[C320-list] New Sails, Advice Sought

[Chris Burti]

Ken,
If you have firmly made up your mind, ignore this, but others may find it
useful.

I have had reefing rigged both ways on various boats we've owned and with a
couple of mods, I have been very happy with the OEM reefing system on the
C-320 especially compared to the traditional system with a hook.

I really need to be able to single hand any boat we own as the Admiral can't
pull on strings without risk of injury to her back.
As I am not as agile as I used to be, things must work as designed or I'll
deep six them. Biggest problem with the stock stuff we have on our C-320's
is a dearth of cogent explanation, once you get them figured out, it seems
like they work pretty well..

First, the gate was missing when we bought Commitment and someone had
fabricated one out of a door latch strike plate. It had rusted, so I ordered
a new one. I had read the grumbling about the gates and read several
suggestions on how they should be installed, so  I was very careful to make
sure that its shape conformed to the radius of the mast and to align it very
carefully so as avoid a snagging situation. It took a little trial and error
and about twenty minutes time to get it right. Every time I go out now, I
sailkote the slugs and the gate and as a result, the slugs very rarely hang
up. When they do, I just ease the halyard a touch and they free right up.
Once in a while, I need to go forward, but that rare occurance is acceptable
as I almost always need to reef and unreef when we sail. Other than after
removing the main, I have not had to adjust the gate in normal use since I
replaced it in 2002 either.

Second, I ran the reef lines through small blocks on the sail that are
hooked to rings on the other side of the cringle. This took most of the
friction out and really made the process "jiffy".

I have had jack lines before and they are far better than nothing but not
much better than OK. I like the Dutchman better, but likely would hate it if
I hadn't ignored the recommendations and had zippers put in my sailcover. By
doing this, I can adjust it when I put the sail back on and then just leave
it set so that the lines are always taut when I tighten up the topping lift.
If there is any slack in the lines, the sail is not controlled and the thing
is worthless. If you dont have the zippers in the cover, you need to putz
with the adjustment all the time and then jack lines are better.

On Thu, Apr 23, 2009 at 1:07 PM, Ken Danko <ken320 at sbcglobal.net> wrote:

> I just ordered new sails (North) and am going to make some changes. This is
> where I could use some advice from those of you who have been through this.
>
> I am going to scrap the single line reefing system in favor of hooks at or
> near the goosneck. Has anyone else gone this route and if so, do you have
> photos to show me how to rig this?
>
> One problem I have encountered in the past is with slides sticking at the
> luff gate. I wish that they had put the gate much lower on the mast. Has
> anyone figured a way to get the luff gate to fit better? It is pretty flimsy
> and I can't seem to get it to fit properly. Maybe I can get a new one
> fabricated.
>
> Ronstan makes batten cars that don't require an external track. They call
> this their Ballslide Batten System. My sail maker highly recommends these.
> Has anyone else installed these on their 320? And if so, do they work well?
> I went to Simply Sail Pacific hoping that Harken would have a 75% off sale
> on their external track and related hardware but no such luck. The North guy
> says that the Ronstan system will achieve 75% of the same results at 1/6th
> the cost.
>
> I am going to make some other changes. I know that there are strong
> opinions pro and con in this group for the Dutchman System. I am going to
> ditch it in favor of lazy jacks. (I have had both and MUCH prefer lazy
> jacks.) I am also going to get a loose fitted main.
>
> Any suggestions/advice will be greatly appreciated.
>
> Thanks,
> Ken Danko
> Grace, #802
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-- 
Chris Burti Farmville, NC