Advertisement

Win Fowler

Ask SAIL: Lowering the Gooseneck

My boat is a 1974 C&C 30 with a gooseneck fitting that is set very low on the mast. What would you think of raising the gooseneck 12 inches? As it is, it isn’t possible to use a conventional boom vang, and fitting a dodger under the boom is out of the question

Ask SAIL: Boom Pocket Configuration

I’m planning on replacing the mainsail on our 1994 Catalina 320 with a loose-footed cruising sail, using a two-line Dutchman rig. One loft is recommending that the Dutchman boom pockets be fitted with a bolt rope

Ask SAIL: A “DAISY” STAYSAIL

One of the sails that came with my Catalina 27, Rainbow’s End, when I bought it is a “Daisy staysail.” I’ve never flown it because I don’t know what it is for, what conditions it can fly in, or how it is to be rigged.

Ask SAIL: Where To Find Battens

I have full-length battens on the mainsail of my Corsair 37rs. They are 17 feet long. I broke two this winter. Where is the best place to buy replacement battens?

Ask Sail: Speed with a Staysail

I own a 1973 C&C 30 sloop that came with a staysail setup. We race the boat frequently, and it’s surprisingly competitive for its age using just the jib, spinnaker and mainsail…

Ask Sail: Staysail Loads

I would like to add an inner forestay to my Hughes Columbia 40. The sail for this is 350 square feet. What safe working load would I need for an exit block for the mast as well as jib tracks and leads?

Ask Sail: Mast Splicing

I just purchased a new Seldén mast for my 42-foot sailboat, but was surprised to see a splice in the lower part of the mast. I expected a one-piece extrusion.

Ask Sail: No Room For a Vang

I have a 30-foot C&C. The boom on this boat is too low for a standard vang, and the mast has an internal track for round slugs

Ask SAIL: Loose-footed Main

I was intrigued by your answer about the loose-footed main (“Keep it Loose” Dec. 2013) and thought I could do the same on my boat. I also have a bolt rope foot that fits in a groove on the boom…

Ask SAIL: Will a Second Reef Help?

Many times while sailing my Precision 23 on our local lake I find myself reefing my main and roller-reefing the jib to almost nothing to keep the boat from excessive heeling when the wind is 20 knots…

A Father, Son and a Custom Boat

“It was almost standing waves, and we were hobby horsing. The bow was going whoosh, and we were going nowhere,” says Kevin Starnes, 62. He’s

Weekly Photo: Aloft

Going up the mast can be daunting, but not for this sailor who tackled the task while underway on Narragansett Bay last summer. This year,

Scraping the Sky

Colloquially the term “skyscraper” is used to refer to a tall city building, but nearly a hundred years before its modern architectural association, it had

Today’s Trivia: Old Money

Ireland’s Royal Cork Yacht Club, founded in 1720, holds the title of the world’s oldest yacht club, but Russia’s Neva Yacht Club (1718) could also

Advertisement
Advertisement