Jib downhaul on little boat

[Giblets]

As promised in the MOB thread this is the arrangement on my little boat.

The blue flecked rope is the actual downhaul which is shacked on to the jib halayard shackle and is fed back to the cockpit.

The white rope through the blue block is attached to the jib tack and pulls down the luff and is also fed back to the cockpit.

The upper eye is the jib halyard and the sheets should be obvious.

As shown is how I stow them.

Hope this helps.

 

[KenMcCulloch]

There are some very unusual features to the arrangements in the picture. Not mainly related to the downhaul.

 

[VicS]

The forestay should not have shackles on it. You should use toggles.

The two down-hauls must make anchoring and mooring to a buoy a nightmare!
Can you not do away with one and tension the luff with the halyard

I would do away with all that ironmongery on the foresail sheets!
I dont use metal shackles on the halyards either!

I think I might move the two fair leads aft a bit and mount them on chocks to raise them above the toe rail.

 

[Seajet]

I suspect some people are counselling perfection here; the Leisure 17 is a rather well established design, and Giblets makes no pretensions about being the most experienced sailor on the planet, but is trying to help.

Moving the fairleads a bit would be a pain, and they are at a gap in the toerail, at least for a direct line.

The forestay shouldn't be on that shackle, but it works, and a toggle isn't strictly necessary on this forestay, it's not gong to articulate in any direction other than that rake allowed by the shackle, which could be simply replaced with a more suitable clevis pin job.

I'm not a fan of bowlines for jib clews personally and don't see any harm in the snapshackle there - one just bears it in mind if it's flailing, I use a stainless locking carabiner there myself and somewhat surprisingly it doesn't knock the mast ( or crew ).

I'd use a lighter line for the downhaul, but it's all easily shoved out of the way to get the anchor lid open...

Thanks for making the effort, Giblets !

 

[VicS]

Who said anything about bowlines on the sheets ? Or halyards for that matter

I only said I might move the fairleads. It would depend on the work involved and if there was anything to gain. They just seem awkwardly close to the pulpit legs.

Toggles make a neater and more professional looking job of attaching standing rigging. A narrow shackle would perhaps do just as well on a small boat. I have toggles on my back stays and on the forestay purely to extend them other wise the rigging screws only just reach.

 

[William_H]

Jib arrangements

Yes it is interesting what one picture can evoke. I am sure Vic's comments were made in the spirit of helpfulness. But the beauty of boating (compared to aviation) is that you can do your own thing and live with the consequences. For myself I am pleased to see a small boat with hank on jibs. I am resisting furling jib in the name of performance.
Anyway not so much as criticism but observing differences. I always use a bowline sheets onto the jib clew. I also always use bowline of halyard onto jib head. The variableness of the bowline position on the sheet means wear at top pulley bottom pulleys and cleats is always in a slightly different place so extending life of halyard. I can see the point of snap shackles in both when you need a change of jib size in a hurry.
My crew have to be good at bowlines.
I am interested in the removable aspects of the bow rail. I wonder if there is a use or reason?
I can get enough jib halyard tension via halyard and winch and usually have a brave crew able to pull jib down usually in anticipation of picking up mooring buoy. Anyway viva la difference good luck olewill

 

[Giblets]

Very many thanks for the observations and comments, folks.

What you see is what the previous owner fitted and lived with for over 14 years. However, I do have plans for a RR headsail which will need a new, thicker, forestay so a toggle will be incorporated for the stem head fixing. This will also do away with the need for a downhaul.

The fairleads are in the maker's designed positions and I have not had any problems with handling the anchor as yet.

The "removable" pushpit is also a makers item. I did actually look at one WITHOUT a pushpit and that looked scary.

For those interested I am changing to RR as one is not as young as one would like to think and there ain't a lot of room on the foredeck for too much leaping about!

Once again, many thanks for the comments - more pics may follow of the rest of the boat to elicit the same reaction!!

Pete

 

[Seajet]

Giblets,

I understand your comments about the Leisure 17 foredeck, having tried it when helping get one off a bridge pillar, but honestly I didn't know what leaping about was until I sailed boats with jammed roller headsails !

Coupled with a significant loss of performance to windward, it's an expensive bit of kit; I'd strongly suggest fitting netting on the forward guardrails & very efficient main reefing - the boat would lend herself to ball bearing blocks which make taking in slabs a doddle - but as Olewill says, Vive La Difference.