fractional rigged yachts

Fractional Rig vs. Masthead Rig – Which is Better?

By Danny Cruz

Of course, you’ve probably guessed that neither is necessarily better. There are pros and cons to both. There are sailors that love their fractional rigs and those that prefer masthead rigs.

The fractional rig is very popular amongst racing sailboats. Essentially, a fractional rig has the forestay attached to a point a ways below the top of the mast, instead of the top (or close to it). This creates a headsail area that is a fraction of what it would be if the forestay were attached all the way up the mast. This in turn makes is so that the larger portion of the total sail area is in the mainsail rather than the jib. There is one key benefit to this setup:

It makes the boat somewhat easier to manage around a racecourse because the crew is now dealing with a slightly smaller jib.

Because of the position of the forestay in relation to tension coming from the shrouds, adding tension to the forestay can add bend to the mast. This can result in a flatter mainsail with less healing forces. This can be both good and bad.

However, fractional rigs do not come without shortcomings…

A fractional rig is more difficult to tune and often requires constant tuning to adapt to different wind conditions and sail changes. This is because the shrouds act as backstay tension instead of a standard backstay. The shrouds must keep the mast in column and control forestay tension – in other words, they are performing multiple jobs. Finding the right balance of tensions becomes quite a bit more complicated.

Another problem with fractional rigs is that they require spreaders that sweep back. That is really not that big of a problem until you are going dead downwind and want the mainsail as far out as possible. The mainsail touches the spreaders and starts to chafe. For this reason, the crew in fractional rig sailboats usually let out the mainsail until it lightly touches the spreaders instead of letting it all the way out.

About Danny Cruz

Publisher of FloatWays, Danny Cruz is resourceful creative designer, lover of the ocean and all things that float.

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fractional vs. masthead rigged, pros and cons?

• Thread starter centerline
• Start date Aug 13, 2012
• Forums for All Owners
• Ask All Sailors

I am familiar with a masthead rigged boat and its easy to figure out how to tune the rigging, but this new-to-me mac 25 is a fractional rigged boat and I am curious as to the advantages and disadvantages of masthead vs. fractional.... why couldnt they have added the extra few feet of cable and went to the top of the mast? is it tuned differently? the only thing I can see the rear stay is used for is to add a bit of bend to the mast, and then its still seems loose... it has the pigtail attached to it, but i will replace it with a topping lift soon....  

I'll let others deal with the fractional vs masthead, but as for pigtail vs topping lift - I don't like the pigtail on my boat so I replaced it with a topping lift. The main problem I had with the pigtail was when raising the main - the pigtail does not allow the boom to 'vane' to the wind, so the sail would catch air (as thought it were trimmed for a close reach) and the boat would veer broad side to the wind. With the topping lift it's a much smother and safer process (assuming you remember to duck)  

You derive power from the main and drive from the headsails. The fractional rig on Ventures is an excellent sailplan. All the Venture/Mac 25's came fractional rig stock out of the factory. The stock mast is not heavy enough for a masthead rig. In '76 I asked Roger MacGregor to masthead rig Freedom with the intention of carrying bigger headsails and chute for open water racing, Newport-Ensenada etc. I think there were only two -25's to come out the factory this way. In order to do this the mast extrusion is much heavier, Sparcraft S-106, due to dismastings on some boat modified with stock mast, S-104. I have been satisfied with this design. Keep in mind that your existing sails will fit but will not perform the same. Freedom was given a 6 second penalty under PHRF. Even with that I was able to sail faster than the stock fractional rig. Masthead rig will give more weather helm and will roundup quicker. Downwind will usually be an advantage.  

kpgraci said: I'll let others deal with the fractional vs masthead, but as for pigtail vs topping lift - I don't like the pigtail on my boat so I replaced it with a topping lift. The main problem I had with the pigtail was when raising the main - the pigtail does not allow the boom to 'vane' to the wind, so the sail would catch air (as thought it were trimmed for a close reach) and the boat would veer broad side to the wind. With the topping lift it's a much smother and safer process (assuming you remember to duck) Click to expand

Freedom77 said: You derive power from the main and drive from the headsails. The fractional rig on Ventures is an excellent sailplan. All the Venture/Mac 25's came fractional rig stock out of the factory. The stock mast is not heavy enough for a masthead rig. In '76 I asked Roger MacGregor to masthead rig Freedom with the intention of carrying bigger headsails and chute for open water racing, Newport-Ensenada etc. I think there were only two -25's to come out the factory this way. In order to do this the mast extrusion is much heavier, Sparcraft S-106, due to dismastings on some boat modified with stock mast, S-104. I have been satisfied with this design. Keep in mind that your existing sails will fit but will not perform the same. Freedom was given a 6 second penalty under PHRF. Even with that I was able to sail faster than the stock fractional rig. Masthead rig will give more weather helm and will roundup quicker. Downwind will usually be an advantage. Click to expand

Stu Jackson

The "pigtail" is called "boom lift." It works just fine if used properly. It is intended to hold the boom up after you have dropped the mainsail. In most cases it is higher than a standard non-adjustable topping lift, so the boom is higher using the boom lift. Most trailerable sailboats have end boom sheeting, so you can't move the boom off the centerline as you could with mid-boom sheeting. It keeps it out of the way. Just don't keep it attached when you raise the mainsail. Without a topping lift the boom will fall into the cockpit when you drop the main. No reason you can't use both to your advantage.  

Paul Brinkley

My Mac 26S came with neither topping lift nor backstay pigtail. I saw some other boats with pigtails, but decided I had rather have a topping lift for versatility and safety. It was a very cheap mod- an extra sheave in my chicken head, about 60 feet of 1/4" line, a small snap hook, and an eyebolt for the end of the boom, and I waas in business. I have been happy with it. -Paul  

A few further thoughts on pros & cons... I have a 2006 Hunter 33 with fractional rig. A major advantage (at lease for the wife) is that the compression post in the cabin is so far forward that it is in the v-berth area, leaving the cabin feeling very open and spacious. However, since living with it for a few years, I see several disadvantages: 1) the halyard for the spinnaker exits the mast just above the forestay, so the max asymmetrical spinnaker it can take is a lot smaller that if it were flown from mast top. 2) The large main is so far forward that it interferes with the airflow and makes it very difficult to get the asym to fill. I'm still experimenting with this, but have yet to find a set of conditions where I go noticeably faster with the asym vs. poling our the jib! (big disappointment so far. 3) the space between the mast and and the prow is too small to fit the inflated dinghy, so I end up disinflating it or towing it more that I otherwise would. It does seem to me that going for fractional rigs is the current fashion - but I'm still undecided about what I'd get if starting again. (Do love my H33 though!)  

Generally speaking a fractional is easier to get mast bend if you have an adjustable backstay. On the masthead it makes flying a spinnaker slightly harder as the spin will exit forward of the mast, and hopefully above the forestay, but everything is "closer." On a factional, you have the option of the spin halyard exiting higher, and out of the way. Power for a fractional is highly dependent on the main, where power for a masthead is highly dependent on the jib. I've owned a Capri 22 (fractional 3/4 rig), and a Capri 25 (masthead rig), within months of each other. Generally speaking with a fractional, you can easily sail on main alone, also as the wind pipes up you change headsails first to smaller size, then reef, on the masthead its the other way around, and sailing on main alone is painfully slow. I speak only with cursory racing experience, and years of sailing experience, and attempting to get the boat flatter sooner, without losing speed is presently my goal. So take what I say with a grain of salt. I can say the trend now is mostly towards fractional rigs.  

The fractional rig (with an ADJUSTABLE backstay) allows you to bend the upper portion of the mast to gain better mainsail shape under various wind conditions. Most of your performance oriented/racing boats will be fractional rigged. The stock 25 backstay is just a single wire and offers little if any adjustments (at least mine was). I redesigned mine, turning it into a split backstay with a simple backstay adjusting setup. Not the best picture of it, but should give some idea (the backstay adj was added later, i can get pics if you're interested).  

