Gennaker

Hadenough

Hadenough

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I have a BIG gennekar in a sock with a ring at the bottom. Currently the uphaul line runs through the sock with the sail, consequently (I think) it often tangles with the sail about half way out. The downhaul line runs through D rings on the outside of the sock. Any reason why the uphaul line shouldn't be led down the outside of the sock?
 
I'm in the process of building/making a sock at the moment so your question is of particular interest to me.

One thing I was wondering is whether twists in the sock are causing you the biggest problem rather than the up haul line?
For that reason, I am using two different coloured lengths of material to distinguish how the sock sets itself when deployed.
Just a thought and If nothing else this will bump you back up....... For more enlightened souls to comment!
 
No the sock doesn't twist at all. It seems that the uphaul line and the sail get tangled together within the sock. I reeved the uphaul through the outer D rings today to experiment and in doing so, like an idiot, lost the halliard up the mast :o. I'll report back once I've retrieved the halliard :rolleyes:
 
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I am not sure if I am understanding your problem correctly. I assume that when you say "uphaul" you mean the line that pulls the sock upwards, thus exposing the sail. If this were to run outside of the sock there would be nothing to prevent the sock from simply turning inside-out...just like a sock.

Nine times out of ten, problems with tangling originate from incorrect loading of the sail within the sock. This is what used to cause me problems when I first tried to use a gennaker.

You need a swivel at the end of your halyard.
You need another swivel at the end of the strop to which the head of the sail is attached.
To assemble the sail correctly into the sock for the first time you should do this on land. Tie the top of the sock to a post or other fixture as if this were the halyard. Extend the sock to its full length, making sure that there are no twists; the halyard swivel will help you there. Now gather up the sock material by pulling on the uphaul, making sure that you do not allow it to twist. This done, you can now attach the head of the sail to the swivel that is at the end of the internal strop. The length of this strop should be just sufficient to allow the head of the sail to be free from the bunched up sock fabric.

Now comes the second important part.

Pull on the tack and the clew until the luff and the leech are together and the sail material hangs below them. At this stage you will know that there are no twists in the sail.
You then pull on the downhaul to bring the sock smoothly down the sail, enclosing it like a sausage.

I have found that with this method, used only once at the beginning of the season (or when the sail has been removed for cleaning, repairs, etc), I have managed to avoid twists, snarls and 'toffies' when using the gennaker. One may note that I usually sail on my own and can still manage to fly that great sail.

Good luck!

P.S. If I have misunderstood you, please disregard what I have written.
 
Very clear thanks. See what you mean about putting the uphaul on the outside. I haven't retrieved the halliard yet!! But I will get the sail out on land and repack it as you describe and come back when I have tried it.
 
Well, after a loooooong wait for a certain well known mast climbing device I finally got the halliard down. As for for the sail, I put the "up haul" line back inside the sock and carefully "re folded" the gennakar as described by PTMD above. Goes up and down like a wh*res drawers now. To the degree that with the sheet and sock lines eased the sock drops the first quarter of the sail by gravity alone, brilliant advice, many thanks.
 
Hadenough said:
Well, after a loooooong wait for a certain well known mast climbing device I finally got the halliard down. As for for the sail, I put the "up haul" line back inside the sock and carefully "re folded" the gennakar as described by PTMD above. Goes up and down like a wh*res drawers now. To the degree that with the sheet and sock lines eased the sock drops the first quarter of the sail by gravity alone, brilliant advice, many thanks.
Click to expand...

I have recently put together a similar set-up for assym. Thankfully, I followed roughly the same plan as you (swivels everywhere) and it all appears to work fine. I note that some socks have a separate sleeve on the side of the sock for the uphaul lines to run in to avoid chafing and tangles etc. So far have only tested mine in a tree in the garden and it appeared to work OK.
 
My understanding, gleaned from conversations at the London Boat Show a few years ago when they had the simulator in operation, is that the uphaul for the sock should ideally be in a separate channel rather than simply in with the sail.
 
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