Tech Tips. Section III. Materials and Equipment Specific to the WR17. I. Hull

Transcription

1 1 Tech Tips Section III. Materials and Equipment Specific to the WR17 I. Hull A. Plastic parts (See Common Issues and Owners manual for information on care and maintenance of plastic parts) 1. Amas These are the two outrigger floats, port (left) and starboard (right). 2. Vaka This is the center hull. (aka is the term for the metal tubes that connect the amas to the vaka) 3. Floor a. Foreword Floor The forward floor panel allows a clear, unobstructed flat surface to store supplies or to provide a place to sleep or rest for one adult or a couple of children. b. Mid Floor and bilge The mid floor panel offers three positions for seating: An aft seat facing forward, or a Forward seat facing aft, or a Second seat facing forward. Bilge hatch Under the aft seat position is a hatch that allows access to the bilge. This also gives you access to the bilge pump if one is installed. Hatch modification for battery There is enough space between the hatch cover and the hull to suspend a small battery for auxiliary electronics. The plastic bilge cover that comes with the WR17 is ¼ inch plastic with a finger hole for a handle. This seems to be too thin to use to support a battery, so I used it as a template to cut out a second hatch cover of ½ inch treated plywood. Since I wanted the battery to be as far forward as possible I made my battery cutout about 2 ½ inches from the forward edge (allowing for the lip of the bilge cutout) and made it about a ½ inch oversize for the size of the battery. To support the battery in a rope sling, I then drilled three 5/16 inch holes along each side and a hole at each end of the cutout. I laced a ¼ inch line down through the first side hole, under the battery and up through the opposite side hole. Then the line is laced down through the middle side hole, under the battery again and back up through the opposite middle side hole. Now it goes

2 2 down through the last side hole, under the battery and up to the other side. From here it goes across the corner of the battery to the near end hole. It is passed down once more to go lengthwise under the battery and up through the other end hole. Now pass it back across the opposite corner of the battery and tie it off at the starting point. This creates a rope sling or basket for suspending the battery. The lines passing across the opposite corners of the battery allows you to remove the cover and set it down without the cover dropping down around the battery. To make handling easier, I drilled three ¾ inch holes closely spaced on either side of the battery as finger holes for lifting the cover and battery to and from the boat. I have cut out a second plywood hatch cover of ¼ inch plywood to create a spacer over the first. I then cut away any portions lying over the battery, ropes, finger cutouts, and wires leading to the fuse box and glued this down to the ½ inch cover. The factory made plastic cover then sits over this without danger of pinching any wires, etc. This also protects you from shorting out the battery terminals. You can stand on this or install the seat over it. Batteries should always be fused with the appropriate size fuse as close to the terminal as possible. Though it makes no difference tradition says that the positive (red) terminal is the one fused. Make sure the ¼ inch plywood spacer mentioned above is thick enough to protect your fuse holder. I have installed a fuse box and volt meter on the front of the vertical aluminum aft floor support. See details under Electronics and Navigation lights. c. Aft Floor and seat Some early production WR17s had a problem with the aft seat/flooring cracking at the hull fasteners. The company and my dealer were kind enough to send me a new seat/floor section but it came without instructions. If you have to install this yourself like I did, or if you have to service your bilge pump which lies under this panel, you might find the following instructions of value. new seat installation To replace the aft floor/seat do the following: 1. Remove the three plastic pins from the aft edged of the seat/floor assembly. These pins are barbed and pass through the floor and into the foam bulkhead. They are not easy to remove. I was able to get a pair of needle nose pliers on each side of the lip of the head and with great effort pull them out. I also pulled out my bulkhead which was glued to the hull. Be careful not to do this. 2. If you have a bilge pump installed, Unscrew the cover plate (four screws) and drop the bilge pump down into the bilge. Remove the middle seat and hatch cover to give you more access to doing this. 3. Remove the two bolts that pass through the deck between the cockpits and that pass down through the aluminum deck/floor support. The forward one was easy because I could get my phillips head screwdriver into it. I could not get the aft one because the aft aka passes directly over it. I was able to remove the bolts from on side of the aka support and lift the aka by flexing the hull slightly. This gave me enough room to get to this one. If you have to do this I recommend taking off the ama first to reduce weight and to improve access. I also recommend shoving a 2X4 between the trailer cross member and the keel to give the hull a little support so you don t overstress the other side. If in doubt remove the bolts on both sides and remove he aka altogether. 4. Remove the bolts that attach the seat back support webbing to the side s of the hull. 5. Remove the bolts that pass through the hull and floor. Three on each side. 6. Remove the bolts that hold the pedals and the bolts that hold the rudder cable guides. Place the rudder cable guides and attached pedals out of your way behind the seat. 7. Drill out the four pop rivets that attach the aft floor to the middle floor. I used a 1/8th inch drill bit. 8. Reaching down into the bilge remove the plastic tie that holds the bilge tubing to the aluminum deck/floor support ad holds it down in the bottom of the bilge

