Gennaker for solo on SO40

[sailbleu]

Thanks David , that really helps.

Regards

[hoppy]

Thanks David.

How have you mounted the Selden? Above or replacing the port anchor roller? Have you angled it so that it is on the centre line when it is deployed. Photos would be great

[hoppy]

I was looking around on google for Selden bowsprit installations and found this. It looks very neat and is perfect for yachts with the dual anchor roller set-up. It looks like the mount is easily removable if you need to use the second anchor roller.

[davideso37]

Hoppy,
We have mounted our Selden aluminium bowsprit over the port anchor roller using the standard anchor roller fitting from Selden. Our yard did a clever trick and fabricated a roller in parts to fit over the shaft of the Selden anchor roller fitting so that we can kick the ring forward and down and still use the port roller. This is really useful if the anchor is mounted on the starboard roller.
I have all the gear now including the 100m2 asymmetric and that is already rolled onto the furler torsion line. The yacht is on the hardstand for the annual antifouling and a new prop shaft so the first sail is yet to come.

Regards

David

[hoppy]

Thanks David...

Last weekend I was at the local marina and found a 40.3 with it's Selden mounted (I guess it was used to support the winter cover).

They had removed the roller and were using the standard selden mount like yours but mounted so that it stays fixed. I thought that it must be possible to do like you have done.

Now that it looks so easy I will go this route. Perhaps I will pick up a roller that fits inside the selden bracket.

I have decided I order a Code1 (77m2) on a roller. My genoa is only 135% so the code 1 should give me much better performance in light conditions up to 70 or perhaps 60 and work well down to 110-130 and even though it is not designed for it, it should still be better than the genoa at more down wind angles. The sail can be used up to 20knts so it should be fun on a reach

I figure I will get a proper down wind sail at a later date

[hoppy]

The set up I found at the local marina

[hoppy]

I picked up the bow roller mount for my bowsprit today and guess what, it's a mk2 verson from Selden which is now 175mm at the base and will not fit on my roller

Yes it is more sturdy looking than the mk1 but what the heck were selden thinking. Even the smallest pole diameter mount is 175mm and what boat that uses the smallest pole has a roller that wide

The shop was going to contact Selden to see if they have any mk1, but assuming I get bad news I am expecting to have to get the marina workshop to modify it for me. Arrrrrgggghhhh

[davideso37]

Hoppy,
The one I purchased from Selden just a few months ago in Australia had parallel sides and the tube that the bolt goes through was extended to one side so that we could trim the tube to the roller width. The one you have been supplied could not take a roller around the tube so that is a double negative.

An update on our progress with the Gennaker is that we have had her up twice. The first time in 15 kts to 20 kts was not a fair test as we were all inexperienced and had a very short leg to try it on. No sooner was it up that we had to take it down and we had run out of room to run square so we took it down the conventional way. The second time was in 6 knots and that went well. We gybed the Gennaker on the outside and found the ropes caught in the bow roller so we swapped the sheets to the inside and gybed it twice between the torsion line and the furled genoa. It took a bit more turns on the furler for the top down furling to start than I expected but once started it furled ok and the rolled up Gennaker was easy to drop and stow. We will keep practicing until I am confident I can furl it in a breeze without a crew but we are not there yet. Photos will come when we get someone to take the shots from a distance. Anything from on board is too close.
Regards
David

[davideso37]

Hoppy,
We had a sunny day in Sydney on Saturday and a full crew who came along to play with the gennaker. We set and retrieved it twice and gybed it about six times. We even did one short windward leg with it furled in front of the genoa which impressed my wife more than the crew.
The key lessons learned so far are:
The torsion line that turns the head of our furler has to be very tight. I think this makes a bob stay for the Selden bowsprit a must but that is only my view.
The furling line has to be pre tensioned before the take down as it takes many turns of the line before the head starts to turn.
The clew has to be released completely as the sail will not furl under pressure.
I did most of the furling by hand with three turns around the genoa winch. If the breeze was stronger a handle may be needed.
Still no photos but the sail appears to furl neater and tighter each time.
Regards
David

[hoppy]

Hmmm it's probably time I follow up on this. Thanks for the suggestions everyone...

I had the Selden mount modified so that it could fit but I did not do anything about making it so I could still us the roller.

I'm not sure if I even mentioned what the sail was. It's a code 1 from a Swedish sailmaker and I guess it is the equivalent to a North code 1 I guess.

I have not used it much yet as the first 3 weeks sailing for the year was mostly in 30-50 knots when we moved my boat to Lefkas from Samos. I did have a couple of sails at the end of the trip with the gennaker. Sadly I have been stuck at work, so last weekend was my first sail since June. I had just 3 days alone but got the chance to fly the gennaker in very light conditions. With as little as 5 knots breeze true I seem to be able to get 3 knots boat speed and point to something like 60 or 70 degrees in those conditions. So I am very happy with the results