The rigging for this project is relatively simple: two deckroof fittings to clip the bottom of the stay to, and a block at the top of the mizzen to run a halyard through to haul up the other end of the stay. With this sail the stay also happens to be the luff line of the sail. There has to be two fittings on the cabin roof so that there is one on either side of the centre line of the boat so that the foot is always stayed to windward.

My friend Eric at Victory Sail has found me a second hand sail for me to try a proof of concept with. It is an old jib that measures 30' on the luff and 15' on the foot, which are just about the ideal measurements for this sail. We'll try it out, and if it works as we think that it will, I'll get him to put a row of grommets from the luff perpendicular out to the clew. I will run a line from the clew and thread it through the grommets to the luf and down to the deck. This will be used to collapse the sail when we are dousing it.

The big job will be to install the winches, but at least I already have another set of Lewmars that I can use. It should be fairly straight forward to mount them on the cockpit coaming at a slight outboard angle so the sheet will have a straight attack.

11/23/2007 09:52:41

My intent is to add a mizzen staysail to the NELLEKE sail inventory. This will involve a new sail that will run on a removable stay from near the foot of the main to the peak of the mizzen mast. The sail will have to be cut fairly high to clear the pilot house and solar pannel and will have to be sheeted to nearly the aft quarter.

There will also be a requirement to install another set of winches near the cockpit coaming to control the sheets. They will also be available for use if we ever get a spinnaker.

On a ketch the mizzen is one of those sails that never really gets to provide a great deal of effort to the boat. With the addition of this staysail I am hoping that it will make the mizzen more efficient.

On the down side, due to existing rigging this sail will only really be useful for long legs. To tack we will have to take it right down and put it back up again on the other side of the stay.