3 3 9. Now the aft floor/seat will slide forward as you tip the top of the aluminum deck/floor support forward. (The bottom of this support will simultaneously be slipping aft.)the aft floor will be easily removed from the forward cockpit. 10. If you have a bilge pump use the old floor as a template for the cutout and mounting screw holes. 11. Slide in the new seat/floor panel from the forward cockpit. Prop up the front edge so that you can get to the bilge pump for reattaching it. Reattach the bilge pump. 12. Slide the panel forward to mark the locations of the three aft plastic pins that secure it to the foam bulkhead. Drill these holes and reuse the old pins, try to find new ones, or do as I did. I replaced them with plastic anchors and stainless screws from the hardware store. Do not attach these yet. 13. Determine how you will attach the front of the panel to the middle floor section. You can go to larger sized pop rivets. You can use #8 or #10 stainless steel screws and nylock nuts. You can use threaded pop rivets through the front panel and stainless screws down through the aft panel. I found a rubber T- nut with brass insert that I place in the front panel and used stainless screws through the aft panel. I like all of these choices except the pop rivet because each time you drill one out you have to go bigger on the next attachment. Do not attach these yet. 14. Slip the aluminum deck/floor support between the aft and middle floor sections. The round bent tube lies at the bottom I the bilge. The welded square tubing in the middle of the support goes under the middle flooring and the L-shaped top faces forward. Mark the location of the cutout where the aft floor slips around the support. Mark any other holes that are to be drilled. Remove the support and the floor and cut this out. Drill any remaining holes. 15. Replace the aft floor. Raise the front edge and replace the support bracket. Now attach the front and back ends of the floor panel. 16. Reach into the bilge and re-secure the bilge hose to the support bracket so that the hose lies in the deepest part of the bilge. 17. If you have removed the aka support bracket bolts, replace these. 18. Replace the bolts in the top of the support bracket where they pass through the deck. Reverse the back bolt so that it passes up through the bracket and deck and the nylock nut is attached from above. You can leave the front one as it was. This will allow you to remove the bracket in the future without removing the aka bolts as before. 19. Have a person of medium build sit in the seat while you drill the six side holes using the holes in the hull as you guide. Make sure you bit is perpendicular to the surface of the aft flooring material. Place each bolt as you do this and then move o to the next hole to be drilled 20. Replace the pedal slides and the cable guide attachments. 21. Re-attach the seat back webbing to the hull. 22. Re-attach anything else you unbolted during this operation. Replace the ama and you should be done. B. Metal parts 1. Aka The aka is the metal cross beam connecting the main hull (vaka) to the outriggers (amas). a. Ama mounting plates Problems with mounting Some early owners of the WR17 found, much to their surprise, their amas coming detached from the aka. This was due to a factory assembly error that I am sure has been corrected. Here is the way it works. To mount the aka mounting plate to the ama, Windrider uses two metal bars that are drilled and threaded to the precise distance to accept the four bolts that pass down through the plate. They use inserts threaded on the inside and tapered and splined on the outside. These are to pass up through slightly smaller holes in the bar stock. When the bolts are drawn down tight the teeth of the spline dig into the bar stock and prevent the inserts from rotating. However, if the bar with its inserts are bolted on upside down, instead of drawing tight, the inserts will be drawn out of the

4 4 bar stock when the bolts are tightened. Mr. Kim had this happen to him when he was sailing but was able to jury rig a line and get to shore before the ama came completely off. The fix is to make sure the bar is in place with the proper side up. I think the factory should bend one end of the bar down so that it is impossible to insert it the wrong way. See details at b. Telescoping parts Telescoping akas must be kept lubricated to work smoothly. I prefer a dry lube such as Sail Cote or some other PTFE dry spray because it does not pick up sand and road dirt that tends to gum up the works and leaves a dirty mess. I find that extending and retracting the amas is easiest done by holding the ama in the center and applying even force either in or out. c. Aka Locks The stainless steel pins with wire bails that are used to attach and secure the aka cross tubes on the WR16 and WR17 are called aka locks. It doesn t hurt to carry a spare just in case one ends up in the drink. However, you can also use a 5/16 inch x 3 ½ inch bolt and nut in a pinch. If you have the tools to do so, you might want to drill a 1/8 inch hole through the threaded end for a security wire, cotter pin, hair clip or safety pin to keep the nut from coming off. Throw a couple of these in the tool kit just in case and you will probably never need them. However, there is a good reason to carry one of these if you are trailering a long distance. See reference under Trailer. 2. Trailer supports One very nice addition to the WR17 is the trailer support brackets built into the aka supports. These flanged supports rest on the plastic slides of the trailer rails and allow the boat to be fully supported without pressure on the hull. These are made of very heavy aluminum but if you add too much weight to the boat they can bend. The factory has created an angled strap bracket that will go a long way toward preventing this. If you do not have these mounted on top of the brackets under your tramp, see your dealer about installing them. If you must install them yourself do the following: Trailer Support Bracket Installation To install this strap bracket you must align it with the support bracket and drill two ¼ inch holes. The end with the sharpest bend goes against the vertical side of the aka attachment plate next to the hull and the end with the shallowest bend goes outboard against the horizontal portion. One bolt passes through the aluminum plate and into the hull. This is the round headed bolt and should be backed on the inside with a large fender washer next to the plastic hull material. The other end of the strap bracket (the end with the shallower bend in it) is bolted down through the horizontal part of the support bracket. To keep from gouging the plastic slide on your trailer, you will need to recess the flat headed screw up into the horizontal part of the aka mounting plate. This requires the use of a hole reamer. A typical hole reamer has a ¼ inch shaft and a body about ½ inch across. This body has a five-bladed tapered reamer that can be chucked in a hand drill. To gain access to the under side of the support bracket you will need to raise the boat off the rails. Start by removing the amas from the main hull and remove the trampolines from their bolt rope tracks. Carefully locate the strap bracket against the horizontal and vertical portions of the support plate. If the strap bracket does not lie flat against both surfaces at the same time, you may have a bent support plate. Check this with a square.