Attachments

I have sailed both fractional & masthead rigs. Each era of sailboat design goes through fashions & fads, & each has it advantages. The trend towards larger mains & smaller jibs on fractional rigs also seems to go with the philosophy of easier sail handling, as it is easier to tack a smaller jib the does not overlap the mast. Bigger, more powerful mains are easier to control when tacking then large overlapping headsails. Self tacking jibs are now more popular, and are hence smaller to accomodate this. My current Catalina 30 is a 70's era design with the masthead rig, smaller main, bigger jib era that defined many 70's sailboats. It performs well with a larger 135 genoa overlapping the main, but 150's can be a bear to tack when short handed. I personally like having a slightly smaller main, cut higher with a taller boom that is less inclined to bang one in the head if an accidental jibe occurrs. I am not a fan of the furling mains that are so popular today, as the lack of horizontal battens severely hampers their sail shape performance. ps. My split backstay masthead rig gives a nice bend in the mast, so I don't see how this is something that is unique to fractional rigs. To me fractional rigs seem to go hand in hand with trailor sailers as a smaller mast has benefits in raising & lowering (reduced weight), but smaller sail area limits some performance characteristics. (I'm sure some will disagree, but my 2 cents worth.)  

if you take a walk down on the docks and take a look at the fractional vs masthead rig you will notice that most of the fractional rig have the mast way forward and that the mast head rig have the mast more aft. I believe that fractional rig give more space down below for accommodation of a dining table and such. The balance of the boat might also have something to do in it, usually the main is larger on a fractional and smaller on a masthead rig.  

mesange said: if you take a walk down on the docks and take a look at the fractional vs masthead rig you will notice that most of the fractional rig have the mast way forward and that the mast head rig have the mast more aft. I believe that fractional rig give more space down below for accommodation of a dining table and such. The balance of the boat might also have something to do in it, usually the main is larger on a fractional and smaller on a masthead rig. Click to expand

fractional vs masthead There are pros & cons on both sides Lets start with masthead rigs: In day gone by, most boats were fractional but with the introduction of the IOR rule circa late 60`s early 70`s which no one has bothered to mention yet. Under IOR The area of the main sail counted for more than the jib. This is why masts were moved aft and main sails got smaller while jibs got bigger. Take two boats same LOA beam displacement sail area but one boat is a fractional the other is a masthead Under IOR the fractional boat will have a lower rating. This is why you see so many 70`s mast head boats. They are no faster but can win on corrected time. 2Masthead boats are considered stronger Masthead boats do not sail well under main alone but will sail well under jib alone. fractional boats have only one jib so there is no jibs to change down. Fractional boats sail well under main. I could go on all day both rigs have their advantages & disadvantages. I prefer masthead because thats all I ever owned My friend with a J prefers fractional I do not think that either is better its a matter of personal preference  

bffatcat said: with the introduction of the IOR rule circa late 60`s early 70`s Click to expand

Joe said: Uh......... perhaps some comparative specs and dimensions would be admissible.... but just walking around the docks.... I'm not convinced. Click to expand

mesange said: why don't you take a walk around the dock......smart..... Click to expand

Joe said: I might....... but I'd take a measuring tape with me before I started speculating on boat design. Click to expand

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Guide to Understanding Sail Rig Types (with Pictures)

There are a lot of different sail rig types and it can be difficult to remember what's what. So I've come up with a system. Let me explain it in this article.

What are the different types of sail rig? The sail rig is determined by the number of masts and the layout and shape of sails. Most modern ships are fore-and-aft rigged, while old ships are square-rigged. Rigs with one mast are sloops and cutters. Ketches, yawls, brigs, and schooners have two masts. Barques have three masts. Rigs can contain up to seven masts.

'Yeah, that's a gaff brig, and that a Bermuda cutter' - If you don't know what this means (neither did I) and want to know what to call a two-masted ship with a square-rigged mainsail, this article is definitely for you.

On this page:

More info on sail rig types, mast configurations and rig types, rigs with one mast, rigs with two masts, rigs with three masts, related questions.

This article is part 2 of my series on sails and rig types. Part 1 is all about the different types of sails. If you want to know everything there is to know about sails once and for all, I really recommend you read it. It gives a good overview of sail types and is easy to understand.

The Ultimate Guide to Sail Types and Rigs (with Pictures)

First of all, what is a sail rig? A sail rig is the way in which the sails are attached to the mast(s). In other words, it's the setup or configuration of the sailboat. The rig consists of the sail and mast hardware. The sail rig and sail type are both part of the sail plan. We usually use the sail rig type to refer to the type of boat.

Let's start by taking a look at the most commonly used modern sail rigs. Don't worry if you don't exactly understand what's going on. At the end of this article, you'll understand everything about rig types.

The sail rig and sail plan are often used interchangeably. When we talk of the sail rig we usually mean the sail plan . Although they are not quite the same. A sail plan is the set of drawings by the naval architect that shows the different combinations of sails and how they are set up for different weather conditions. For example a light air sail plan, storm sail plan, and the working sail plan (which is used most of the time).

So let's take a look at the three things that make up the sail plan.

The 3 things that make up the sail plan

I want to do a quick recap of my previous article. A sail plan is made up of:

• Mast configuration - refers to the number of masts and where they are placed
• Sail type - refers to the sail shape and functionality
• Rig type - refers to the way these sails are set up on your boat

I'll explore the most common rig types in detail later in this post. I've also added pictures to learn to recognize them more easily. ( Click here to skip to the section with pictures ).

How to recognize the sail plan?

So how do you know what kind of boat you're dealing with? If you want to determine what the rig type of a boat is, you need to look at these three things:

• Check the number of masts, and how they are set up.
• You look at the type of sails used (the shape of the sails, how many there are, and what functionality they have).
• And you have to determine the rig type, which means the way the sails are set up.

Below I'll explain each of these factors in more detail.

The most common rig types on sailboats

To give you an idea of the most-used sail rigs, I'll quickly summarize some sail plans below and mention the three things that make up their sail plan.

• Bermuda sloop - one mast, one mainsail, one headsail, fore-and-aft rigged
• Gaff cutter - one mast, one mainsail, two staysails, fore-and-aft rigged
• Gaff schooner - two-masted (foremast), two mainsails, staysails, fore-and-aft rigged
• Gaff ketch - two-masted (mizzen), two mainsails, staysails, fore-and-aft rigged
• Full-rigged ship or tall ship - three or more masts, mainsail on each mast, staysails, square-rigged

The first word is the shape and rigging of the mainsail. So this is the way the sail is attached to the mast. I'll go into this later on. The second word refers to the mast setup and amount of sails used.

Most sailboats are Bermuda sloops. Gaff-rigged sails are mostly found on older, classic boats. Square-rigged sails are generally not used anymore.

But first I want to discuss the three factors that make up the sail plan in more detail.

Ways to rig sails

There are basically two ways to rig sails:

• From side to side, called Square-rigged sails - the classic pirate sails
• From front to back, called Fore-and-aft rigged sails - the modern sail rig

Almost all boats are fore-and-aft rigged nowadays.

Square sails are good for running downwind, but they're pretty useless when you're on an upwind tack. These sails were used on Viking longships, for example. Their boats were quicker downwind than the boats with fore-and-aft rigged sails, but they didn't handle as well.

The Arabs first used fore-and-aft rigged sails, making them quicker in difficult wind conditions.

Quick recap from part 1: the reason most boats are fore-and-aft rigged today is the increased maneuverability of this configuration. A square-rigged ship is only good for downwind runs, but a fore-and-aft rigged ship can sail close to the wind, using the lift to move forward.

The way the sails are attached to the mast determines the shape of the sail. The square-rigged sails are always attached the same way to the mast. The fore-and-aft rig, however, has a lot of variations.

The three main sail rigs are:

• Bermuda rig - most used - has a three-sided (triangular) mainsail
• Gaff rig - has a four-sided mainsail, the head of the mainsail is guided by a gaff
• Lateen rig - has a three-sided (triangular) mainsail on a long yard

The Bermuda is the most used, the gaff is a bit old-fashioned, and the lateen rig is outdated (about a thousand years). Lateen rigs were used by the Moors. The Bermuda rig is actually based on the Lateen rig (the Dutch got inspired by the Moors).

Other rig types that are not very common anymore are:

• Junk rig - has horizontal battens to control the sail
• Settee rig - Lateen with the front corner cut off
• Crabclaw rig

Mast configuration

Okay, we know the shape of the mainsail. Now it's time to take a look at the mast configuration. The first thing is the number of masts:

• one-masted boats
• two-masted boats
• three-masted boats
• four masts or up
• full or ship-rigged boats - also called 'ships' or 'tall ships'

I've briefly mentioned the one and two mast configurations in part 1 of this article. In this part, I'll also go over the three-masted configurations, and the tall ships as well.

A boat with one mast has a straightforward configuration because there's just one mast. You can choose to carry more sails or less, but that's about it.

A boat with two masts or more gets interesting. When you add a mast, it means you have to decide where to put the extra mast: in front, or in back of the mainmast. You can also choose whether or not the extra mast will carry an extra mainsail. The placement and size of the extra mast are important in determining what kind of boat we're dealing with. So you start by locating the largest mast, which is always the mainmast.

From front to back: the first mast is called the foremast. The middle mast is called the mainmast. And the rear mast is called the mizzenmast.

What is the mizzenmast? The mizzenmast is the aft-most (rear) mast on a sailboat with three or more masts or the mast behind the mainmast on a boat with two masts. The mizzenmast carries the mizzen sail. On a two-masted boat, the mizzenmast is always (slightly) smaller than the mainmast. What is the purpose of the mizzen sail? The mizzen sail provides more sail area and flexibility in sail plan. It can be used as a big wind rudder, helping the sailor to have more control over the stern of the ship. It pushes the stern away from the wind and forces the bow in the opposite way. This may help to bring the bow into the wind when at anchor.

