Yachting World 5 tonner -- possible conversion

  • 11 Feb 2025 12:02
    Reply # 13461621 on 13457716

    Haha Paul, wasn't really a heffalump trap! Genuine question! Thanks, we had great fun making the vid. It makes me miss those lochs watching it again.

    Cheers


  • 11 Feb 2025 11:55
    Reply # 13461619 on 13457716

    Andrew, I smelled that trap of yours, but was happy to step into it :-)

    Very nice video of yours, well-cut and filmed! Thanks a lot for posting it.

  • 11 Feb 2025 11:40
    Reply # 13461613 on 13457716

    Thanks Graham.

    My question was, of course, slightly tongue in cheek, but Your answer is very reassuring. I think I'm drawn to it by the simplicity, especially as I don't think I'll be able to easily single hand with the current rig, the mainsail is enormous.

    I spent many years racing in the Solent and did 8 Round The Island races and I did find it exhilarating, but now, at the age of 73, with stamina in short supply, I can't think of anything better than just pottering. We'll probably only manage day trips and the occasional overnighter, especially with two landlubber dogs now!

    I love bicycle technology. Heath Robinson is my hero! Yours and Paul's answers have finally convinced me, now all I have to do is find the wherewithal to do it, and the sooner the better. Cheers.

  • 11 Feb 2025 11:32
    Reply # 13461610 on 13461567
    Anonymous wrote:
    Andrew wrote:

    General question here.

    Bearing in mind JRA is a bit of an echo chamber, I would say most members are probably very much sold on the whole idea.

    With a normal persons hat on, apart from the excitement of pushing the envelope and a geek like enthusiasm on my part, overall, is it a good project and why?

    There is an elegant simplicity about junk rig that is intoxicating to anyone with a genuine cruiser's mentality who tries it, I think.  I was interested in the rig since the late 1960s, when I became aware of JESTER's Atlantic exploits, and followed Mike Richey for the rest of his days.  A mutual friend gave me his letters to read, which added to the charm.  If efficiency can be measured by the amount of sweat you expend handling the rig in various conditions, and the ease of repairing it's low-tech systems, then junk rig wins hands down.  It is like comparing bicycle technology with motor cars.

    I currently have a bermudan-rigged ketch, recently bought, and cannot afford, at this stage, to do a conversion, but my recent 200-mile delivery passage back to my home port reminded me of the differences between sailing junk-rigged yachts and their bermudan-rigged counterparts.  I found myself dreaming of how much easier it would be with a junk sailplan.  The only reason to choose bermudan rig, in my opinion, would be if you were solely planning to race the boat, or perhaps if you were the hyperactive type, and taking it easy drove you nuts!


    I agree wholeheartedly with Graham. Wanting a bigger boat last year, I bought a bermudan rigged boat: a Rival 32. After bringing her north from the Channel to the Humber, I quickly saw the error of my ways and immediately began researching a possible conversion to junk rig. 

    I really did not want at my age, to spend another year converting a boat, so sold the Rival and now have Pete Hill's old Pearson 367 "Blossom", aero-junk rigged.

  • 11 Feb 2025 11:28
    Reply # 13461609 on 13457716

    Paul, that's great. As I say, I love all the stuff like drawing, making things, experimenting, but of course that's not a good enough reason on its own.

    I have experienced that feeling of it making so much sense. 6 years ago I sailed on David Tyler's Weaverbird when I made a video with David and Alan Boswell in Scotland. We compared David's rig with my Bermudan rigged Calisto. I remember well that feeling of -just, wow!

    My question was slightly tongue in cheek but I'm so pleased with your answer. Thank you.

    When you have a conversation with "normal" sailors the response always seems to be "why?" When you talk to junk rig sailors it's usually "why would you have anything else."

    Thank you for the link to Annie's article.

    Hope it's alright to post this video. There's a lot of boring stuff but some nice clips of sailing.

    https://youtu.be/gR2LZ2u9Fng?si=PIIjK6XdljBuE6uw


    Last modified: 11 Feb 2025 11:30 | Anonymous member
  • 11 Feb 2025 04:14
    Reply # 13461567 on 13461298
    Andrew wrote:

    General question here.

    Bearing in mind JRA is a bit of an echo chamber, I would say most members are probably very much sold on the whole idea.

    With a normal persons hat on, apart from the excitement of pushing the envelope and a geek like enthusiasm on my part, overall, is it a good project and why?

    There is an elegant simplicity about junk rig that is intoxicating to anyone with a genuine cruiser's mentality who tries it, I think.  I was interested in the rig since the late 1960s, when I became aware of JESTER's Atlantic exploits, and followed Mike Richey for the rest of his days.  A mutual friend gave me his letters to read, which added to the charm.  If efficiency can be measured by the amount of sweat you expend handling the rig in various conditions, and the ease of repairing it's low-tech systems, then junk rig wins hands down.  It is like comparing bicycle technology with motor cars.

    I currently have a bermudan-rigged ketch, recently bought, and cannot afford, at this stage, to do a conversion, but my recent 200-mile delivery passage back to my home port reminded me of the differences between sailing junk-rigged yachts and their bermudan-rigged counterparts.  I found myself dreaming of how much easier it would be with a junk sailplan.  The only reason to choose bermudan rig, in my opinion, would be if you were solely planning to race the boat, or perhaps if you were the hyperactive type, and taking it easy drove you nuts!


  • 10 Feb 2025 20:20
    Reply # 13461398 on 13461298

    Bearing in mind JRA is a bit of an echo chamber, I would say most members are probably very much sold on the whole idea.

    With a normal persons hat on, apart from the excitement of pushing the envelope and a geek like enthusiasm on my part, overall, is it a good project and why?

    Andrew, I think you put up an excellent question!

    Though I can imagine what you mean by "the excitement of pushing the envelope" or the "geek like enthusiasm", I never felt that those were my personal reasons for the junk rig. Instead, the junk rig just makes sense for me, in every aspect. Once you sailed it, you keep asking yourself constantly why you ever sailed bermudan rigs... I didn't have that feeling of "it just makes so much sense!" when I sailed gaff, crab claw, bermudan or square rig. Not at all. But I keep having that feeling when I sail my junk rig.

    There is a wonderfull document that Annie H. wrote, which in my view sums it up very well:

    50 advantages of the junk rig


    Cheers,

    Paul

  • 10 Feb 2025 17:42
    Reply # 13461298 on 13457716

    General question here.

    Bearing in mind JRA is a bit of an echo chamber, I would say most members are probably very much sold on the whole idea.

    With a normal persons hat on, apart from the excitement of pushing the envelope and a geek like enthusiasm on my part, overall, is it a good project and why?

  • 10 Feb 2025 17:37
    Reply # 13461292 on 13461284
    Anonymous wrote:

    Perhaps not a flagpole, more of a lamp post is needed?

    Yes, that's on my radar, but aren't they usually galvanised steel? Very heavy?
  • 10 Feb 2025 17:36
    Reply # 13461291 on 13457716

    Excellent bit of writing Arne, you do make everything understandable.

    Yes, I remember the slide rule very well. Our maths teacher had a huge one, badly made out of plywood, for demonstration and he gave us an example "two times two - there we go, 3.9 - call it four!"

       " ...there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in junk-rigged boats" 
                                                               - the Chinese Water Rat

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