Foot loose, fancy free?

[TTwiggy]

Some advice sought if I may.

I was recently putting a set of sails onto my (new to me) mirage 28. The last owner had the mast replaced by a z spar model a few years ago, but never sailed with it. I have three mainsails with the boat, and none had ever been hanked to the new rig.

I changed the sliders for the mast with no problem, but the bunt rope was very tight in the boom track. After a bit of swearing and much winching of the outhaul I got the sail set, and left it at that.

But I was thinking if I might have been better off setting the sail with a loose foot? The only thing I'm wondering is if one should have some sort of slider arrangement at the clue, or whether the outhaul alone is enough to secure the sail? For extra info, it is a slab reefing system.

Any comments or observations most welcome.

 

[sarabande]

if the sail hasn't been set for a while, the boom track could be full of corroded ally or gull poo. Perhaps worth a close look ? Usually a non-greasy (PTFE) spray, or candlewax, works to help free the rope.

 

[dunedin]

Definitely need a slider to hold the clew down to the boom. The out haul pulls outwards, as the name suggests, and not designed for downwards pull.
Could perhaps use a strong rope round the boom, like a Laser or Topper dinghy. But better speak to a sailmaker and get the real thing - typically a metal slider

 

[John_Silver]

You'll want a loop of rope /webbing round the boom at the clew end to hold it to the boom. With that in place the loose footed arangement would work fine.

 

[Plevier]

A double sided Velcro strap through the outhaul cringle and round the boom works well. It doesn't seize under load like a metal slug.

 

[Tomahawk]

A double sided Velcro strap through the outhaul cringle and round the boom works well. It doesn't seize under load like a metal slug.

If you look at a lot of the racy jobs with nigh spec sails Etc... that is what they do.. The velcromstrap takes care of the up/down pull and the outhaul takes care of the shape of the sail.... Mostly they are loose footed... Indeed Ther is little to be gained froma sail foot attqched tomthe boom..

 

[bbg]

If you look at a lot of the racy jobs with nigh spec sails Etc... that is what they do.. The velcromstrap takes care of the up/down pull and the outhaul takes care of the shape of the sail.... Mostly they are loose footed... Indeed Ther is little to be gained froma sail foot attqched tomthe boom..

That is what I had on my boat (a Velcro webbing strap)- until I tried to rig the main the morning I left for the mini Transat, when I discovered it was missing. A piece of 3 mm. Dyneema, looped 3 or 4 times around the boom lasted 4200 miles with no problem.

 

[wotayottie]

My boat was built for a loose footed main. There is a metal slider in the boom track. The outhaul rope attaches to the slider and the slider to the clew. You also need a different sail cover if you are using lazyjacks, one that has a luff rope to go into the boom track.

 

[bromleybysea]

So this got me thinking. I currently have a "stack pack" type arrangement where the sail cover slides in the groove on the boom under the bolt rope of the foot of the mainsail. It's a PIA to rig. It is also almost impossible to adjust when the sail is hoisted because of the friction. There is a metal slider at the clew outhaul. If I used a piece of rope same diameter as the bolt rope to secure the sail cover to the boom I could simply rig the sail loose footed by attaching it to the clew outhaul afterwards. Easier to rig and I should be able to adjust the outhaul tension easily. Will it work?

 

[lw395]

Depends how the sail is cut.
If set loose, the foot may flap.
If the sail has been cut and reinforced with the idea that the bolt rope spreads the leach tension into the sail, it will not set properly loose footed. You may stretch or damage the sail.
However some sails with a bolt rope may be OK. Some are cut so that all the load goes through the clew ring, the foot of the sail just acts as an end plate along the boom.