Sheet to tiller

I have never tried sheet to tiller steering but have tried using a bungee to hold the tiller centrral for self steering on my 21ft fin keel TS. The bungee is adjustable so that with a bit of patience you can get the right amouint of helm bias to get it to sail straight either on the wind or down wind. If you use bungee you can easily make helm corrections without disconnecting the bungee and the helm returns to correct position. Unfortunately my little boat is light and tender such that if if move about my weight heels the boat more or less so causing some drift off course. But it is still a useful device for single handing. good luck olewill
 
Yes. It is the balance of the boat that is critical, not the type of keel. Often needs lots of trial and error to find the right combination of tension and sail trim for each point of sail and set of conditions.
 
Keel configuration has little relevance with sheet to tiller, although a long keeler will keep in straight line easier than others, but less sensitive. The main issue is to balance the sails so that the boat almost steers itself , then add the elastics to the tiller and to the genoa or main sheet. I have spent many hours and days practising on a 32 ft twin keel boat. I have been very successful when the wind was steady but when the wind was gusty the problem was that the tiller responded either too quickly or too slowly, so you will end up adjusting it constantly; however, it is fun and a good way to steer the boat and to appreciate the importance of balancing the sails all times.
 
Pablo, possibly where you got the idea - there is a great book, posted somewhere here on YBW, that includes a number of such techniques (Chapter 5), "Thoughts, Tips, Techniques & Tactics For Singlehanded Sailing by Andrew Evans". Cheers, Andrew G (not Andrew Evans)
 
With a steady breeze, I find it pretty easy to balance the sails and just lash the tiller on our jag 25 fin keel. Doesn't work so well in gusts though, so been looking at alternatives. I was looking at some bloke on youtube last night who'd rigged similar to Dylan, but line was only running through one block and I couldn't see how that would work.

Now Dylan's just confused me even more now by running through two opposing blocks. That looks more like the feedback would be right, but why can't you then take line direct to the boom? Or am I being completely tup? :confused::confused::confused:
 
I am setting this up next summer, although I am a bilge keel I suspect a fin keel should work better.

I think the Youtube setup is over complicated, but have found this useful.

 
Camelia said:
I am setting this up next summer, although I am a bilge keel I suspect a fin keel should work better.

I think the Youtube setup is over complicated, but have found this useful.
Click to expand...

I do find myself experimenting with self steering on long passages

usually some-time between the second coffee and just before making the bacon sandwhich

it seems to me that you do have to be prepared to back off your fastest speed in the persuit of balance

Katie L will self steer with a locked off tiller for hours and through quite rough water on everything from a fetch to a broad reach

a bit of backwinding of the main by a slightly over-tightened genoa can help

when the wind is at a four or five then I drop the big main and gunter and use a loose footed sail rescued from my son's old topper

then she balances perfectly and just chunks along forever - you can steer by rolling in or out a bit more genoa and also by raising and lowering the plate

could I sleep? No... but the occasional cockpit doze for sure

D
 
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dylanwinter said:
I do find myself experimenting with self steering on long passages

usually some-time between the second coffee and just before making the bacon sandwhich

it seems to me that you do have to be prepared to back off your fastest speed in the persuit of balance

Katie L will self steer with a locked off tiller for hours and through quite rough water on everything from a fetch to a broad reach

a bit of backwinding of the main by an slightly over-tightened genoa can help

when the wind is at a four or five then I drop the big main and gunter and use a loose footed sail rescued from my son's old topper

then she balances perfectly and just chunks along forever - you can steer by rolling in or out a bit more genoa and also by raising and lowering the plate

could I sleep? No... but the occasional cockpit doze for usre

D
Click to expand...
Thanks D

Always useful to have tips from people who have experience with things.

I am hoping to do at longish (120 nm so 24 hour) single handed channel crossing next summer - daytime dozing is what I am planning to use this for.
 
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