I always look at the number of masts first, because this is the easiest to spot. So to make this stuff more easy to understand, I've divided up the rig types based on the number of masts below.

Why would you want more masts and sail anyways?

Good question. The biggest advantage of two masts compared to one (let's say a ketch compared to a sloop), is that it allows you to use multiple smaller sails to get the same sail area. It also allows for shorter masts.

This means you reduce the stress on the rigging and the masts, which makes the ketch rig safer and less prone to wear and tear. It also doesn't capsize as quickly. So there are a couple of real advantages of a ketch rig over a sloop rig.

In the case of one mast, we look at the number of sails it carries.

Boats with one mast can have either one sail, two sails, or three or more sails.

Most single-masted boats are sloops, which means one mast with two sails (mainsail + headsail). The extra sail increases maneuverability. The mainsail gives you control over the stern, while the headsail gives you control over the bow.

Sailor tip: you steer a boat using its sails, not using its rudder.

The one-masted rigs are:

• Cat - one mast, one sail
• Sloop - one mast, two sails
• Cutter - one mast, three or more sails

The cat is the simplest sail plan and has one mast with one sail. It's easy to handle alone, so it's very popular as a fishing boat. Most (very) small sailboats are catboats, like the Sunfish, and many Laser varieties. But it has a limited sail area and doesn't give you the control and options you have with more sails.

The most common sail plan is the sloop. It has one mast and two sails: the main and headsail. Most sloops have a Bermuda mainsail. It's one of the best racing rigs because it's able to sail very close to the wind (also called 'weatherly'). It's one of the fastest rig types for upwind sailing.

It's a simple sail plan that allows for high performance, and you can sail it short-handed. That's why most sailboats you see today are (Bermuda) sloops.

This rig is also called the Marconi rig, and it was developed by a Dutch Bermudian (or a Bermudian Dutchman) - someone from Holland who lived on Bermuda.

A cutter has three or more sails. Usually, the sail plan looks a lot like the sloop, but it has three headsails instead of one. Naval cutters can carry up to 6 sails.

Cutters have larger sail area, so they are better in light air. The partition of the sail area into more smaller sails give you more control in heavier winds as well. Cutters are considered better for bluewater sailing than sloops (although sloops will do fine also). But the additional sails just give you a bit more to play with.

Two-masted boats can have an extra mast in front or behind the mainmast. If the extra mast is behind (aft of) the mainmast, it's called a mizzenmast . If it's in front of the mainmast, it's called a foremast .

If you look at a boat with two masts and it has a foremast, it's most likely either a schooner or a brig. It's easy to recognize a foremast: the foremast is smaller than the aft mast.

If the aft mast is smaller than the front mast, it is a sail plan with a mizzenmast. That means the extra mast has been placed at the back of the boat. In this case, the front mast isn't the foremast, but the mainmast. Boats with two masts that have a mizzenmast are most likely a yawl or ketch.

The two-masted rigs are:

• Lugger - two masts (mizzen), with lugsail (a cross between gaff rig and lateen rig) on both masts
• Yawl - two masts (mizzen), fore-and-aft rigged on both masts. Main mast is much taller than mizzen. Mizzen without a mainsail.
• Ketch - two masts (mizzen), fore-and-aft rigged on both masts. Main mast with only slightly smaller mizzen. Mizzen has mainsail.
• Schooner - two masts (foremast), generally gaff rig on both masts. Main mast with only slightly smaller foremast. Sometimes build with three masts, up to seven in the age of sail.
• Bilander - two masts (foremast). Has a lateen-rigged mainsail and square-rigged sails on the foremast and topsails.
• Brig - two masts (foremast), partially square-rigged. The main mast carries small lateen-rigged sail.

The yawl has two masts that are fore-and-aft rigged and a mizzenmast. The mizzenmast is much shorter than the mainmast, and it doesn't carry a mainsail. The mizzenmast is located aft of the rudder and is mainly used to increase helm balance.

A ketch has two masts that are fore-and-aft rigged. The extra mast is a mizzenmast. It's nearly as tall as the mainmast and carries a mainsail. Usually, the mainsails of the ketch are gaff-rigged, but there are Bermuda-rigged ketches too. The mizzenmast is located in front of the rudder instead of aft, as on the yawl.

The function of the ketch's mizzen sail is different from that of the yawl. It's actually used to drive the boat forward, and the mizzen sail, together with the headsail, are sufficient to sail the ketch. The mizzen sail on a yawl can't really drive the boat forward.

Schooners have two masts that are fore-and-aft rigged. The extra mast is a foremast which is generally smaller than the mainmast, but it does carry a mainsail. Schooners are also built with a lot more masts, up to seven (not anymore). The schooner's mainsails are generally gaff-rigged.

The schooner is easy to sail but not very fast. It handles easier than a sloop, except for upwind, and it's only because of better technology that sloops are now more popular than the schooner.

The brig has two masts. The foremast is always square-rigged. The mainmast can be square-rigged or is partially square-rigged. Some brigs carry a lateen mainsail on the mainmast, with square-rigged topsails.

Some variations on the brig are:

Brigantine - two masts (foremast), partially square-rigged. Mainmast carries no square-rigged mainsail.

Hermaphrodite brig - also called half brig or schooner brig. Has two masts (foremast), partially square-rigged. Mainmast carries a gaff rig mainsail and topsail, making it half schooner.

Three-masted boats are mostly barques or schooners. Sometimes sail plans with two masts are used with more masts.

The three-masted rigs are:

• Barque - three masts, fore, and mainmast are square-rigged, the mizzenmast is usually gaff-rigged. All masts carry mainsail.
• Barquentine - three masts, foremast is square-rigged, the main and mizzenmast are fore-and-aft rigged. Also called the schooner barque.
• Polacca - three masts, foremast is square-rigged, the main and mizzenmast are lateen-rigged.
• Xebec - three masts, all masts are lateen-rigged.

A barque has three or four masts. The fore and mainmast are square-rigged, and the mizzen fore-and-aft, usually gaff-rigged. Carries a mainsail on each mast, but the mainsail shape differs per mast (square or gaff). Barques were built with up to five masts. Four-masted barques were quite common.

Barques were a good alternative to full-rigged ships because they require a lot fewer sailors. But they were also slower. Very popular rig for ocean crossings, so a great rig for merchants who travel long distances and don't want 30 - 50 sailors to run their ship.

Barquentine

The barquentine usually has three masts. The foremast is square-rigged and the main and mizzenmast fore-and-aft. The rear masts are usually gaff-rigged.

Faster than a barque or a schooner, but the performance is worse than both.

The polacca or polacre rig has three masts with a square-rigged foremast. The main and mizzenmast are lateen-rigged. Beautiful boat to see. Polacca literally means 'Polish' (it's Italian). It was a popular rig type in the Mediterranean in the 17th century. It looks like the xebec, which has three lateen-rigged masts.

Fun fact: polaccas were used by a Dutch sailor-turned-Turkish-pirate (called Murat Reis).

The xebec is a Mediterranean trading ship with three masts. All masts are lateen-rigged. I couldn't find any surviving xebecs, only models and paintings. So I guess this rig is outdated a long time.

A boat with three or more masts that all carry square-rigged sails is called a ship, a tall ship, or a full-rigged ship. So it's at this point that we start calling boats 'ships'. It has nothing to do with size but with the type of rigging.

More sails mean less stress on all of them. These ships use a lot of sails to distribute the forces, which reduces the stress on the rigging and the masts. Square sails mean double the sail area in comparison to triangular sails.

They are quite fast for their size, and they could outrun most sloops and schooners (schooners were relatively a lot heavier). The reason is that tall ships could be a lot longer than sloops, giving them a lot of extra hull speed. Sloops couldn't be as large because there weren't strong enough materials available. Try making a single triangular sail with a sail area of over 500 sq. ft. from linen.

So a lot of smaller sails made sense. You could have a large ship with a good maximum hull speed, without your sails ripping apart with every gust of wind.

But you need A LOT of sailors to sail a tall ship: about 30 sailors in total to ie. reef down sails and operate the ship. That's really a lot.

Tall ships are used nowadays for racing, with the popular tall ship races traveling the world. Every four years I go and check them out when they are at Harlingen (which is very close to where I live).

Check out the amazing ships in this video of the tall ship races last year near my hometown. (The event was organized by friends of mine).

What is the difference between a schooner and a sloop? A schooner has two masts, whereas the sloop only has one. The schooner carries more sails, with a mainsail on both masts. Also, sloops are usually Bermuda-rigged, whereas schooners are usually gaff-rigged. Most schooners also carry one or two additional headsails, in contrast to the single jib of the sloop.

What do you call a two-masted sailboat? A two-masted sailboat is most likely a yawl, ketch, schooner, or brig. To determine which one it is you have to locate the mainmast (the tallest). At the rear: schooner or brig. In front: yawl or ketch. Brigs have a square-rigged foremast, schooners don't. Ketches carry a mainsail on the rear mast; yawls don't.