5 5 If the aka support plate is not square, the factory instructions are to use a soft faced hammer and hammer it back down to horizontal. I really feel that a better solution is to attach a long handled pipe wrench with strips of leather or wood to protect the aluminum finish. You can apply a more controlled force at the proper location than you can by whacking it with a hammer. Your choice. Once the bracket is square, place the strap bracket in its proper location and carefully mark the location of the holes. Use a center punch to identify the center of the hole. Drill a pilot hole with a 1/8 th or smaller drill. This will make sure that your drill does not wander off target. Drill through the smaller pilot hole with a ¼ inch drill bit. Now place a scrap of 2X4 under the other bracket on the same side you are working on. This will elevate the bracket so that you can counter sink the hole from under the bracket. You may have to pull the boat toward you to create enough clearance for your power drill. Ream out the underside of the hole and try in the flat headed bolt. If any portion of the bolt sticks down below the bracket surface it will gouge the trailer rails. Drilling too deeply with the reamer will weaken the material around the bolt. A little trial and error is the order of the day until you get the feel of reaming out the aluminum to the proper depth. Switch ends with your 2 X 4 prop and do this on the other end. Do the same on the other side. Now replace the tramps and amas ad you are now an official aka support bracket installation expert. None of this requires a lot of force as I was able to do it all with a battery powered hand drill in about a ½ hour. 3. Vaka attachment 4. Mast step The mast step consists of a black plastic ball threaded onto a stainless steel bolt. Mast rotation limiter. The 3/16 line from the mast base to the key hole slot in the mast step is designed to limit the mast rotation for a more efficient sail/mast profile. Tie a knot in the line to limit the mast rotation to 45 degrees left and right. As the line and knot stretch out, you may have to tie a new knot to bring it back within the 45 degree limit. Here is how it works: If you think of your mast/sail surface as a wing on a plane it will help you to see the function of a rotating mast. With a traditional fixed mast what you have is a big ugly stick causing turbulence just ahead of the smooth wing-like shape of the sail. This would be like having a four inch plastic drain pipe glued to the leading edge of a plane wing. Not a good thing. Ideally the leeward surface of a rotating mast lies in a continuous line with the leading edge of the sail thereby making a perfect wing shape and utilizing the mast as part of the airfoil surface. Thus you create no turbulence. Since the sail is adjustable according to its attack into the apparent wind, the ideal would be to have a mast that rotates in a similar fashion to maintain smooth laminar air flow over the leeward surface. In fact you could attach a cord to the rotating mast, run it down through an eyelet on the mast step (where you current line is attached), and then run it aft to the cockpit for controlled rotation. If you were to do this you would find that you would only adjust the line a couple of inches through its full range of function. Practically speaking it may be nearly as good to set the line for about 45 degrees just to keep things simple. 6. Deck support beam There is a metal beam under the foredeck extending from the mast forward to the bow of the boat to stiffen the foredeck. II. Spars A. Mast 1. Mast rotation

6 6 a. Ball rotation issues To prevent rotation of the ball, the factory has coated its threads with some variety of Lock-Tite type material. The mast base is supposed to be a hemisphere that just fits down over this ball. In theory, this would work just fine if the mast base was really spherical but, alas, it is parabolic or bullet shaped and does not fit the ball precisely. This has resulted in the mast base griping the ball too tightly and causing the ball to break loose form it s Lock-Tite grip on the bolt. This is not a good thing. To fix this, you will need a ball shaped grinding stone to fit in your hand drill. Fortunately these are inexpensive and can be found in any hardware or lumber yard for less than $2.00. Next remove the mast and support it in a comfortable location to give you access to grind on the mast base. Now remove the ball and cover the top half with pencil marks from a #2 soft lead pencil. Wiggle the ball in the mast base socket to transfer the pencil marks to the aluminum base. You will fide that it marks a ring in the socket about ¾ inch from the center. Begin grinding away this mark and the underlying aluminum. Repeat the process until you have moved the transferred pencil marks to or nearly to the center of the socket. In other words, the socket should be resting on the very top of the ball rather than down on the sides. Now reattach the ball to the bolt with a little Lock-Tite. Spray some PTFE dry lubricant on the ball and socket and your mast will rotate quite freely. This process will probably take a couple hours because the grinding process is slow. Get in a comfortable position with good light and some relaxing music and plan to take your time with it. This is a good rainy day project. 2. Step pin There is a stainless steel pin with a spring loaded ball detent and finger ring that passes through the mast base and prevents the mast from coming off the ball when raising and lowering the mast. It is suggested that you remove the pin when not in use but I see no reason to do so. For security sake you may want to tie a short stout line from the mast base to the ring so that the two do not get accidentally separated. Again, hardware stores carry similar pins (ask for a clevis pin) that will work in a pinch and would be good to have in your tool box. 3. Sheave pin a. There have been reports that the 3/16 inch pin at the base of the mast on which the sheave (pulley) for the main halyard and down haul are attached can become locked into the aluminum. I don t know if these might have been bent or have become corroded in place due to dissimilar metals. It is unlikely that this pin would get bent under the load of the main halyard or down haul. But it might if a boom vang were attached to it. For a boom vang it would be safest to use a bail attached to the mast itself. To be on the safe side of the dissimilar metals issue, I am going to apply Tef- Gel to mine. B. Boom 1. Goose neck fitting 2. Topping lifts b. Sheaves Replacement information courtesy of Mr. Kim. See reference to this at: 547de148f0e1e5d224

