Recently purchased a mostly unstayed gaff-rigged Chuck Paine cat ketch. For all intents and purposes, it is more or less perfect for junk conversion, and could be done for little more cost than the sails and running rigging. Fellow Vermont member Joe Welch -- a mere six miles away (that's a small comfy world for an outfit that members less than a thousand worldwide) rightly mentioned that it might not do to replicate the sail areas from the gaff rig, as the center of effort will move forward with the junk rig. This can obviously be remedied by shrinking the main and enlarging the mizzen to move the COE aft. There is enough mast to do so. Does anyone have a better way to do this than "By guess or by God?"

I have RhinoCad, and some powerful computational tools, as well as enough lines from Mr. Paine to develop a clear idea where the COE will be. What I need to know is how much lead is typical for the junk rig.

Although it may be anathema to some, I've also considered a lug rug. Many of Mr. Paine's criticisms of the design stem from the disturbed airflow over the mast on the gaff rig. I have to mention that Paine -- at least from emails -- appears to be bothered by details that many of us would shrug off. He is a perfectionist. A simple balanced lug may address his concerns. While less handy than the junk rig, it is a simpler build. Given that the main is less than 200 square feet, and the mizzen smaller, handling issues shouldn't be large. I assume the COE question applies equally to both sail plans, as they are much the same in area.

For some reason, the software wants to rotate my picture 90 degrees, but I suspect the mods will fix that.