What is a sloop rig? A sloop rig is a sailboat with one mast and two sails: a mainsail and headsail. It's a simple sail plan that handles well and offers good upwind performance. The sloop rig can be sailed shorthanded and is able to sail very close to the wind, making it very popular. Most recreational sailboats use a sloop rig.

What is the difference between a ketch and a yawl? The most important difference between a ketch and a yawl are the position and height of the mizzenmast. The mizzenmast on a yawl is located aft of the rudder, is shorter than the mainmast and doesn't carry a mainsail. On a ketch, it's nearly as long as the mainmast and carries a mainsail.

There are a wonderful lots of DIY changeability shows on the cable airwaves these days.

Rick the rigger

There are SO many errors on this site it really should be taken down.

First major mistake is to say you are no longer afraid of the sea.

One that truly gets up my nose is the term ‘fully’ rigged ship. It’s a FULL rigged ship!! Your mast names are the wrong way round and just because there may be 3 it doesn’t automatically mean the one in the middle is the main.

I could go on and totally destroy your over inflated but fragile ego but I won’t. All I will say is go learn a lot more before posting.

Shawn Buckles

Thanks for your feedback. If you like to point out anything more specific, please let me know and I will update the articles. I’ve changed fully-rigged to full-rigged ship - which is a typo on my part. I try to be as concise as I can, but, obviously, we all make mistakes every now and then. The great thing about the internet is that we can learn from each other and update our knowledge together.

If you want to write yourself and share your knowledge, please consider applying as a writer for my blog by clicking on the top banner.

Thanks, Shawn

Well, I feel that I’ve learned a bit from this. The information is clear and well laid out. Is it accurate? I can’t see anything at odds with the little I knew before, except that I understood a xebec has a square rigged centre mainmast, such as the Pelican ( https://www.adventureundersail.com/ )

Hi, Shawn, You forgot (failed) to mention another type of rig? The oldest type of rig known and still functions today JUNK RIG!

Why are so many of the comments here negative. I think it is wonderful to share knowledge and learn together. I knew a little about the subject (I’m an Aubrey-Maturin fan!) but still found this clarified some things for me. I can’t comment therefore on the accuracy of the article, but it seems clear to me that the spirit of the author is positive. We owe you some more bonhomme I suggest Shawn.

As they say in the Navy: “BZ” - for a good article.

Been reading S.M. Stirling and wanted to understand the ship types he references. Thank you, very helpful.

This site is an awesome starting point for anyone who would like to get an overview of the subject. I am gratefull to Shawn for sharing - Thanks & Kudos to you! If the negative reviewers want to get a deeper technical knowledge that is accurate to the n-th then go study the appropriate material. Contribute rather than destroy another’s good work. Well done Shawn. Great job!

Good stuff Shawn - very helpful. As a novice, it’s too confusing to figure out in bits and pieces. Thanks for laying it out.

First of all I have to say that Rick ‘the rigger’ is obviously the one with the “over inflated but fragile ego” and I laughed when you suggested he share his knowledge on your blog, well played!

As for the content it’s great, hope to read more soon!

Alec Lowenthal

Shawn, I have a painting of a Spanish vessel, two masted, with. Lateen sails on both masts and a jib. The mainsail is ahead of the main mast (fore) and the other is aft of the mizzen mast. Would this be what you call lugger rig? I have not seen a similar picture. Thanks, Alec.

Thank you for your article I found easy to read and understand, and more importantly remember, which emphasises the well written.. Pity about the negative comments, but love your proactive responses!

This vessel, “SEBASTIAN” out of Garrucha, Almería, España, was painted by Gustave Gillman in 1899.

Sorry, picture not accepted!

Thank you for a very informative article. I sail a bit and am always looking for more knowledge. I like the way you put forth your info and I feel if you can’t say anything positive, then that person should have their own blog or keep their opinions to their-self. I will be looking for more from you. I salute your way of dealing with negative comments.

Thank you for a great intro to sailing boats! I searched different sailboats because I use old sails tp make bags and wanted to learn the difference. Way more than I ever expected. Thanks for all the work put in to teach the rest of us.

Your description of a cutter is lacking, and your illustrations of “cutters” are actually cutter-rigged sloops. On a true cutter, the mast is moved further aft (with more than 40% of the ship forward of the mast). A sloop uses tension in the backstay to tension the luff of the foresail. The cutter can’t do this.

Also, a bermuda-rigged ketch will have a line running from the top of the mainmast to the top of the mizzenmast.

wow great guide to rig types! thanks

Interesting guide, however I am confused about the description of the brig. You say the main mast on a brig can have a lateen sail, but in your picture it looks like a gaff sail to me. How is it a lateen sail?

Hi Shawn, thank you for taking the time to share this information. It is clear and very helpful. I am new to sailing and thinking of buying my own blue water yacht. The information you have supplied is very useful. I still am seeking more information on performance and safety. Please keep up the good work. Best Regards

mickey fanelli

I’m starting to repair a model sailboat used in the lake I have three masts that have long been broken off and the sails need replacement. So my question is there a special relationship between the three masts I do have reminents of where the masts should go. they all broke off the boat along with the sails I can figure out where they go because of the old glue marks but it makes no sense. or does it really matter on a model thank you mickey

Cool, total novice here. I have learnt a lot. Thanks for sharing - the diagrams along with the text make it really easy to understand, especially for a beginner who hasn’t even stepped on a sailing boat.

Daryl Beatt

Thank you. Cleared up quite a few things for me. For example, I was familiar with the names “Xebecs” and “Polaccas” from recent reading about the Barbary War. I had gathered that the two Barbary types were better suited to sailing in the Med, but perhaps they were less able to be adaptable to military uses,(but one might assume that would be ok if one plans to board and fight, as opposed to fight a running gun duel). Specifically, the strangely one sided August 1, 1801 battle between the USS Enterprise under Lt. John Sterett and the Polacca cruiser Tripoli under Admiral Rais Mahomet Rous. On paper both ships seemed nearly equal in size, guns and crew, but pictures of the battle are confusing. While the Enterprise is usually rendered as the familiar schooner, the polacca Tripoli has been pictured in radically different ways. Thus the Wikipedia picture by Hoff in 1878 used to illustrate the Battle shows a Brig design for Tripoli, indicating 77 years later, polaccas were no longer common.

Lee Christiansen

I am curious as to what you would call a modern race boat with a fractional jib,not equipped for full masthead hoist? Thanks Lee

Thanks Guy: The information and pictures really eliminate a lot of the mystery of the terminology and the meanings. Also appreciate the insight of the handling idiosyncrasies “hand” (staff) requirements to manage a vessel for one that has not been on the water much. I long to spend significant time afloat, but have concern about the ability to handle a vessel due to advancing age. The Significant Other prefers to sit (in AC comfort)and be entertained by parties of cruise line employees. Thanks again for the information.

Gordon Smith

Your discussion made no mention of the galleon, a vessel with either square-rigged Fore and Main masts and a shorter lateen-rigged Mizzen, or, on larger galleons, square-rigged Fore and Main masts, with a lateen-rigged Mizzen and a lateen-rigged Bonaventure mast, both shorter than either the Fore or Main masts. Also, it was not uncommon for a galleon to hoist a square-rigged bowsprit topsail in addition to the usual square-rigged spritsail.

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Fractional Sloop: A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding this Sailboat Rig

by Emma Sullivan | Aug 12, 2023 | Sailboat Racing

Short answer: Fractional sloop

A fractional sloop is a type of sail rig used on sailboats. It involves having the forestay attached at a point lower than the mast head, resulting in a smaller jib and larger mainsail. This configuration offers better control and balance in varying wind conditions, making it popular among racing and cruising boats.

1) Introduction to the Fractional Sloop: Exploring the Basics

Introduction to the Fractional Sloop: Exploring the Basics

Ahoy sailors and boat enthusiasts ! Prepare to embark on a thrilling journey as we set sail into the fascinating world of sailing rigs. Today, we will unravel the magnificent wonders of one particular rig known as the Fractional Sloop. So hoist your mainsails and let’s delve into the basics!

A sailing rig , for those unfamiliar with sailor-speak, refers to a configuration of sails and masts that enable a vessel to harness wind power for propulsion. Among these various rigs, the Fractional Sloop stands tall as an esteemed member.

Now, you may be wondering why it is called a “fractional” sloop. Well, dear reader, this peculiar name stems from a unique characteristic of its mast positioning. Unlike traditional sloops where the jibstay connects to the bow (front) of the boat at its highest point, in a fractional sloop, this connection is lower down on the mast – at less than 50% of its height.

This distinctive feature grants numerous advantages to sailors who opt for this rig. Firstly, by placing more sail area above and behind this attachment point , it allows for greater control over sail shaping and trimming. This means heightened maneuverability and better balance when battling against gusty winds or navigating narrow passages.