7 7 A topping lift is a line running from the mast head to the aft end of the boom. Its purpose is to keep the boom from dropping to the deck when the main halyard is released. With the topping lift secured the boom can be used as the ridge pole for a tent or awning when at anchor. In addition the sail can be gathered along the boom and covered with a mainsail cover. The topping lift can be either fixed or adjustable. If fixed, it is secured to the mast head and usually has a light shackle at the lower end to attach to the outhaul eyelet at the end of the boom. If a sail stop is placed in the bolt rope track of the mast so that the goose neck fitting cannot slide down too far, the topping lift line can be adjusted so that the boom lies horizontal. Once these dimensions are established the topping lift can be left attached to the boom while sailing or it can be detached and secured to the base of the mast. Another way to attach a topping lift is to make it adjustable. When this is done a shackle is placed at the boom end and the topping lift line is passed through a cheek block near the top of the mast and back down the mast to a cleat where it is adjustable. With this arrangement the height and the leveling of the boom are all done at the mast. 3. Lazy Jacks Lazy jacks serve a similar function but, in addition, they form a cradle for the sail to fold into when the sail is dropped. There are two lines on either side of the main that attach to the front of the boom about a foot from the goose neck and to the back of the boom about 3 feet from the end. These lines are loose and when lifted upward at the middle form a cradle for the main sail. To these middle points attach two more lines on each side of the sail that lead to the top of the mast. This arrangement of light lines (1/8 to 3/16ths inch) form an inverted Y-shape that lies loosely against the sail. When the sail is dropped, the folds of the sail are gathered between the legs of the inverted Y and the boom and the sail are thus prevented from dropping to the deck. Typically lazy jacks are use with a mainsail the uses sail slugs in the bolt rope track. When the sail is dropped the sail tends to fold left and right with the slugs securing it in the middle of each fold. Slugs can be sewn to the bolt rope of the WR17 for this purpose but there is a trade off. A bolt rope leaves no air gap between the mast and the leading edge of the sail and is, therefore, more efficient than a sail attached with slugs. Nylon slugs that fit the WR17 bolt rope track are cheap so you can give them a try if you wish. They should be positioned between the battens so that the battens fall to the left and right when the sail is dropped. With a little care and some training of the folds of the sail you can use lazy jacks with the standard WR17 bolt rope. You will need to control the decent of the sail with one hand while you assist the folding pattern of the sail with the other. Once the head is free from the bolt rope track you will need to secure the sail with a tie or bungie cord to keep the wind from unfolding it. Raising the sail is just the reverse except you will have to watch that the batten ends and roach of the sail do not get caught on the lazy jack lines as the sail goes up. Once the sail is raised to its topmost position, the lazy jack lines should be loose and not affect sail shape. Just as in the toping lift the lazy jack can be either fixed or adjustable with a cleat at the mast. On my WR17 I have used 3/16 inch line from a cleat on the ports side of the mast opposite and lower than the main halyard cleat. This goes up the mast about 8-10 feet and ends in a fiddle block. Through this block runs the middle of a 3/16 line, the ends of which go up on either side of the forestay through cheek blocks on each side of the masthead and then down to the line forming the sail cradle. The cradle line is attached to an eyelet under the boom a foot aft of the goose neck, passes aft through another eyelet and back to the front of the boom. This line has enough slack to creat the inverted Y cradle effect mentioned above. In the middle of the one side is a stainless ring and in the middle of the other is a small shackle. The two ends of the line coming down from the mast head have just the opposite arrangement of ring and shackle. When the sail is lowered and the sail is to be removed, I unclip the top lines and attach them to each other (ring to shackle). The cradle lines are passed one-over-the-other and then under the boom and back to the top of the sail bundle and clipped together (ring and shackle). This

