Thanks for taking the time to post. I agree with your assessment in general. I have 8 six volt Trojan forklift batteries each 340 AH in series for 48 volts hooked up to a 6 kw pure sine wave inverter and a MPPT controller. On a nice sunny day we hit float by early afternoon and waste some sunshine but when we run the 15 amp dryer , sailors everywhere are screaming I know, then we need every one of the 8 x 260 w panels. 

I was lucky to get the wet batteries almost new for less than half price but unless we win the lottery no way L I are a possibility. I hope to get 10 years out of the existing bank and perhaps things will be cheaper then but I won't hold my breath. 

I do have a honda 2000 geny and it does a fine job in a pinch if it rains for a spell or we have a week of June gloom which is a marine layer we get in So Cal.

I have a 63 ft deck step mast ready to go up and sails for a Bermuda rig so in spite of all the advantages of a junk I think I am stuck with what I had been planning.

Brad

Bradford Simms wrote:The Bermuda rig sail plan was 1400 sq ft so 1200 JR would move things along ok I think.

Conventional wisdom is that a JR has more sail area than a Bermudan rig does, rather than less, since BR boats have large light air sails that don't play well with a JR.

OTOH, your boat is a motorsailor, one that would motor in light conditions instead of sailing, so you may not be much worse off.

I put a split rig on my main (forward) mast, mostly because I wanted to move the CE of that sail further forward than the existing mast position would support well. I think if I were in your shoes, I would go with the added sail design and construction complexity only if mast position and desired CE of the sailplan required it, keeping things simpler otherwise.

 who needs 2000 watts of solar

I wouldn't assume that solar (well, this big solar!) is the best or cheapest solution for you, either long-term or short-term. Consider a diesel generator for one alternative. If your solar array is so big you don't have room for sails where they need to be, you will end up motoring all the time, instead of sailing. (I have also seen solar powered motorboats)

I put ~400W solar up as a hard bimini, and I made it a point NOT to finalize that until after I had my sails up and working so I could design the solar around the sailplan, rather than designing the sailplan around my solar.

Thanks to you all for your quick and gentle responses , I am sure " what are you nuts" came to mind for many. My main constraint is a self inflicted solar array on the rear 18 ft of the deck. I realize this is not going to sit well with serious sailors " who needs 2000 watts of solar " Well between the 55 inch TV dishwasher washer dryer and good size fridge we need every amp. We live aboard at a no utility dock which for many wives would be a non starter, mine gave me the OK but there are matters that are non negotiable.

I see the logic in the 700 to 800 sq ft max per sail and with some re focusing I can do two masts in a schooner rig without infringing on the rear deck. The main would sit 18 ft from the rear roof and the fore mast 14 ft ahead of that. If an AR of 2.5 is not too tall that would be around 780 and 420 sq ft respectively. The Bermuda rig sail plan was 1400 sq ft so 1200 JR would move things along ok I think.

Split rig on the foremast with a good % forward for max power and a shaped main?? ? I posted a picture of the boat on my album and will do a sail plan and try to post it if this concept has any merit.

Thanks again for taking time to help me, I would really like to JR this boat and stay the heck off the fore deck as much as possible.

Brad 

Hi,

on Arcadian we set 1200 sq ft in two sails of 700 and 500 sq ft. The smaller sail was fine but we had issues with batten breakage with the larger mainsail. We had electric winches to haul the sails up, and they needed it!! I would suggest, as others have, that 700 sq ft is the upper end of what is manageable for a short handed cruiser.

 All the best with the project.

David.

Sebastian's sublime Peregrine has a sail of 80 sq m, which a quick Google tells me is 861 sq ft.  Looks a hell of a sail.  I can't imagine what one almost twice the size would be like, but even with electric winches it would be scary.

I find it hard to believe that there is no alternative to one sail on a vessel of your size: look at all the options that Randy has sketched out for his 49ft trawler.  If I were you (which I'm not) I think I'd be looking to make compromises around the accommodation, or whatever your issues are, rather than going for such a vast sail.  Moreover, you would need a very tall mast and if your boat is a genuine motor sailer, is she ballasted for this type of weight high up?  Maybe if you posted some images in your album, people might be able to make intelligent suggestions that you possibly haven't considered?  Whatever, I commend your determination and wish you the very best of luck with the project. 

Annie