But wait! There’s more! The fractional sloop offers yet another compelling benefit – improved performance in challenging sailing conditions. By redistributing more sail area towards the back of the mast, it helps sailors achieve enhanced upwind performance when pitted against headwinds. These disproportionate forces enable increased lift on both main and jib sails while simultaneously reducing excessive heeling (when a boat leans excessively due to wind pressure). In simple terms: smoother sailing with added stability .

Now that we have covered some nifty perks offered by this rig, let’s dive deeper into its anatomy. The fractional sloop primarily consists of two sails: the mainsail and the jib. The mainsail, attached to the mast near its base, is typically larger and boasts a triangular shape. This mighty sail catches wind from behind, propelling the boat forward.

The smaller yet equally crucial member of this duo is the jib. Positioned closer to the bow and beautifully complementing the mainsail’s shape, it contributes significantly to overall performance. Together, these sails combine mightily to conquer variable wind conditions and optimize sailing pleasure!

Ah, but our adventure does not end here! We must mention an ingenious variation of this already magnificent rig – the fractional cutter sloop ! Picture this: The fractional sloop meets a nimble wingman known as the cutter rig. In this hybrid design, we introduce an additional sail called a staysail.

The staysail sits between the jib and the mast, injecting that extra oomph into your sailing prowess. This trifecta of sails allows for even greater flexibility in adapting to diverse wind strengths and angles. Imagine yourself effortlessly gliding through tranquil waters or daringly conquering rough seas—an unrivaled experience that only fractional cutter sloops can offer!

In conclusion, my dear maritime enthusiasts, the Fractional Sloop has proven itself as a true gem among sailing rigs . With enhanced maneuverability, improved performance in challenging conditions, and an aesthetic allure that turns heads on every wave-worn shore—this rig shines with charisma.

So whether you find yourself chasing sunsets in peaceful bays or testing your mettle amidst relentless gusts out on open waters, consider embracing the fascinating world of fractional sloops—where agility meets elegance—a thrilling endeavor that welcomes sailors into a league of their own!

2) How Does a Fractional Sloop Work? Understanding its Mechanisms

If you’ve ever wondered how sailboats harness the power of wind to navigate the waters with precision and grace, the fractional sloop is an engineering marvel that deserves your attention. In this blog post, we will delve into the intricate mechanisms behind a fractional sloop and help you understand why it’s such an efficient and versatile sailing rig.

To comprehend how a fractional sloop operates, one must first grasp its basic components. A fractional sloop consists of two key elements: a mainsail and a smaller foresail, also known as a headsail or jib. These sails work in tandem to capture wind energy and propel the boat forward.

At first glance, you might wonder why there are two sails instead of just one large sail . The answer lies in the maneuverability and control over sail shape that the fractional sloop provides. The mainsail is attached to the mast at a point lower than its halfway mark, typically around 7/8ths of the way up. Hence, it earns its name “fractional” because it takes up less than half of the total height of the mast.

This configuration allows sailors to adjust various aspects of their sail plan based on weather conditions or desired performance outcomes. By using halyards and lines connected to adjustable blocks, sailors can raise or lower both the mainsail and headsail independently. This flexibility grants them precise control over each sail’s shape , enabling efficient wind capture regardless of wind direction or strength.

Now let’s dive deeper into how these mechanisms work when sailing with a fractional sloop rig.

Firstly, having a smaller headsail compared to other rigs illustrates one significant advantage – reduced area exposed to strong winds. This characteristic minimizes heeling (the boat’s lean caused by wind pressure) while maintaining excellent balance and stability even in gusty conditions. As sailors can readily adjust both sails individually, they can fine-tune the amount of power generated by each sail to suit the conditions at hand . This versatility ensures a comfortable and controlled sailing experience .

Secondly, let’s address maneuverability. The mainsail’s lowered position on the mast allows it to generate a significant amount of power in the lower part of the sail . This concentrated force assists in maneuvering tasks such as tacking (changing direction when sailing upwind) or jibing (changing direction when sailing downwind). By adjusting the mainsail’s angle and shape, sailors can efficiently alter their boat’s course without compromising on speed or stability .

Lastly, it is worth noting that a fractional sloop rig excels in upwind sailing scenarios. The ability to flatten both sails, especially the more controllable headsail, enables efficient windward performance. As winds intensify or shift direction, sailors can quickly adapt by tweaking their sail settings—no need for drastic sail changes that could compromise progress towards their destination.

In conclusion, understanding how a fractional sloop works involves appreciating its unique mechanisms that provide sailors with enhanced control and flexibility while harnessing wind energy effectively. Its smaller headsail reduces heeling while maintaining balance, making this rig ideal for varying wind conditions. With the ability to maneuver with ease and excel in upwind situations through precise adjustments of individual sails, fractional sloops continue to revolutionize modern sailing practices.

So next time you step aboard a sailboat equipped with a fractional sloop rig, take a moment to admire its clever design and appreciate how these intricate mechanisms work together harmoniously to offer an exhilarating and rewarding sailing experience.

3) Step-by-Step Guide: Rigging and Setting Up Your Fractional Sloop

Title: A Nautical Symphony: Decoding the Art of Rigging Your Fractional Sloop Step-by-Step

Introduction: Ahoy, fellow adventurers of the high seas! Today, we embark upon a thrilling voyage that promises to unravel the intricacies of rigging and setting up your beloved fractional sloop. Brace yourselves for an unforgettable nautical expedition through this step-by-step guide where we shall unravel the tangled web, ensuring you sail with prowess and confidence. With these detailed instructions at hand, you’ll be ready to conquer even the wildest waves!

1) Selecting the Right Equipment: Like an orchestra’s conductor chooses each instrument carefully before a performance, choosing the right equipment is pivotal to your sailing experience. Whether it’s lines, blocks, shrouds, or stays — ensure their quality and durability match your vessel’s size and intended use. Aim for a harmonious combination that will withstand Mother Nature’s mightiest blows.

2) Prepping the Mast: The mast stands tall as your sloop’s backbone; it guides its sails towards greatness! Begin by securing it properly in place using sturdy mast fittings and supports. Adjust tension according to manufacturer recommendations while maintaining a keen eye for any signs of imbalance – after all, no conductor would allow out-of-tune instruments on stage!

3) Hoisting the Main Sail: Picture this moment as unveiling the grandeur of a magnificent tapestry against azure skies. Ensure proper alignment of sail slides into track slots before hoisting with grace. Once unfurled majestically aloft, adjust halyard tension expertly — not so tight that notes are strained nor too loose lest they droop like sad serenades.

4) Tuning Your Rigging: Just like tuning a musical instrument fine-tunes its acoustics; tuning your rigging guarantees optimal performance from bow to stern. Pay meticulous attention to adjust each line and stay accordingly – deft fingers carefully orchestrating the right tension. As you tweak, envision a symphony of efficiency and balance resonating through the gentle lapping waves.

5) The Mainsheet Dance: Now, my fellow mariners, we venture into a delicate dance between wind and sail . Mastering efficient mainsheet control propels your sloop gracefully through triumph and tempest alike. Adjust tension gradually with swift yet sure movements – anticipate gusts that demand quick response while harmonizing direction and speed flawlessly.

6) Perfecting Headsail Harmony: No maritime melody is complete without smooth headsail performance. Begin by securing sheets correctly but allow sufficient freedom for agile maneuverability. Trim accordingly to maintain optimal airflow across the sail ‘s surface; subtle adjustments akin to tuning higher or lower notes until celestial harmony is achieved.

7) Maintaining Safe Angles: As every sailor knows, safety is paramount amidst this wondrous journey at sea. Thus, understand your fractional sloop’s optimal sailing angles – its sweet spot where power reigns supreme while maintaining comfort for both vessel and crew. Respect these angles like a prima donna respects her stage presence — a blend of artistic expression and technical prowess.

Conclusion: Congratulations, dear adventurers! With our step-by-step guide as your navigational aid, you can now skillfully rig and set up your precious fractional sloop with panache and precision. Embrace the artistry of sailing as you harness wind ‘s rhythm, conquer rough waters, and create timeless memories in nature’s open embrace. So hoist those sails high, tighten those lines just right, serenade the seas with your expertise — may fair winds forever grace your fractional sloop!

4) Common Challenges and Practical Tips for Sailing with a Fractional Sloop

Sailing with a fractional sloop can be an exhilarating and rewarding experience for avid sailors. However, like any sailing endeavor, it does come with its fair share of challenges. In this blog post, we will explore some common challenges that sailors may encounter when sailing with a fractional sloop, as well as provide practical tips to help overcome them.

1) Balance and Trim: One of the key challenges faced by sailors on a fractional sloop is finding the right balance and trim. The position of the mast in a fractional rig is set further back than in other rigs, which can cause issues with weight distribution and sail shape . To tackle this challenge, it’s crucial to play around with different sail adjustments to ensure both proper balance and optimum performance. Experimenting with halyard tension, sheet control, and traveler position can greatly influence your boat ‘s balance and trim.