8 8 secures the sail in a loose but stable bundle on the boom and the boom. Now the goose neck is lifted out of the bolt rope groove and the boom and sail are lowered to the deck. I then secure the topping line ends to their cleat, haul in on any slack in the front adjusting line and tie it off to the same cleat. I have further plans for making an upside-down main sail cover that will serve as a sail bag for storing the sail more on this when I get it done. C. Whisker poles When running before the wind or on a broad reach you can present more sail surface to the wind (go faster) by holding the clew of the jib outboard on the side opposite the main sail (referred to as sailing wing and wing ). Supported by the jib sheet alone the sail will tend to fold in on itself and collapse as the wind veers. A device called a whisker pole is often used to prop the clew of the jib outboard and hold it steady to the wind. Typically this is done with an adjustable pole with a pin in one end and a shackle end on the other. The pin end is inserted in the clew cringle of the jib and the shackle end is attached to an eye pad on the front of the mast. The pole is then extended to give the jib the proper shape while the jib sheet is used to adjust its angle to the wind. Since setting the pole in this way requires going forward to the mast many people just hold the pole by hand as there is usually very little force on it. In fact, some people use a boat hook instead of carrying a whisker pole. And, if you don t have one of these on board, you can ask your guest on the trampoline to hold the jib sheet out to the side. Almost anything works you decide. The exception to this advice might occur during a sponsored race where the racing rules specify the exact equipment allowed under the rules. Some rules even prohibit the use of whisker poles so ask the racing committee before you race or you may be disqualified.. D. Spinnaker poles Spinnaker poles are similar to whisker poles except they are use to hold the tack of the spinnaker outboard. They will have a shackle on both ends, one clipping to the mast pad eye and the other clipping to the spinnaker sheet. The shackles are often controlled by a line along the top of the pole that allows remote attachment when either the sail of mast is out of reach. In addition many spinnaker poles are supported at the middle by a topping lift to take their weight off the spinnaker and to help control the pole during tacking. The force on the inboard end of the spinnaker pole can be tremendous so holding it by hand is out of the question. For the same reason most spinnaker poles are not adjustable in length like a whisker pole tends to be. Rigging and flying a spinnaker is beyond the scope of this document so I will refer you to other sources for this information. III. Steering (For further information on A through E, see Section I., Common Issues.) A. Rudder B. Yoke C. Cables D. Pedals E. Self Steering F. Remote Steering 1. Poles Windrider has traditionally used aluminum poles attached to the ends of the steering yoke for remote steering. These two poles pass forward on either side of the cockpit for easy access either from the cockpit or from the trampoline. Because of the difference in linkage there is a bit of a learning curve for those of you who have become used to the conventional tiller extension. A little trial and error soon irons it out and it does work well. The only problem comes when you want to board the Windrider and the poles are in the way. It is not hard to

9 9 bend them with modest force. Fortunately, they can be straightened with a little careful application of force. 2. Lines Some WR17 owners have attached lines to the yoke and run them forward in a continuous loop so that they can control the boat from forward and from the tramps. Usually the rudder arm is lengthened to about 3 ft. and a line is run forward through turning blocks at the forward aka then back to the other side of the arm.. This continuous line is then available from all positions in both cockpits. Some have used an adjustable rolling hitch to attach the line so that when not in use the line is slackened and does not cause a drag on the pedal steering. You should also reroute the main sheet cleat so that it can be un-cleated safely from the forward cockpit. 3. tiller tamer Ray Henry has mounted a Davis Tiller Tamer on the aft deck of his WR17 to do the same thing. The Tiller Tamer requires a bit more attention but is far more positive than the elastic shock cord used on the early WR16s. In addition you can set the tiller to weather and lie ahull with the Tiller Tamer whereas the elastics will not do this. See this at rtamer.html IV. Standing rigging A. Fore stay The WR 17 comes with either a forestay or a roller furling jib with the forestay built into the luff called a jib stay. It is generally agreed that if you have the opportunity to buy the self furling jib, do so. It is well worth the money, makes the boat much easier to handle and allows you to point higher into the wind. Since the forestay has to be detached from the furling drum to lower the mast you might want to replace the standard threaded D-shackles with something more convenient. A carabiner, such as the one on the lower side stay, would probably work but I worry about it becoming fouled and letting go when I don t want it to. I think a halyard shackle would work and it is also much less likely to open by accident. I have chosen to use a snap shackle (Ronstan, RF 6100) rated at 3630 lbs. It is very strong and is very positive to lock and unlock. It is a bit more pricey at about $20 from West Marine (WM model ) but it is quick and secure. In fact, I have installed one at the top shackle so that I can easily remove the jib entirely when transporting the boat. B. Shrouds This is composed of a port and starboard upper shroud each attached to a lower shroud bridle. 1. Upper Shroud The upper shroud runs from a hefty D-shackle at the mast hound and terminates in a stay adjuster to which the shroud bridle ring is attached. The shroud bridle is composed of a lower fore shroud and lower aft shroud 2. Lower Aft Shroud The lower aft shroud runs from the ring down to a D-shackle on

