Best Traveller System

I've had a few cats in my life, and all have had crappy traveller systems in my opinion. It is dead difficult to use the traveller to best effect with the systems that come with Hobies, Prindles and Nacras. Granted, I have only had older boats, so maybe on the later boats these systems are improved.

To use the mainsheet to tension the main and the traveller to set the angle of the main I want to be able to have better control of the traveller than the traveller sheet anchored at the middle of the rear beam, then passing through the block on top of the car, and then to my hand. This is effectively a 1:1 system when the traveller is dead center and a 2:1 system when it is eased out. Mostly it is close to center.

What's a better solution?

I am putting together a P18-2 and would like to get it right.

Thanks
Barry

Barry,

this is pretty much what all of us are running. It works well as long as the bearings and the track are clean and in good shape. A bearing replacement usually makes a big difference (you can buy the torlon ball bearings at places like McMaster.com and save a little $).

I agree with Jake. Having suffered for years with the ARC forward option with sheet runing through several blocks, the simplest most direct option is the best. When you relaese the tension, regardless of the wind pressure, you want to see the traveler move. I feel like the Hobie set up is best. Maybe a little tweak with a pig tail on the end at the beam in order to get you dead center or beyond.......

All the best,

If you want the "best" go with a curved track like an a-cat.

The problem with a straight track is you ease the main sheet to get twist, but when you ease the traveller it tightens the leach and closes the leach. Or when you sheet in the traveller it looses leachs tension.

A curved traveller maintains constant main sheet tension regardless of traveller position

That sounds ideal, Mike. Why don't more boats have them? Too difficult to engineer along a straight rear beam?

I was wondering why the larger cruising cats don't use curved tracks in lieu of the traveler/boom vang combination.

Probably has to do with mainsheet loads and attachment points. It's much easier to just bolt it to the beam.

Thanks everyone. I guess I'll try Jake's suggestion first, but when I searched McMaster's I see all kinds of bearings, but not sure of the exact description of the bearings on the car. I'm guessing they're thrust bearings of some kind.
The curved track sounds ideal, but not sure how to pull that one off. Never welded aluminum either.
Any help on the exact type of bearing would be cool.
Thanks
Barry

Search for "Torlon Balls"...not sure if this link will work correctly. I ~think~ the standard Harken traveler uses 3/16" balls - but I recommend you measure them before ordering.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#torlon-balls/=i6ukv6

Where's the shirt? "cat sailors have torlon balls".