FWIW, I don't recall there was a problem with looking at Badger's foresail, although, obviously, a lot of it was hidden.  I could see the luff and that was all I needed to  sail to windward (although to be fair, the boat sailed herself to windward in inshore waters) and I could tell by the pull on the sheet if it was pulling properly off the wind.  I don't recall every feeling that it was a nuisance, not being able to see the entire sail.  And of course I could, if we were sailing wing and wong!

Paul,
great minds think alike! Nowadays, when cameras and video screens are cheap, and use next to no power, your idea is very logic. One could even be tempted to have more than one camera and lead the video signals down below ☺...
(And while we are at it; add an electric capstan to raise the sail with)

As for the maximum size of a sail, I think the main factor to stay out of trouble is to have the sails rigged so that the sheet will not tangle or set at awkward angles. The foresail sheet of that Samson cannot be said to be totally trouble-free (mainsail 70sqm, fore 37). I would say there is much less fuzz with handling the big main than the foresail. I used to have a boat with a sloop JR of 48sqm (Johanna), and that worked just fine (see report from 2010 rally: http://goo.gl/KIOwkH  ).

The mizzen of a yawl does much of the same balancing of the sailplan as you schooners did. Paul Thompson recently described the mizzen of his Canard Bleu as an “air rudder”.

In the end, when converting an already existing boat, the challenge of finding useful mast positions may well dictate what sort of rig to choose.

Cheers,
Arne

Ah, better luck next time, Paul.

As for me suggesting that yawl as an alternative to schooner, I think it is both easier to make and rig, and easier to handle too, as long as the mainsail doesn’t get way too big, and the mast too heavy. I find that when I crew in my friend’s schooner (Samson), the view to the foresail is completely blocked by the mainsail, and then there is the chance for the foresail sheet to catch the battens of the main. In practice, one must go forward and check.

The yawl gives one the simplicity and performance (almost) of the sloop without having to struggle with steering on a reach. As you can see on the sail plan, the total CE can be shifted as much as 81cm aft from the CE of the main, just by a light tug on the mizzen sheet. This means that one has fingertip control of the balance, and the boat will even sail itself much of the time.

The shown mainsail is 60sqm. I guess an electric capstan would be useful to hoist that sail. Electric energy consumption to hoist the sail is very low - I know from using my electric winch handle on my Ingeborg. Btw, the shown sail is a scaled up version of Ingeborg’s sail.

That mizzen is meant to be cut flat from some strong canvas, and being set most of the time. Furling is on the mast, with a final tight wrapping by using the halyard.

Cheers,
Arne

Samson, making 7.7kts...

Paul,
Would a yawl rig be an idea? This could be designed with the mainsail giving some lee helm and the mizzen sheeted in just enough to balance her out. The main mast would sit quite far forward on such a rig, so must be of fairly lightweight material (carbon?). On the other hand, you avoid some structural issues with a free-standing mast through the trunk cabin.

Worth considering?

Anyway, good luck!

Arne

PS: Something like this. The mainmast will collide with the v-berth, but it will be easy to fit, structurally.