10 10 the aft chain plate Vinyl tubing The vinyl tubing on the lower shrouds has a very important function. When you are raising the mast the shrouds can become twisted on the shackles and the leverage of raising the mast can twist them badly out of shape. To prevent this, slide the vinyl tubing down over the shroud, shackle and chain plate tang as far as it will go. This will hold these parts in alignment so that they won t get twisted and damaged. The tubing is about the right size to fit over the carabiner on the lower fore shroud but it is too small to fit over the threaded clevis pin of the D-shackle on the lower back shroud. To fix this, take a sharp knife and slit the lower end of the tubing up about 1 inch so that it will pass down over the clevis pin in the bow shackle and down over the tang. You will have to experiment with the length of the slit to make it work properly. Too short a slit will not let it engage the tang and too long a slit will not support the assembly upright. If you mess it up, don t worry, this tubing is readily available at hardware stores and lumberyard. 3. Lower Fore Shroud The lower fore shroud runs from the bridle ring, forward to a chain plate (metal tang) on the forward ama mounting plate. The upper end is permanently attached to the bridle ring and the lower end terminates in a carabiner. Attachment methods When stepping the mast, the fore stay and the aft lower shrouds are attached. All of the standing rigging is fairly loose at this point. Attaching one lower fore shroud is relatively easy. Now you must pull the other lower fore shroud down and hook the carabiner into the chain plate on the ama mounting plate. This requires more strength than I possess. Here are two tricks for doing this easily: a. Tie a loop in the end of an 8 foot piece of line and pass the other end through the bridle ring. Bring it down under the trampoline eyelets on the forward aka and back up through the loop in the other end. By pulling down on the free end you now have a two-to-one advantage which will give you enough leverage to easily hook the carabiner on the tang with the other hand. Or b. Buy a device called a Rope Ratchet. This is available at Lowes and other stores and is sold as an adjustable tie down. It is composed of a hook on then end of a ¼ inch* line with a ratchet block and hook on the other end. Attach the free end hook through one of the aka eyelets and the ratchet hook through the bridle ring. Pull down on the line and the ratchet mechanism will hold everything secure while you attach the carabiner at your leisure. Pull again on the rope to relieve the pressure on the ratchet, release the ratchet, and remove the assembly. *They make a ¼ and a 3/8 inch Rope Ratchet but the 3/8 inch hook is too large to pass through the trampoline eyelets. Get the ¼ inch model. V. Running rigging A. Sheets 1. Main sheet The main sheet is attached to the end of a fiddle block. A carabiner on this block is then clipped onto the boom end. The free end passes down to a swivel block on the port side, back up through the fiddle block, down to a turning block on the starboard side, then forward to a cheek block under the edge of the tramp. The sheet passes up through the cheek block and returns through a cam cleat just aft of this block. If you are used to un-cleating your mainsheet by whipping the

11 11 line upward out of a horizontal cleat, you will note that to un-cleat the WR17 main sheet you must whip it to the right to un-cleat it. This seems awkward at first but old habits are hard to break. Cleat relocating This is a convenient location when sailing from the aft cockpit but it should really be relocated to a more accessible position if the boat is to be piloted from the forward cockpit or tramp. 2. Jib sheet There are two ways to rig the jib sheets, continuous and free a. Continuous The manual for the WR17 calls for the jib sheet to be run in a continuous line from the jib clew, back through one jib cleat, across the cockpit to the other cleat, and back to the jib clew. The advantage of this arrangement is that there are no loose ends lying about the cockpit floor to be confused with the mainsheet and you are not likely to get the free end of the jib sheet caught up in your outboard propeller shaft. The drawback is that you will end up with two sizeable knots at the jib clew and these can whack your passengers if the jib is flailing about as you tack. In addition, these knots do not help the clew slide smoothly across the mast when you tack. Also, you will have to untie at least one of them each time you take the jib down. You could tie the ends to a carabiner and leave the jib sheet attached to the boat when the jib is removed. A carabiner flailing around during a tack is to be respected. b. Free ended On the other hand you may prefer a more traditional attachment with the middle of the jib sheet secured to the jib clew using a knot called a ring bend or cow hitch (it has several different names.) This knot is made by inserting a loop of the middle of the line through the jib clew cringle (grommet), looping the free ends back through this loop and drawing the loop up tight. This knot is light, secure and relatively smooth crossing the mast when you tack. It can stay attached to the jib clew when the jib is removed and stored. Obviously there are pros and cons to each so try them both and see what you like. B. Halyards 1. Main Halyard Use in mast raising Note: If you refer to the owner s manual you might find that the photographs are reversed. If your aft mast crutch is on the port side of the hull these photos are okay to follow. If it is on the starboard side you will have to reverse your thinking. For example the mast will be raised on your right shoulder and the mast will be raised easiest if it is placed on its left side (opposite the photo) See owners manual at: The following text describes the mast raising if your aft mast crutch lies to starboard of the hull. The main halyard is very useful in helping raise the mast. To do this take the shackled end of the halyard and pass it outboard of the starboard (right side) shrouds and then forward to a fixed point on the boat or trailer. I attach mine to a ringbolt on the trailer s forward mast crutch. The mast is attached to the ball mast step with the retaining pin with the mast rotated to the left and the bolt rope grove to the right. Step to the back of the forward cockpit (removing the seat helps) and lift the mast to your right shoulder. (aft lower shrouds attached) and walk it up into position. While leaning into the mast with your shoulder you can reach down to get the main halyard. Take all the slack out of the main halyard and secure it to the mast cleat. Although a bit wobbly the mast will stand here by itself.

