"Benefits" of spreaders on a dinghy?

[blackbeard]

On reefing a GP14:
I do this often (when dinghy cruising), there are 2 sets of slab reef points in the main (on my boat) and it's possible to tension both luff and foot so that a flattish sail results. (Yes it does have spreaders.) Can be best to use a small jib, as noted. Much easier to sail in strong winds. We also routinely do this (GP14s again, also Bahias) during sailing courses when the wind is strong. The boats we use with sailing for disabled (Wayfarer, Stratos and of course Access) all reef; otherwise we would be severely limited in the range of wind strengths we could sail in.

RYA dinghy training specifies some knowledge of reefing.

I would agree that the older method of rolling around the boom results in a truly horrible sail shape, more suited to the carriage of potatoes.

 

[Lakesailor]

Useful if you are cruising and want to carry potatoes.

 

[Kelpie]

Even Toppers can be reefed, by taking a few turns around the mast.

 

[Seajet]

Even Toppers can be reefed, by taking a few turns around the mast.

Yes but if pushed in a blow they tend to break the boom at the kicker point.

 

[Seajet]

Useful if you are cruising and want to carry potatoes.

On holiday at Low Wray as a boy I used to trundle our Caricraft 10' gunter dinghy across to Ambleside for Mum to do her shopping; nb no spreaders as gunter rig but on the GP I still think they're a good idea, they weren't invented for styling reasons as far as I know.

 

[Iain C]

To pick up on a few points...

18s in reality tend to run 2 rigs with tuneablitity to bridge the gap. I raced a 12 for a few years which ran 4 rigs...you were forever on the wrong size.

Some modern dinghies do reef. RS600/100 for example. However you tend to change the mast setup too, so you are always hoisting the main to the masthead.

Having a rig with spreaders, and efficient depowering kit such as outhaul, cunningham, kicker, will generally give a far more satisfactory, efficient, and tuneable setup than just reefing for a semi-competent sailor. Setup is key...a 4" difference in the measurement on a fireball from the masthead to the transom makes the difference between something that is a joy to sail upwind in 25 kits to something that is a complete cow...

 

[Greenheart]

Even Toppers can be reefed, by taking a few turns around the mast.

Yes, they can, and oh my lord, what a heinous excuse for a sail is the result! Made me spill olives in the bilge, often. The miserable little triangle of sail was so jolly petite, the boat went sideways at best. Nearly put me off dinghies altogether.

 

[Searush]

Thanks for the input. I already have a jib as well as the larger genny, but probably wouldn't be taking the family out if the main needed reefing too! It will mostly be sailed at Bala (top end of the Lake) & I would normally play the mainsheet to spill awkward gusts. I do not intend modifying either main with reef points at this stage.

The non-spreader mast has spinny fittings & I do have a spinny, and it is tiny!

 

[ex-Gladys]

As a relic of this age of dinghy racing, the earliest spreaders were actually free swinging and shorter than the straight line distance between the shroud and the mast. The fixed spreader which pushed the shroud outwards was a late 60's innovation. The real good old days were when everything had diamonds... an early Fireball I sailed had those on an IYE mast

 

[Seajet]

As a relic of this age of dinghy racing, the earliest spreaders were actually free swinging and shorter than the straight line distance between the shroud and the mast. The fixed spreader which pushed the shroud outwards was a late 60's innovation. The real good old days were when everything had diamonds... an early Fireball I sailed had those on an IYE mast

Gladys,

I remember the free swinging spreaders and diamond stays but don't have any pics to hand - maybe old transpanecies up in the attic !

Do you have any such pics please ?

Andy

 

[Iain C]

Early RS800 top spreaders were free swinging too, although later boats were fixed.

 

[Iain C]

Early RS800 top spreaders were free swinging too, although later boats were fixed, so not just old boats!

 

[Searush]

My spreaders are adjustable with 3 holes.

 

[Woodlouse]

I would go for the rig that fits best, with least hassle.

Not all rigs need spreaders and sometimes they are little more than something else to go wrong. Trouble is these days is that people are far too used to them, so when they see a boat without they get nervous.

 

[reeac]

An interesting point re. spreaders is the amount of compression they can be required to withstand. I have a pic. of our pre-war dayboat [timber mast and spreaders] taken exactly bow-on when closehauled at 30 degrees heel. The windward spreader has forced the mast into a visible S-shape. Nothing broke.

 

[ex-Gladys]

Gladys,

I remember the free swinging spreaders and diamond stays but don't have any pics to hand - maybe old transpanecies up in the attic !

Do you have any such pics please ?

Andy

Pics? Pics? good grief I hardly could afford a pair of plimsolls a season let alone film!



By the way as "one design" classes spreaders on both GP and Ent were quite late upon the scene, probably 80's at least

 

[Searush]

Right, so maybe I will try the non-spreader mast with the spreader stays to see if that will work, taking up the slack in the adjusters. All I need now id to wait for the rain to stop.

 

[lw395]

Pics? Pics? good grief I hardly could afford a pair of plimsolls a season let alone film!



By the way as "one design" classes spreaders on both GP and Ent were quite late upon the scene, probably 80's at least

My Dad had a new mast for his Enterprise in the early seventies, I think spreaders were an option then, depending on which section you chose. He wasn't into racing, but we took the boat on the sea and the no-spreader rig seemed fine at the time.
Paul Elvstrom's books show some very complex spreader arrangements on his 505's.

New shrouds for a dinghy are not expensive, and I've had two sets fail at about 10 years old, FWIW. I suspect the old 1x19 and talurit lasts better than the modern dyform and roll-swage.

You could price them up at pinbax.co.uk or sailboats.co.uk, but I usually use my local chandler.

 

[EBoat126]

I snapped a shroud on our 420 late this year, new ones were only £26 a pair from P&B, great service.

 

[westernman]

My Dad had a new mast for his Enterprise in the early seventies, I think spreaders were an option then, depending on which section you chose. He wasn't into racing, but we took the boat on the sea and the no-spreader rig seemed fine at the time.
Paul Elvstrom's books show some very complex spreader arrangements on his 505's.

New shrouds for a dinghy are not expensive, and I've had two sets fail at about 10 years old, FWIW. I suspect the old 1x19 and talurit lasts better than the modern dyform and roll-swage.

You could price them up at pinbax.co.uk or sailboats.co.uk, but I usually use my local chandler.

As I said above, if you don't reef the standard no-spreader rig for Enterprise and GP14 is just fine. In strong winds you can bend the mast a fair bit to flatten the sail with the kicker and the main sheet.

However if you reef (in strong winds), then the middle of the mast will bend back the wrong way, making the sail fuller and pretty much negating the effect of the reef. It will also make it almost impossible to make much progress to windward.

It won't do the mast any harm unless you do an uncontrolled gybe (bent my Enterprise mast doing that with full sail) although it does look alarming.

By the way, a normal metal mast, if you do bend it, you can normally bend back again. You need to support it on a couple of well padded tressels and jump on it in the right place. (Do it in the wrong place and you end up with an S shaped mast - I know!).