2) Reefing: Reefing refers to reducing the sail area in response to increased wind conditions. With a fractional sloop , reefing can be particularly tricky due to the positioning of the mast. It’s important to have a clear understanding of your boat’s reefing system and practice reefing maneuvers before you encounter strong winds out on the water. Familiarize yourself with all the reef points on your mainsail and experiment with different combinations to achieve optimal reefing without compromising safety or performance .

3) Upwind Performance: Achieving good upwind performance is paramount for sailors looking to make long passages or compete in races. While fractional sloops are known for their exceptional downwind abilities, they may require some extra attention when sailing close-hauled. To maximize upwind performance, pay careful attention to sail shape and angle of attack. Adjustments such as tightening up your genoa halyard or playing with backstay tension can significantly improve your pointing ability against prevailing wind conditions.

4) Mast Bend: The unique design of fractional rigs allows for greater control over mast bend, which can greatly impact your boat’s performance in different wind conditions. However, understanding and manipulating mast bend can prove challenging for many sailors. Investing time into understanding how different adjustments affect the shape of your mainsail and mast bend is crucial. Consult the manufacturer’s guide or seek advice from more experienced sailors to learn about optimal settings for various wind strengths.

5) Tacking: Tacking with a fractional sloop may require additional finesse compared to other rig types due to the position of the mast. The front-centered mast placement affects weight distribution, making it essential to execute smooth weight transfers during tack maneuvers . Pay attention to your crew’s movements and ensure they are well-coordinated when shifting their weight to maintain proper balance throughout the maneuver.

In conclusion, sailing with a fractional sloop presents its own range of challenges that can be overcome with practice and careful attention to detail. By focusing on maintaining balance and trim, perfecting reefing techniques, optimizing upwind performance, understanding mast bend dynamics, and perfecting tacking maneuvers, you’ll be able to tackle any sailing adventure with confidence and skill. So grab your fractional sloop and hit the water knowing that you’re armed with practical tips to navigate through any challenge that comes your way!

5) Frequently Asked Questions about Fractional Sloops

Welcome to the fifth installment of our blog series, where we take a dive into frequently asked questions about fractional sloops – one of the most popular sailboat configurations for both racing and cruising enthusiasts. Here, we aim to provide you with detailed professional insights while keeping it witty and clever. So let’s embark on this journey of unraveling the mysteries surrounding fractional sloops!

1) What exactly is a fractional sloop?

A fractional sloop refers to a sailboat configuration where the forestay – the cable supporting the forward-facing mast – attaches at a point below the top of the mast. This placement creates an imbalance between the mainsail’s luff (leading edge) length and its height. The ratio between these two lengths defines how “fractional” or imbalanced a sloop is.

2) Why would I choose a fractional sloop over other configurations?

Ah, great question! Fractional sloops offer several advantages . Their imbalanced rig promotes better upwind performance by allowing more efficient use of headsails like genoas and jibs, providing increased forward drive. Furthermore, their maneuverability shines when sailing in strong winds since they can depower sails quickly by easing halyard tension or reefing.

3) How does rig balance affect boat performance ?

Think of rig balance as the delicate art of equilibrium on water ! In essence, proper rig balance determines how well your sails work together and how effectively force is distributed throughout your vessel. A perfectly balanced setup enables optimal trim control and responsiveness under varying wind conditions, making your sailing experience smoother than silk.

4) Can I convert my masthead sloop into a fractional sloop?

Oh certainly! With some tinkering and adjustments, you can transform your trusty masthead sloop into its fractionally rigged cousin. However, bear in mind that such modifications require expert knowledge and professional guidance to ensure structural integrity while maximizing performance gains. Safety first!

5) Are fractional sloops only suitable for racing?

Not at all! Fractional sloops have gained popularity in the cruising world too. While their enhanced upwind capabilities contribute to competitive racing, they also allow cruising sailors to squeeze out more mileage from those delightful trade winds. So whether you’re zipping across the finish line or leisurely exploring distant shores, a fractional sloop can be your trusted companion.

6) Can a novice sailor handle a fractional sloop?

Absolutely! While proper sail trim and understanding rig balance go a long way in maximizing performance, fractional sloops are designed for all skill levels. Many modern designs incorporate user-friendly features, making them forgiving and easy to handle even for beginners seeking exciting sailing experiences.

7) Do I need any special equipment for a fractional sloop?

Besides your adventurous spirit and trusty crewmates, owning specialized equipment isn’t mandatory – it’s mostly about optimizing sails and rigging choices. However, investing in quality halyards, winches of appropriate size/load capacity, and possibly a cunningham (a device used to control sail shape) would greatly enhance performance on your soul-stirring voyages aboard a fractional sloop.

There you have it – answers to some of the frequently asked questions about fractional sloops! We hope our witty take on these queries has shed light on this captivating sailboat configuration. Whether you’re planning to enter the thrilling world of racing or searching for an ideal vessel for leisurely exploration, considering a fractional sloop might just elevate your sailing adventures to unparalleled heights. Fair winds and smooth seas !

6) Mastering the Art of Sail Trim with a Fractional Sloop

Title: Unleashing the Power of Sail Trim: Becoming a Maestro on a Fractional Sloop

Introduction: When it comes to sailing, harnessing the wind’s energy efficiently is crucial for attaining speed and maneuverability. Among the various sail configurations available, the Fractional Sloop design stands tall as a versatile favorite among sailors worldwide. With its towering mast and adjustable rigging, mastering the art of sail trim on a Fractional Sloop opens up new avenues for both professional racers and keen enthusiasts alike. In this article, we uncover the secrets to fine-tuning your sails aboard a Fractional Sloop for optimal performance, resulting in smoother sailing experiences. So buckle up and get ready to embark on an enlightening journey!

1) Understanding the Essence of Sail Trim: In essence, sail trim entails achieving perfect balance between three critical components: sail shape, angle of attack, and proper tensioning. By artfully manipulating these elements, sailors exploit every ounce of wind power available while maintaining stability and control – no easy feat! Mastery over these intricacies distinguishes excellent sailors from mere beginners, as they harmonize their vessels with nature’s forces.

2) The Essence of a Fractional Sloop: A Fractional Sloop derives its name from its unique mast setup. Unlike traditional sloop rigs with fractional jibs (smaller foresails), this configuration employs larger headsails that extend below half the height of the mainmast. This design enables better control over sail shaping through halyard adjustments while maintaining exceptional control during high-wind conditions.

3) The Key to Effective Sail Shape: Achieving an optimal sail shape is paramount in squeezing maximum speed out of your beloved vessel. Clever utilization of cunningham controls allows you to tweak luff tension effortlessly – flattening or intensifying curvature at will. This flexibility empowers you to adapt your craft’s sails according to real-time wind conditions efficiently . With a steadfast eye on the tell-tales and using cunningham adjustments judiciously, you’ll be able to find that sweet spot where speed and control merge seamlessly.

4) Unleash the Full Potential of Tension: Maintaining proper sail tension might seem like an insignificant matter, but its impact on performance can’t be understated. On a Fractional Sloop, capitalize on adjustable backstay tensions, Vang systems, and outhaul controls for manipulating leech tension dynamically. Optimizing each of these elements ensures efficient power transfer from the sails to your vessel ‘s hull – propelling you forward with unwavering thrust while maintaining equilibrium even in challenging conditions.

5) Streamlining Angle of Attack: To achieve smooth maneuverability, understanding the concept of windward-and-leeward pressure differentials is essential . A fractional rig enables meticulous control over your jib sheeting angles through genoa tracks and cars – allowing you to set the optimal angle of attack relative to the wind direction at any given moment. Remember, slight tweaks in sheet trimming can make all the difference between sluggish navigation and swift sailing prowess!

6) Achieving Harmony – The Art of Balance: Ultimately, mastering sail trim boils down to finding that elusive balance point where speed, control, and stability converge harmoniously. Continual practice will fine-tune your intuition as you interpret subtle cues offered by your fractional sloop’s behavior under varying conditions. Regularly challenging yourself by experimenting with different adjustments during lighter breezes or engaging in thrilling regattas will sharpen your mastery further.

Conclusion: Becoming a maestro in sail trim with a Fractional Sloop embodies both an art form and a science . Its design offers versatility coupled with improved adaptability to changing wind conditions, making it an attractive choice for seasoned sailors seeking ultimate performance gains or newcomers hoping to grasp intricate sailing techniques more effectively. By embracing the symbiotic relationship between sail shape , angle of attack, and sail tension, you embark on a journey to unlock the true potential of your Fractional Sloop. Fasten your lifejackets and prepare to astound even the most ardent sailing enthusiasts with your newfound command over sail trim magic!

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Understanding yacht rigs

What is the issue, why address this, how to address this.