12 12 Now attach the forestay and one lower fore shroud (It makes no difference which one). Undo the main halyard, pass it outside of the right side shrouds and back to the mast so that you can later raise the main. The consequences of forgetting to unhook the main halyard from the trailer will result in a launch ramp pitch-poling as you drive away. C. Other sail controls 1.Downhaul Proper adjustment Many beginning sailors raise the main and then haul down on the downhaul as hard as they have been pulling on the halyard. This line is a sail adjusting line and not a sail stretching line. If there are horizontal wrinkles along the luff when the sail is set, you will need to haul down on it a little more to remove them. If there are vertical wrinkles at the luff you have it too tight. The problem is that with a fully battened main the vertical wrinkles that tell you that the downhaul is too tight are often masked by the presence of the battens. When in doubt let it out. Tighten it just enough to remove the horizontal wrinkles and no more. 2. Outhaul Proper adjustment The outhaul gives you the most sail shape control of all the lines. In light air, let it out so that there is a nice deep belly to the main. As the wind speed increases, tighten up on the outhaul to flatten the sail. As you do this you may have to tighten the downhaul as well. (see above) In heavier winds you will stretch the main out fairly flat. In the heavier winds still, you will need to reef as well as flatten the sail with both the outhaul, main halyard and downhaul. 3. Reefing Line (See operation under VI Sails, B. Reefing) VI. Sails A. Main Control and adjustments 1. Tell tails sheeting in the main Sheeting the main in too tight is a typical beginner error. This is natural because our tactile sense says that the harder we pull in the mainsheet the more the wind will force us forward. It is easy to forget that the function of the main sheet is to direct the sail at the wind for the most efficient lift which will move the boat forward. When the wind is abeam, hauling the main in tight may seem like the wind is pushing on the sail the hardest but most of this energy is wasted in pushing the boat sideways rather than speeding her along your path. Learn to turn your head into the oncoming wind so that you feel it evenly on both ears. This is the direction of the apparent wind. This is the direction to which you will be adjusting you sails. Now use your sail tell tales to help you set your sail to its most efficient drive. (See Part I, Common Issues) this will often mean that you must let out the main sheet to a point where it does not seem to have much resistance. If you have a GPS you may just surprise yourself by the sudden increase in speed made good when you do this. In the inimitable words of Gomer Pyle, USMC, Surprise, Surprise! 2. Wind direction indicators a. mast top type If you do not trust your natural wind indicator sensors, you may want to use a mechanical one. Several manufacturers make pivoting weather vanes that perch atop you mast to give you a constant read on the apparent wind direction. Some come with adjustable arms to tell you if you are as close hauled as possible. For the most part these are useless on a rotating mast such as on the WR17. b. Shroud type The biggest problem with mast head wind indicators is that you soon get a stiff neck trying to look up at them all the time. This isn t so bad on the Windrider 17 because you are pretty far aft and can slouch down in the seat to see it. My problem is that even then it

13 13 seems like most of the time I am trying to squint into the sun to see it. The solution is to put the wind indicators down lower on the shrouds so you don t have to look up so far to see how you are doing. One way to do this is to attach some light fluffy yarn to the bridle rings. The windward bridle will give you a pretty fair idea of the apparent wind direction. Davis Instruments also make a fancier model using the same idea. The Davis indicators consist of a twisted wire spring to spiral around the stay and a wire extension protruding forward into clear air with the tell tale attached to the end. Technically these are more accurate that the yarn type because they fly in relatively clear air whereas the yarn type are buffeted by the air striking the shroud. Although the Davis-type are not expensive, the yarn types are even less expensive (unless you choose to use expensive alpaca or mohair yarn, that is.) 3. Wind speed indicators (See Section I, Common Issues) B. Reefing the Main 1. When The best advise is that you should reef as soon as you first think about doing so. 2. Setup The fastest and easiest reefing is done with the jib. Furl it in part way or all the way and you will reduce sail a great deal. By comparison, reefing the main is a bit more complex. First lets look at the setup of the reefing line. The reefing line is tied with a bowline knot loosely around the boom at the clew of the sail. This line is then led up through the reefing cringle (grommet) and back down to the bowline. Now it passes through the bowline and runs forward along the boom to the cleat under the goose neck. It passes through the hole in the cleat, up through the forward reefing cringle in the sail and back down to the cleat where it is snubbed off. 3. How The idea is to reduce sail area by collapsing the lower part of the sail in a fold(s) along the boom. To do this you must first lower the sail by letting out on the main halyard. When you practice this, it is wise to use some colored tape or sew in a colored thread into the main halyard to indicate just how far the sail is to be dropped. Now cleat off the main halyard and haul in on the outboard reefing line as the clew is brought down into folds trapped to the boom. Now draw the slack through the forward reefing point and then haul the tack of the sail down into similar captive folds and cleat off the reefing line. This leaves some main sail bagging down under the boom and if you are in a hurry, you can just leave it hang. A neater appearance is achieved however, if you tie off the other three reefing points running between the tack and clew reefing points. This can be done with the extra reefing line you have just hauled in by looping it through the cringle and back under the line as you work your way to the last cringle. A better way is to cut three pieces of 3/16 inch x 36 inch length of line and passing these through the remaining reefing cringles. Tie a stopper knot close on either side of the sail and leave 18 inches of reefing line hang down on either side of the sail. After you have hauled in on the reefing line and secured it, bring these lines together under the boom and tie them off with a reef knot.(like you tie your shoes but with only one loop on one side rather than two. Don t ask me why, it s just a tradition. Besides this knot would not have a name if it weren t for this purpose. Right?) 4. Variations of setup

