An odd notion for putting sheets ont he high side.

[Fortis]

I would just like some feedback on either how reasonable this sounds or if anyone has tried it and how it went....

There are times when it would be nifty to have the headsail sheets worked fomr the high-side winch, since that is where you are likely to be sitting, it makes for less movement in the boat to be able to adjust it without heading to the low end and it even has some mechanicaql advantages in terms of spreading the load.

It also occurs to me this may be one of the truly cheap modifications, costing nothing more then two double blocks that get mounted near the transom.

Here is a pic...




Thoughts?

Alex.

[s/v Faith]

Seems like a good idea to me.  Some boats will be set up with block aft for a chute that may be used to experiment with.

  I saw an English boat once with one big winch mounted on the centerline with both lines leading to it.... seemed workable for a cruising boat, not so much for a boat that races.

[Captain Smollett]

I cannot recall the name, but I have read of sailors running a sheet directly across the cockpit to trim on the weather side.  You take one wrap around the lee sheet winch, then across to the weather winch for trimming and cleating.
I have done this, but more because of a winch failure than desire to winch on the high side.

It's less convenient, of course, than the method you diagrammed since it has the line across the cockpit. 

[CapnK]

Alex - I've led my jibsheet to the high side many times, just made the other winch into a sorta-turning block. Didn't bother with a wrap, didn't want the friction.

Edited: Didn't wrap on the *low* side.

[s/v Faith]

Now that you mention it, I guess I have done this a couple times myself.  Not with the self tailers, but with the old South Coast winches worked well for it.

[Fortis]

We are going to be sailing with people that are new (err..newer then us) to sailing as well as kids as young as two on board from time to time. A tensioned line running across the cockpit and needing to be kept clear of as the tack comes around does not sound like a good thing...so I wanted to move things around.
It is going to be more useful upwaind then down, of course...But somedays every leg of a race seems to be upwind! (most of the races this boat competes in are fixed mark races, so if the wind changes you just go with it)

The other advanatge of this system I can orseee liking is that it takes about 25-40% of the lift foce off the headsail car...Which should make it much easier to move and adjust it even when under load (joy of a small boat).

On the other hand, I officially gave up counting how many blocks (or rather sheaves) exist in making this boat run. I am making the manufacturers of Vesconite and oscetite very happy. Adding four more? Yeah why not, who'll notice?

I think we are going to have to give this a shot and report the results. We have tons of "spare" spectra left form the re-rig, so making up the longer sheets now is not going to be a problem.

This goes so well with the main traveller car I have invented....

Alex