Endless headsail sheets

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neil_s

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I have just bought a new length of line to make replacement genoa sheets. I remember some mention in the past about making the port and starboard sheets continuous across the cockpit - thus aiding cross-winching. It occurred to me that this might be useful to me since I am usually sailing on my own. Before I cut the new rope into two pieces - do other single handers find it useful to keep the headsail sheets in one piece?
 
I have never considered using an endless sheet.

So long as the winches can be reached from the tiller /wheel it's not a problem.

I have a system of using my rear end to control the tiller while winching in the leeward Genoa sheet.
 
neil_s said:
I have just bought a new length of line to make replacement genoa sheets. I remember some mention in the past about making the port and starboard sheets continuous across the cockpit - thus aiding cross-winching. It occurred to me that this might be useful to me since I am usually sailing on my own. Before I cut the new rope into two pieces - do other single handers find it useful to keep the headsail sheets in one piece?
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I tie my sheets together when single handed ........ I made them a little longer to facilitate this.

This has the advantage over a continuous sheet crossing the cockpit that it can be untied and used normally with crew on board and not permanently crossing the cockpit when not actually sailing

Not losing an end from within reach when single handed is a great help .
 
neil_s said:
I have just bought a new length of line to make replacement genoa sheets. I remember some mention in the past about making the port and starboard sheets continuous across the cockpit - thus aiding cross-winching. It occurred to me that this might be useful to me since I am usually sailing on my own. Before I cut the new rope into two pieces - do other single handers find it useful to keep the headsail sheets in one piece?
Click to expand...

Racing dinghy yes
Sizeable keelboat no
 
neil_s said:
I have just bought a new length of line to make replacement genoa sheets. I remember some mention in the past about making the port and starboard sheets continuous across the cockpit - thus aiding cross-winching. It occurred to me that this might be useful to me since I am usually sailing on my own. Before I cut the new rope into two pieces - do other single handers find it useful to keep the headsail sheets in one piece?
Click to expand...
Why not try it for yourself & see how you like it first, rather than how the bloke at the bus stop up the road likes it. Easy to cut a bit of rope any time. It is joining it back together that causes the problem
 
That's a good idea, Vic! Thank you! I like sailing my boat from the weather coaming, using a tiller extension to steer. The unused sheet winch is right beside me, so a turn of the continuous sheet around it would save those labourious trips down to leeward to sheet in. I was thinking that the rope would be long enough to pass forward of the hatchway when sails were stowed.
 
I'm thinking of doing the opposite and using an alpine butterfly and soft shackle onto the genoa as it's a big sod and the bowlines like to get hung up on the rigging when I tack.
 
neil_s said:
I have just bought a new length of line to make replacement genoa sheets. I remember some mention in the past about making the port and starboard sheets continuous across the cockpit - thus aiding cross-winching. It occurred to me that this might be useful to me since I am usually sailing on my own. Before I cut the new rope into two pieces - do other single handers find it useful to keep the headsail sheets in one piece?
Click to expand...
small boat / dinghy stuff. A good & reliable autohelm is the real answer to short handed sailing
 
Buck Turgidson said:
I'm thinking of doing the opposite and using an alpine butterfly and soft shackle onto the genoa as it's a big sod and the bowlines like to get hung up on the rigging when I tack.
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Sandy said:
I use a cow hitch.
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To attach the sheet I stitch and whip a soft eye in the centre of the sheet, incorporating a short length of something a little lighter with a stopper knot in the end.

The eye goes through the clew cringle and the stopper knot is threaded through the eye
 

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1. Does your leeward sheet car or rear turning block give you a good angle to feed into a cross winch? Rubbing over a coating would increase leadings substantially.
2. I have a feeling that endless sheets are more useful in a German mainsheet system.
 
I have sewn the 2 ends of the sheets into hollow dyneema tape, leaving the middle of the tape empty and cow hitched the empty middle of the tape to the headsail. The empty tape cow hitched is very low profile and the tape very abrasion resistant (in fact is also slippery). I used dyneema braid fishing line to sew.

We have this on 2 headsails and it has been satisfactory for around 10 years.

We do cross sheet - but the sheets are long enough to achieve this.

Jonathan

I think most rope makers sell dyeema hollow tape of a variety of diameters. Ours was a tight fit and I had to milk the sheets into the cover. Ours came from Nautilus Braids in NZ - but I'm sure Marlow etc will have tape.
 
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Thank you all for your comments. I have not tried cross sheeting yet - I don't see why it shouldnt work, though. I have turning blocks about 18 inches behind the winches, so there is a good line across the cockpit. Whether it intrudes or not, I'll have to wait and see. Daydream - good point! My old sheets would be long enough and I have sufficient new rope so the knife stays in the tool box for now! As for sheets to genny clew - I find bowlines work for me - it's just a matter of choosing the right time to sheet in.
 
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