question for steadying sail users

I'm wondering what kind of sheeting arrangements for the boom you guys are using. I have a Marine Trader 38, and right now there are just a couple of flimsy looking lines running from the aft end of my boom to equally flimsy looking plastic cleats that are attached to stanchions. My mast and boom are both made from pretty substantial pieces of wood, supported by 4 cables of wire rigging.

As a long time sailor, that rig sounds pretty flimsy.

Put a turning block (see Harken 57 mm Cruising ESP Block) at the base of each stanchion, port and starboard. Then run forward to a cam cleat like this one- Harken 238 Standard 150 Carbo Cam-Matic Cleat with Bullseye. This hardware is good for 1/2" line which should be sufficient.

If your stanchion base doesn't have a place to clip on then you can use one of these, but keep them low on the stanchion- Schaefer Clamp-On Pulpit Furling Lead Block

Using two boom sheets is a little awkward, but is probably better for a trawler layout.

A more elegant solution is one of these mounted centerline- Antal Block and Servo Cleat. But it requires access to the underside of the boat deck to through bolt it as the loads will probably pull out screws.

David

boatguy, That doesn't sound very substantial. Stanchions cause enough leak issues with attaching sail rigging to them.

How heavy your rigging needs to be is mainly dependent on how much sail area you have. My mainsail is just over 200 square feet and my jib is just over 100 square feet.

A photo would help to clarify your setup, but I googled other MT 38's and see than they have a setup for perhaps a 120 square foot sail with the boom running about 3-4 feet above the rear flybridge deck.

What i have done, and it would probably work well for you as well, is installed about 4 feet of 25mm traveller T Track to give a good anchor point for the sheeting. A car is used to run along the traveller and it locks in place to keep your steady sail at the optimum angle and with the correct tension. It also spreads the load along the entire track rather than a single anchor point.

Steadying sails are not for driving the boat and are pretty small sails in comparison to a sailboat.

Without really seeing the set up in action, hard to advise.

But do agree, anything working a stanchion from other than tbe bottom is a bad idea for leaks.

If used in the ICW , with a following wind , there is a good chance of multiple jibes.

Sturdy deck mounted gear is advised.

What is the minimum size for a steadying sail to work? My boat (40’, 24000lbs) has 377 sq Ft of total sail on it (main and jib) and it stabilizes the boat well with 10-15 knots of wind, but it’s a more of a rounded sailboat hull and pretty tender so easier to stabilize I think.

Seems like a 38 MT with a semi displacement hull would take more sail area and a pretty substantial rig to steady it ?

cardude01 said:

Seems like a 38 MT with a semi displacement hull would take more sail area and a pretty substantial rig to steady it ?

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You may be right CD, I don't really know much about the effect on semi-displacement hulls.

Given that location of the mast on the MT 38 is so far aft, the sail would certainly be useful at anchor to adjust how the boat points into any swell.

A steadying sail is hard and flat as a board and sheeted hard to the middle.

It is not set with the wind....unless .... you are using it for more tha it was intended for.

They are just designed to resist rolling, with or without any wind. And the few pounds of resistance is supposed to dampen roll, not really eliminate it.

Its size can vary depending on how much dampening is wanted.

In theory you want it for beam seas from most likely a beam wind, so smaller can achieve similar results but lesz effective in a calm day swell.

May I suggest you contact the builder and ask his recommendations, that is assuming the company is still in business.
I agree with psneeld's description of a steady sail.
I also suggest the mast and boom were designed to put a dingy over the side and to retrieve it. Therefore, it may be just mounted to the deck for structurally support. There maybe a substantial backing plate but, one would have to remove the ceiling in that area to see.

psneeld said:

A steadying sail is hard and flat as a board and sheeted hard to the middle.

It is not set with the wind....unless .... you are using it for more tha it was intended for.

They are just designed to resist rolling, with or without any wind. And the few pounds of resistance is supposed to dampen roll, not really eliminate it.

Its size can vary depending on how much dampening is wanted.

In theory you want it for beam seas from most likely a beam wind, so smaller can achieve similar results but lesz effective in a calm day swell.

Click to expand...

I get slightly different results. It may be due to having a gaff rigged setup.

I find that without any wind, the sails have no noticeable effect on roll dampening at all, even with the sails stretched as taut as they go. With 15 knots of wind and a 3 foot swell on the beam the sails will almost completely eliminate the rolling motion. I'd estimate the reduction to be from +/-20degrees to =/- 2 degrees.

AusCan said:

With 15 knots of wind and a 3 foot swell on the beam the sails will almost completely eliminate the rolling motion. I'd estimate the reduction to be from +/-20degrees to =/- 2 degrees.

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Now THAT is impressive! I'm looking forward to seeing if my steadying sail will make any significant difference in my roll.

AusCan said:

I get slightly different results. It may be due to having a gaff rigged setup.

I find that without any wind, the sails have no noticeable effect on roll dampening at all, even with the sails stretched as taut as they go. With 15 knots of wind and a 3 foot swell on the beam the sails will almost completely eliminate the rolling motion. I'd estimate the reduction to be from +/-20degrees to =/- 2 degrees.

Click to expand...

Sails for propulshion have shape and tend to be less effective...but in no wind, unless pretty big or very tall, a flat steadying sail has limits too.

On our 90/90 the mainsail is for propulsion , about 300sq ft .

It is fully battened so serves as stabilizer in ditches , with the advantage of never flogging due to the battens.