• • With all the standing rigging meeting at the masthead the mast is well supported and only subject to compression forces.
• • This simple configuration is relatively easy to set-up, sail with and maintain.
• • Very efficient for sailing into the wind as a result of the long genoa luff and efficient slot.
• • Large masthead spinnakers with their large area provide plenty of power but can prove to be a handful in strong winds.
• • Requires a large sail wardrobe of headsails to cope with a range of conditions. This has been resolved in recent times by head-sail furling systems where some performance is sacrificed for convenience of handling.
• • Efficiency is lost when the sail is reefed due to the widening of the slot and the poor shape caused by furling systems.
• • Its large size headsails are more difficult to manage.
• • Its large masthead spinnakers are more difficult to manage.

• • More emphasis is put on depowering the mainsail which is much easier and quicker to reef than changing a headsail.
• • Fewer and/or smaller headsails are required to cope with a wide range of conditions which makes it easier for short-handed crews to manage.
• • Smaller headsails to deal with and changes as the mainsail shape is altered to balance the boat.
• • Downwind the larger mainsail gives more drive, and it's not so important if the smaller jib is blanketed by it.
• • The jib can be taken in, especially so with a ¾ rig (where the forestay goes ¾ of the way up the mast) without the boat rounding up into the wind like a weather vane.
• • Shorter hoists and smaller spinnakers to deal with as the halyard position is lower on the mast it reduces the heeling lever on the boat.
• •The backstays can be tensioned to flatten sections of the mainsail, maintaining drive whilst reducing heeling moment.
• • The distribution of sail area about the centreline of the boat provides a better balance which reduces the tendency to roll.
• • Complicated backstay arrangments to control the bending of the topmast. This can be highly tuned for mainsail performance, but the vessel has to be actively and intelligently sailed.
• • Fractional rigs can be fitted to cruising boats but they need aft swept spreaders (or rather their associated shrouds, which attach to the deck significantly aft of the mast alleviate the importance of the running rigging) to make them more manageable shorthanded and these sacrifice some upwind performance.
• • Less durable and any error with the running backstays when tacking and jibing could risk damaging the rig or a dismasting.

• • The sail area is split and so are the loads making this type of rig much easier to handle than a conventional sloop. When sloops increase over the 45 ft size or so, cutter rigs are often adopted to moderate the genoa areas, necessitating more power to sheet sails and larger winches to take the higher loading.
• • Very easy to balance the sail area making it particularly good with windvane self-steering gear for long distance cruising.
• • When the wind picks up it gives versatility to cruising boats, especially in allowing a small staysail to be flown from the inner stay in high winds. A small staysail set farther back on the boat and a reefed mainsail is a very solid arrangement for big winds.
• • A staysail tends to make heaving-to easier.
• • The added slot it provides enhances upwind performance.
• • In heavy airs and large seas the 'runners' used to support the load of the staysail offer significant support to the mast in the fore and aft plane preventing the mast from 'panting'.
• • The staying arrangement also offers an advantage as the inner forestay can act as a safeguard in the event of a forestay failure.
• • Tacking becomes complicated unless the staysail is equipped with a boom that enables it to be self-tacked - as it is usually a high aspect ratio with no overlap this may be catered for.
• • Lacks the outright drive of a sloop rig in light weather conditions.
• • The 'runners' required to provide mast support add more complication.
• • With light winds aft of the beam the staysail is easily blanketed by the mainsail and its flapping disturbs the airflow into the genoa.

• • This configuration is again a means of carrying a large amount of sail area while keeping each sail to manageable proportions.
• • Offers better performance when reaching, especially with a mizzen staysail.
• • In strong winds a ketch's mainsail can be dropped altogether (rather being reefed), thereby reducing sail and leaving a balanced sail-plan with just jib and mizzen set.
• • When sailing with just mizzen and jib set, there is no excessive lee helm, and some claim that the additional sail allows a better balance. The sail plan is so good that, in an emergency, a ketch may be steered without the use of the rudder.
• • When running before the wind or reaching across the wind, a ketch may set extra sails such as a spinnaker or mizzen staysail on the mizzen mast, as well as a spinnaker on the main mast.
• • There’s a more nuanced control that is achievable through the assortment of trimming permutations.
• • When at anchor, the mizzen sail may help to steady the boat, thereby reducing roll in an otherwise uncomfortable anchorage.
• • The mizzen sail can help stabilize the boat under power.
• • The mizzen sail may be flown alone to hold the boat's bow into the wind and oncoming waves whilst anchored or lying ahull with a sea anchor - a flat fully battened sail is most efficient for this use case as it will resist flogging and associated chafe.
• • It is not as efficient as the cutter rig because the mizzen sail is a relatively poor means of drive upwind and more of a balancing sail.
• • When reefed, and sailing upwind, the mizzen mast and its associated rigging present a considerable drag.
• • Downwind this sail is also a problem as it tends to blanket the sail plan forward of it.
• • The mizzen mast is usually stepped in the cockpit with the result being an enormous amount of clutter and the rigging that gets in the way of the crew activities in all but the largest of yachts.

• • Similar to the ketch this configuration is again a means of carrying a large amount of sail area while keeping each sail to manageable proportions.
• • But a yawl's smaller mizzen mainly serves to help trim and balance, working more as an 'air rudder' or trim tab rather than as a substantial part of the working sail area.
• • Yawls tend to have mainsails almost as large as those of sloops and cutters with similarly sized hulls. The mainmast can be positioned further aft which allows a wider chain plate base thus reducing the compression loads in the mast.
• • With the mainmast further aft the foretriangle can be larger allowing better light airs and windward performance.
• • With the mizzen sail being generally smaller there is less of a sacrifice in downwind speed when the mizzen sail is lowered and less of a blanketing effect on the mainsail if it is left up.

• • There is no need to point 'head to wind' when raising the sail. When the sheets are sufficiently eased, the junk sail will rotate around the mast to any point of the wind allowing the sail to be hoisted on any point of sailing.
• • It provides considerable savings by not having to be maintained, tuned or replaced by an expensive rig.
• • The junk rig is self tacking. None of the running lines need to be touched to tack the boat through the eye of the wind. Simply put the helm down, and the sails will swing over close hauled on the new tack.
• • The mast is usually unstayed leaving a clear uncluttered deck.
• • Because the sail is balanced the loads are relatively low and tackles are used in preference to winches.
• • When running, the junk sail rig is at its best spreading a powerful wall of canvas far greater than a modern rigged boat, which will require a spinnaker to catch up. The junk rigged boat sails more easily downwind because of its self-jibing capability.
• • Reefing a junk rigged sail is very easy. When sailing close to the wind, all that is needed is to ease the halyard. As the sail lowers by its own weight, the other running lines will also relax.
• • Emergency furling is fast and simple. When the sheets and halyard are let go, the sail will blow downwind, drop into the cradle of the topping lifts, while being steadied by the full battens - this may make a mess to clear up subsequently.
• • The rig simply cannot 'point' as close to the wind as other rigs.
• • The sails do not generate as much power per square foot of sail area because of the flatness of the sail induced by its full battens - in a practice, the junk rig can usually overcome this by having larger sails.
• • On the reach in very light winds, the flat sail shape is highly inefficient.
• • The rigs unstayed masts are usually heavier and, from a spar manufacturer's point of view, are often a concern in terms of fatigue strength.
• • The mast tends to whip in a choppy sea, especially when the sail is down and the boat is motoring.
• • The rig has a higher number of control lines that are subject to chafe.

• • Cat rigs are simple to sail and manage. With one large sail and no rigging, a cat rig is up and running in moments and they can be managed single-handed quite easily.
• • With a mast placed so far forward cat rigs can maximise the amount of salon space available.

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• Sailboat Reviews

Tartan 33: Scheel Keel Pioneer

The tartan 33’s offshore ambitions are evident in cynosure, owned by practical sailor contributor bill herrmann..

By the late 1970s, the old Tartan 34 had become very dated. The boat had been in production for a decade, and hundreds of families had cut their racing and cruising teeth on the S&S keel/centerboarder. But the market was changing. Boats were faster and lighter, keels and rigs more efficient, interiors roomier and more functional.

Tartan 33 Specs

In 1978, Tartan brought out the Tartan Ten, a 33-foot, fairly light, fractionally-rigged “offshore one design.” The boat was a huge success: fast, easy to sail, and unencumbered by the design limitations of a rating rule.

But the Tartan Ten had one big problem: limited accommodations with stooping headroom, an interior most kindly described as spartan. A hardy crew could take the Tartan Ten on a multi-day race such as the Mackinac, and you might even coax your family aboard for a weekend of camping out. But cruising or extended racing in comfort? Forget it!

If, however, you could combine the size and performance of the Tartan Ten with a boat having decent accommodations, you had a good shot at a winning combination, particularly in a time when interest in sailing was growing at an astounding rate. As a bonus, the venerable Tartan 34 could be retired with the dignity she deserved.