14 14 An alternative way to reef is to use reefing hooks at the tack and clew rather than lacing the line through the sail. The advantage is that the reefing line can be gotten out of the way drawn up tight against the boom when not in use. To reef you un-cleat the line, slip these hooks through the reefing points, and draw the sail up just as you would reef otherwise. C. Jib Control and adjustments 1. Tell tails Tell tales on the jib help you adjust it for maximum draw (See Section I, Common issues) 2. Furling Most owners agree that one of the really nice features of the WR17 is the roller furling arrangement on the jib. If the wind pipes up a little too strong, release the jib sheet and haul in on the reefing line. On swift pull and the whole sail is dowsed instantly. 3. Reefing Jon Brit at Nor Banks Sails has assured me that the jib roller furling assembly is strong enough to use for reefing as well. If the boat is overpowered with the full jib out, haul a bit of it in, cleat it off, and sail with it partially reefed. 4. Alternative rigging D. Other Sails Steve Green offers an additional light air sail available at Kansas City Sails that should add drive in light air conditions. See it at: It is also available at from Jon Brit, Nor banks Sails at: and from Windrider Ontario at: See addition discussion at Ray Henry has rigged a spinnaker for his WR17 and has details of the rig at his web site at: E. Sail covers 1. Factory covers The factory covers for the main and jib are made of woven poly cloth. To stow the main you roll it up either on the boom ore from the head down to the boom (personal choice) and slip it into the bag from the end. The bag has a handy handle in the middle and web meshing in one end to let the sail breath a nice touch. The jib cover is not so handy. It is a 3inch wide woven poly tube with a closed end. Stuffing the furled sail down the length of this bag is sometimes frustrating for the single hander. For two people it shouldn t be too difficult. If you are trailering the boat a short distance the jib can be left attached to the mast and looped forward o the deck or lashed to the mast. If you do leave it attached be very careful to close the drawstring end tightly to the forestay so that rainwater does not run down inside the sail bag, grow nasty mold, and stain your pretty jib. 2. Canvas covers Canvas covers are readily available from local canvas shops and sail lofts. Check your yellow pages for sources. In addition, SailRite Sails has an online catalog of kits, instructions and materials for making several types of sail covers and bags from more durable materials. Check them out at 3. UV sail protection (jib)

15 15 You may also want to check with your local loft or with SailRite (See above) about adding a UV protective strip along the foot and leach of the jib. When the sail is reefed this UV layer essentially covers the whole area exposed to sunlight. This is particularly important for the cruising sailor or for those who leave their mast up most of the time. Sunlight will ruin a good sail without protection. 4. Maintenance and repair (also see Section I, under Common Issues) VII. Safety Equipment (also see Common Issues) A. Navigation Lights Requirements On the WR17, if you sail after dark, you can remain Coast Guard legal if you carry a flashlight to shine on your sails to identify yourself to nearby vessels. This presumes that you remain ever vigilant for approaching boats. However, if you use a motor (either gasoline or electric) after dark you are considered a power boat and must adhere to power boat rules for your vessel length. This consists of the following 1. A combination red and green bow light or separate red and green bow lights. For practical matters, separate lights are probably best unless you can mount the light in front of the furling drum. If you do this it will probably hit the mast crutch on the trailer when you recover your boat. Maybe not so good. Small black plastic bow lights (Aqua Signal, part number and ) are available at West Marine ( that will just fit the shear ahead of the trampoline eyelets. If they are mounted here you will want to consider the consequences of anchoring from the bow cleat. You may want to mount two anchor line chocks on deck ahead of these to keep the anchor line from breaking them off. West Marine carries Marelon 3 ½ inch line chocks (# $4.99) that will work for this purpose. 2. An all-around white light mounted on a pole (referred to as a mast light) on the stern and extending one meter above the bow lights. This most assuredly will mean a removable pole because of the inconvenience of worrying about getting it snarled in your main sheet when under sail. There are several of these available in fixed length, folding and telescoping models. A couple of rubber pole clips mounted under the gunnel will stow whatever you chose out of the way HOWEVER, it is not legal to sail with this light configuration because it tells other boaters that you are under power. They will assume you can maneuver in any direction to avoid collision. Not so under sail. The proper configuration when sailing after dark is a stern light showing only 135 degrees aft. This light arrangement not only tells others that you are under sail but it will also not night blind you from the 360 pole light reflecting off your sails. This light can be mounted on the very stern or on the vertical deck behind the aft seat. If you mount it aft the seat be sure you leave no square edges to catch the main sheet on. If you sail and motor at the same time you must have the proper lighting of a power boat. Under very dark conditions you may find this difficult to do because of being blinded by the 360 degree light reflected off the main. B. Radar reflector If you sail off shore in fog or poor visibility conditions you may wish to carry a radar reflector near your mast head. You will need to rig a lanyard to hoist this. Some experienced sailors question whether these can be seen from large commercial ships and further question whether, if they can be seen, anyone is looking. It is always wise to be familiar with your charts and know when you are in shipping lanes. Whenever possible, cross them at right angles so that you have minimum exposure to this risk. If you cannot avoid this, try to stay as far to the side of the channel as is safe for navigation. IX. Comfort and Convenience