There are definitely advantages as well as complications with three masts. For me is was a relatively quick and easy way to avoid  extending the main mast to its original 10.5 meters and maintain original sail area. I also liked the increased options and the tiller balance. The lower aspect meant less reefing the main, and little sails were easy to make and easy to manage. The smaller main had a powerful sheeting ratio, so easy to trim without a winch. The reason I am extending the main mast again is to get better performance in lighter winds.

My original fore mast was only 5 metres long to begin with and was light enough to be man handled. Both foresail and mizzen took seconds to hoist. It was very little work for a significant difference in performance and handling. The extension added both length and weight and to answer the structural question...yes! I never got the sheeting right with the 18 degree rake and on occasion it didn't reef properly either. I was pressed for time and too keen to get up to the Bay of Islands in time for the meet. Take plenty of time to test hoisting and dropping when on the mooring.

The original 8 degree rake, 5 meter mast worked surprisingly well. It is strong. The taper was 120mm at the partners and  60mm at the mast head. Screw/ glued and glassed over. The sail was only 6 square metres.

Even with the extension, I didn't notice any excessive movement or fishtailing on the mooring. Shoestring is high sided and comparatively light for a 10 metre yacht, and where I am moored, it is  exposed to a strong sou-wester with wind against tide. Nonetheless, my anchor dragged a couple of times on the trip. Having said that, with enough chain out  in a blow, it dug in VERY well. Windage aloft could change your judgment on how much chain to put out.

I don't know about the 'hoist' idea although I am sure it has been done before. Maybe others will know.

Hello Robert,

Every boat is different and you will probably have to play around with it. I started with 7 degrees and when I extended it, it was about 18 degrees. That was too much. I think somewhere between 10 and 15 degrees is where it should be. If I do it again, I'll go with 10.

The foremast and rig was rush job. I was originally intending to put in a self tacking jib but junk sails are a lot easier to make and reef. Shoestring is built very strongly so there was absolutely no problem placing the mast right at the bow and stepping  it into the anchor well.  I did however set 2 plates of 20mm marine ply under the foremast. I was conscious of the more extreme  movement at the bow and sandwiched a piece karrimat (camping foam bedding) between the two pieces of ply as a kind of shock absorber. I used very long hardwood wedges cut out of an old school seat that was going to scrap.

The problem was that I built the mast in a hurry and it was about 500mm too short. I had to keep the lower panel reefed all the time. So I made a rush extension before the summer set in, and raked it forward thinking it would help with tacking.

The little bit of extra sail area helped and I sensed that raking it forward made the tiller lighter. It could almost self steer. In fact I was doing what Brian Platt did and set the mizzen and mainsail to spill a slight amount of wind and the foresail brought the bow back to lee. It self steered long enough to make lunch on the way south from the Bay of Islands. Further south the wind changed and self steering seemed to work better on a reach or close reach.

Generally it performed well with the 18 degree rake, but between squally weather, williwaws, and beefy southerlies, the extension eventually gave out. It was in some ways predictable. I was able to salvage it  and reinstate the original shorter mast for the home trip to Auckland and since then I have removed both mizzen and fore mast and intend to lengthen the main mast this summer.

I am still not adverse to a foresail, but a lot depends where your main is positioned. They work well and look quite well when the sail is up. It looks strange anchored along side other cruisers, but still got compliments.

Hope that helps.

Roger

If you have a sail of this shape you will need to use double sheets as there will not be enough room between the masts for single sheets (note how far aft on the drawing the sheets drift.  I think a fanned sail like this does give a nice shape, assuming it is a flat-cut sail and not built with cambered panels.  If your foresail has cambered panels it will not need to be fan-shaped like this.  If you prefer flat-cut sails, (and I'd understand that, despite having a cambered sail myself that is very powerful) you can compromise on the profile of the fanned sails along the lines of mehitibel.