Wouter,
Evidently you sailors in Holland speak another headsail language.
Here in the US there are two types of spinnakers, Symmetrical and Nonsymmetrical. Symmetrical spinnakers are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Even the Americas Cup monohulls use nonsymmetrical spinnakers now. They also have square top mainsails. I wonder where they got that idea? Nonsymmetrical spinnakers work with the airflow moving across the sail, luff to leech, like a working sail.
Gennakers,screachers,hooters,reachers,code 1's, etc are all sails with a tight, straight luff, luff wire or rope, and are often rigged roller furling.
Wouter's comments:
1- Don't put the spinnaker hounds above 33% of the distance between the main hounds and the top of the mast without back stays. Doing so can cause mast inversion and breakage like the I20 class.
2- Pole ength: The spin pole should be 40 to 45% of the mast height. With this 'laid back' spinnaker, the bows are lifted by the spinnaker and no pitchpole occurrs due to the spinnaker.
3-The SuperCat family of beach boats are designed with a unique laterial force analysis system called Shared Lift. The SC boardless beach designs were conceived from a design system that placed one half the daggerboard area on the bow and one half the daggerboard area on the stern with a resultant center of laterial resistance which balanced the center of effort from the sail plan. Then the daggerboard at the bow was replaced with a deep Vee hull shape in the forward half of the hull. This places the hull CLR well forward of the main beam and NO LEE HELM will develope with a spinnaker on a boardless SC15 or 17 or 19. This is not the case with other boardless beach cats as Wouter pointed out.
The SC factory will help you with all the information and parts you need to set up a well functionin spinnaker system.
4- Homebuilt? I don't think so. I have talked to many sailors who made their own spinnaker pole etc. They finally got it right on the third or fourth try. Meanwhile they had spent alot of money on poles and rigging and messed up two or three good regattas. Add all that up and you can buy at least two factory kits.
Bill
