tune out each of those creases, I suggest flip all or any jibs which have a persistant severe crease, hopefully all four at once if they are all creased, then reassemble the sail. Then hoist it, and adjust the parrel downhaul attachment points and see if you can tune the sail so that you get nice semicircular wringles in the sagging main panels, rather than a diagonal crease.  You can expect to be fooling around for a while until it all sets nicely, but once you get it set up right there should be no further problem when you hoist the sail.

    With my small Amiina sail, I found no need for any other running control lines than the parrel downhauls, once things were tuned up properly - but it is possible with your somewhat heavier rig that you might need other parrels to make it sit correctly - a throat hauling parrel perhaps - hopefully not, I don't know much about any of those other types of parrel so can't advise.

    Slieve or others might have some better advice.

    Don't despair - you'll get it right after a bit of messing around, and then you will come to like that sail very much.

    Last modified: 19 Jan 2026 16:58 | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 19 Jan 2026 13:23
    Reply # 13586750 on 9327660

    There's definitely a possibility that the set of jibs is upside down. I think I have "top" written on both the sides of the jiblets. Remind me, does the more barreled shape resign on the top side of the jib or bottom?

    I'm also thinking maybe my lashings that tie the four and a aft sale together are too tight. I lash them together so they have a lot of tension.

    Last modified: 19 Jan 2026 13:52 | Anonymous member
  • 18 Jan 2026 20:45
    Reply # 13586601 on 9327660
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    This is what an upside down jib looks like.

    It's a very easy mistake to make and it was weeks of frustration trying to tune it out, before I realised what it was.

    Last modified: 19 Jan 2026 15:10 | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 18 Jan 2026 20:19
    Reply # 13586593 on 9327660

    Well, you have to label each panel "front", "back", "top", "bottom" correctly, because it's very easy to make a mistake. This has happened to several people. ;)

    Last modified: 18 Jan 2026 20:22 | Anonymous member
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