DaySailer.org Forum

I purchased a 1973 DS II this summer, and though I am familiar with sailing and sailboats in general, I am still learning alot about this boat. One thing I have noticed while browsing photos on this site, and elsewhere, is that the mainsail sheeting system differs on many boats. My question is what works best? Additionally, because I need to add a motor to my boat, (a must for sailing on Long Island Sound) the current sheeting setup on the stern is not working. So I was also wondering if I should leave the sheet alone and put on a motor mount, or is it easier and more desirable to change the configuration of the main sheet? Your opinions are appreciated.
Thank you,
- Greg

I can't advise one over the other, but I would look at the cost of switching to a mid-boom setup. The money can add up if you have to buy new hardware to do it. If you're good at finding deals that might not be a factor. Other than that if you go with a mid-boom traveler it will eat up some room in the cock pit, and your personal taste will tell if that's a problem or not. I know that's not a lot of help, but they're some things to think about.

I have to agree that mainsheet rigging arrangements are a highly personal preference. The advantages of an aft traveller is that it clears the cockpit but clutters the tiller and motor area with possible tangles. The advantage of mid cockpit sheeting is that the sheet is closer at hand but can be a shin banger. It also keeps the crew where they are supposed to be! End boom and mid boom arrangements have similar pros and cons. I have also seen some travellers on the cockpit sole. The advantage is that it reduces shin banging, but increases toe stubbing and tripping, and still has the mainsheet cluttering the cockpit.

In all of these situations, personal preference is highly informed by your sailing style. If you typically sail alone, you may prefer all the controls close at hand. If you sail with crew, it depends on crew ability and responsibiity; if for instance crew are responsible for both jib and main trim, then having the controls in the cockpit may be advantageous. If however the helmsman controls the main, you may want it on an aft traveller. If you go to an aft traveller, you will want the track or line above the tiller. In either case you will want to mount the motor on a separate bracket that stays out of the way of the rope traveller or mainsheet.

As you likley know the general principle that all boats are a compromise, the corollary is that all systems are inter-related and a change in one, affects performance on another.

Ask the question about where to place beverage holders and you will likely get a similar response, with a wide variety of choices.

Greg,

I also have a DS II (for about 10 years now) sailing on LI sound. I've considered an outboard many times but have still not succumbed because of the compromises in sailing performance. If you hang the engine on a bracket it seems to squat the stern too much and I'm not a big fan of the midboom sheeting which my boat came with originally. Since we don't have the rear deck on the stern of the boat like the DSI's or some newer II's I was considering either getting a small, light outboard (2 hp) and only mounting it when I needed to or moving my traveler up about a foot or so to get it out of the way of the engine (as if I had the rear deck). I have a picture of my boat sailing that shows the wire traveler mounted right at the stern (in galleries). If I were to move the two eyestraps that the wire attaches to up about a foot (screwing them into the coamings) that would place it in about the same place as the DSI's. just a thought

Shawn
DSII 10542

Thank you all for your opinions. I not sure what I'm going to do though, and being that I need to replace most of the blocks anyway, the expense is not much of a factor yet. I think that a mid boom setup is going to be the best option, however is there going to be a major change in handling characteristic? I don't expect to do any racing, if that is a factor.
Additionally, From where I sail out of, a motor is a must. We have a small and congested harbor with a very small mouth and sailing out under wind power is difficult. Furthermore, as I intend to sail some distance from port, not out to sea, but down the coast, having the extra safety of a motor just in case would make me and my crew feel better. I have already come to own, at an unbelievably low price, a new Mercury 2.5hp long-shaft.
Thanks again,
Greg

First of all, you should have no problem with the 2.5 oushing you around. I have a 2.5 on a boat that displaces 1300, and it moves it at hull speed. I did have a 5 hp on my DS but it was was way too heavy. I could get that thing up on a plane.

Just remember to carry a spare gas can. The tank on a 2.5 hp will get you about 45 minutes at full throttle.

Secondly, as long as you have 3:1 on the mid boom sheeting arrangement, you will not have any problems. I had 3:1 mid boom, and over 50, and had no problem pulling the mainsheet. The main has a square footage of 100 sq ft, so at a pound a square foot (standard assumption) at 3:1 you are only pulling 33 pounds.

The thing I didn't like about the midboom sheeting was that when pulling the main up to the centerline when trying to point high there was way too much tension on the leech, especially in light air. Now with the block only about 6 inches under the boom on the rear traveler I can sheet the main right up to the centerline with very little tension (using the vang for control) and point much higher than I could with the mid boom set-up.

-s

I agree with Shawn. A stern traveller allows the boom to be sheeted in without flattening the sail.

I also found that in gusty winds using the original rigging, the main was hard to hold for an extended period of time. I always worry that I'll hit a knockdown and won't be able to luff the main fast enough. I was more comfortable with 4x, most of it obtained with a becket and fiddle on the stern traveller. (The previous owner of my boat had already added a motor mount.)

After I got my current boat, I found that the boom was bent right at the point the main block attached. Maybe it was the result of an accident, but it appeared that the spar had fatigued from 35 years of tension at that one point. It seems to me that a stern traveller and mid-cockpit swivel distributes the pressure more.

Oh, yeah. And I'm still in the market for a used (straight) boom.

You can go to Dwyermast.com and buy the extrusion only for $14.35 foot and then transfer your hardware over. I believe the exact replacement is the DM275. I don't know how much a used one would go for if you could even find an undamaged one but the above price doesn't sound unreasonable for a brand new boom. (just over 10' around $150)

Good Luck

My workaround for this spring is a mystery-boat junked boom from a boatyard that I'm in the process of refinishing. I had all the parts and some leftover 2-part epoxy paint, so I'm at a total cost of $50. Well, and the time. But I'm a boat owner. What does time have to do with anything?

I have looked at the Dwyer site. I came up with a somewhat higher price, about what D&R charges for a blank extrusion. But maybe I had the wrong specs. And then there's shipping. But I still might do that, depending on how my Frankenboom works out. Thanks!

its not a frankenboom its a rube goldboom!