The answer to all these prayers was the Tartan 33. Introduced as a 1979 model, the Tartan 33 bore a strong resemblance to the Tartan Ten, with a big fractional rig, flattish sheer, and wide stern. But unlike the Tartan Ten, the new 33 had good accommodations.

The Tartan 33 was a moderate success, with about 220 boats built over a five-year period. The fractional rig, touted as being easier to handle due to smaller headsails, may have turned off some customers who associated that type of rig with high performance boats such as J/24s and 12 meters. The slotted aluminum toe-rail of the 33 was more reminiscent of Tartan’s racing boats, such as the 41 and the Ten, than it was of a high-quality cruiser/racer.

In 1984, the Tartan 33 went out of production. In its place came the “new” Tartan 34, a boat that could directly cash in on the reputation of the famous old Tartan 34. Interestingly, the new Tartan 34 is the Tartan 33, with the stern drawn out 9 inches to a more pleasing termination, the interior redesigned to meet market demands, and the 33’s fractional rig replaced by the masthead rig of the Tartan 33R.

Compared to the Tartan 33, the new 34 is more finely finished, with teak toerails and nicer interior detailing.

When first introduced, the Tartan 33 had a base price of just over $46,000. By the time production ceased, the base price had increased to $66,000. Remember, those were the years of double-digit inflation.

Sailing Performance

As originally configured—Scheel keel and fractional rig—performance of the Tartan 33 might be a little disappointing for someone coming from a Tartan Ten, but is certainly on a par with most other boats of the same size, type, and vintage. In absolute terms the Tartan 33 is spritely, but not stunning, with a PHRF rating of about 160. By comparison, the old C&C 34—a good all-around cruiser/racer from the same period—rates 144, 16 seconds per mile faster. The C&C 34 and Tartan 33 are almost identical in length, sail area, and displacement.

In lighter winds, the fractionally-rigged Tartan 33 is at its biggest disadvantage, particularly off the wind. The big mainsail allows you to sail fairly low, but you go pretty slow. By comparison, a boat with a big masthead spinnaker will be sailing a little higher and quite a bit faster for optimum off-wind VMG in the same conditions.

The Tartan 33’s interior departs from the norms for cruising boats in this area. Most owners who have lived with the interior for some time find it quite workable, but the boat’s successor, the T-34, better addresses the cruising sailor’s accommodation needs.

• Bifold doors separate main cabin from the head, which extends across the width of the boat, just aft of the v-berth. The drop-down table dines four comfortably. A short settee—less than 5-feet long—with the icebox occupying a high counter at what would normally be the head of the berth.

• The L-shaped galley is serviceable but counter space is at a premium.

• A quarterberth offers snug cubby for guests, but its usual function is a mini-garage.

• The navigator sits in a snug cutout, so it’s a bit of a stretch to reach the electrical panel outboard. Laptop navigation is unimpeded.

• Owners praise the joinery on the Tartan. There are no veneer laminates, only finely joined solid wood. There is more storage than one would expect in a boat of this size.

IMS (International Measurement System) velocity predictions show that the Scheel keel Tartan 33 must in general be sailed a little lower and flatter than a comparable fin keel boat, although the 33’s righting moment is very similar to that of a fin keel boat of the same size and type, as is her range of positive stability.

The Tartan 33 was not designed to any rating rule, but a number have been rated under the IMS. In some areas, there are enough of the boats to allow them to sail together as a one-design class, but the boat is not fast enough in absolute terms to stir the blood of most sailors interested in one-design racing. In addition, Tartan 33 sailors disagree on the proper amount of headsail overlap for the boat, making level racing more difficult.

To offset the rather average performance of the Tartan 33, the 33R was introduced in 1982. The 33—“R” for “Racing”—has a deep fin keel and a double-spreader masthead rig. The difference in performance between the 33 and the 33R is pretty amazing: the 33R is almost 30 seconds per mile faster than the stock 33, even though the sail area is almost identical.

Righting moment of the fin keel and Scheel keel boats is virtually the same, so the extra performance isn’t the result of increased stability. The combination of the fin keel and the masthead rig is simply faster in most conditions.

It’s interesting to compare the performance with the new 34, which combines the Scheel keel of the 33 with the masthead rig of the 33R. Although the specifications for the 33 say the boat is a thousand pounds lighter than the 34, the 33 was never as light as that. The typical 33, in IMS measurement trim, weighs pretty much the same as the new 34—11,000 pounds.

Typically, the 34 has a PHRF rating of about 141 with the optional deep keel, 147 with the standard Scheel keel. This places the 34 pretty squarely between the 33 and the 33R in the performance spectrum, suggesting that the masthead rig accounts for about half the performance difference between the 33 and the 33R.

In order to keep the rig simple, the 33 was designed without running backstays. Instead, forestay tension is maintained by carrying a lot of load on the swept-back upper shrouds. Some 33s that have been actively raced have added running backstays, but they are not necessary if the boat is used strictly for cruising. Our experience with fractional rigs of larger boats is that it is very difficult to maintain adequate headstay tension without runners or jumpers, even though runners are a pain for shorthanded sailing.

If you want the best performance in a Tartan 33, there’s no question that you should look for a 33R. It may be a long look, as relatively few of the higher-performance boats were built. The 33R’s draft of over 6’ 3” could be a disadvantage in areas of shoal water.

The Tartan 33’s deck features are consistent with the boat’s aims to be a multipurpose boat that will appeal to Wednesday night racers and family cruisers alike—and, with some upgrades, be capable of serious offshore adventures.

• Visibility from the helm is excellent and cut outs in the dodger breakwater offer a convenient slot for halyards and reefing lines to be led aft, making it easier to change the sail plan without going forward.

• Cast bronze corner protectors and a rugged 10-inch stern cleat are typical of the hardware throughout.

• Handholds extend forward of the mast. The non-skid is surprisingly grippy even on older boats.

• Anchor rollers and windlasses were not standard, but many owners have added them. The condition of the deck surrounding any aftermarket additions should be closely inspected.

• The Lewmar 40 winches were standard. Many owners have upgraded to self-tailing winches.

One advantage of the fractionally-rigged boat’s large mainsail—it’s just over 300 square feet, about what you’d find on most masthead-rigged 37-footers—is that the boat balances and sails reasonably well under mainsail alone. This is a useful feature for shorthanded cruising, when you may find yourself circling a harbor under sail looking for a place to anchor. With the Tartan 33, you can drop the jib and clear the foredeck for anchoring while still maintaining good sailing ability under mainsail.

Shrouds are set well inboard, and you’ll almost always find inboard genoa tracks just outboard of the cabin trunk, even though it was an option.

Wheel steering was standard on the boat, and the 32-inch wheel provides plenty of power as well as good feedback. The rudder is partially protected by a vestigial skeg, and is a deep, high-aspect-ratio appendage— practically parallel-sided in profile— rather than the more efficient elliptical shape seen in more modern racing boats and performance cruisers.

Most of the new boat owners who completed our first survey praised the Tartan 33 for its practical features.

A Lively Ride

The boat is tender, lively, solid, and fun to sail. We got oversize self-tailing winches, and the longer we own the boat, the more convinced we are of this choice. The fractional rig and good cockpit layout allow my wife and me to handle the boat in safety and comfort in high winds and heavy seas. The Scheel keel offers shallow draft with good stability, but performance is a little poor close hauled in slop and light air.

J.D. Cowan Columbus, OH 1980 model

Downwind scooter

With a fractional rig and Scheel keel, she cannot point as well as comparable masthead boats, but the large main gives an off-wind advantage. Since Tartan came out with the 33R with masthead rig and fin keel, I assume that the upwind performance of my boat did not appeal to some racers.

The lower lifelines interfered with the winch handles on the original Lewmar 40s. I eventually put on Lewmar 44 self-tailers, which are taller and allow the handles to swing between the lifelines.

Construction is excellent for a production boat The interior is not as plush as some cruising boats, but it is very utilitarian. For a cruising boat with good racing potential, my boat is fine. It’s my aim to make the boat I have more competitive, not to look for greener pastures with another boat.

D.N. Pevos W. Bloomfield, MI 1980 model

Key Additions

I added a propane stove, larger winches, electric refrigeration, an electric anchor windlass, and larger batteries. I also led the halyards back to the cockpit. I bought the boat for ease of singlehanding (I’m a 5’ tall, lightweight female). I live aboard for much of the summer. The interior is a palace for one, fine for two, a bit tight for three, but in a pinch, okay for four.

R.E. Cathou Lexington, MA 1980 model

The boat is strong and extremely seaworthy. Poor upwind performance is my greatest frustration. The huge main means that I must reef early. The boat is perfectly balanced with a working jib and a full main, but this isn’t exactly optimum for racing. Warranty claims included minor flaws in the gelcoat, which Tartan repaired shortly after delivery. A great designer (S&S) and a good builder equal strength and quality.

B. Weiss Stamford, CT 1981 model

Cockpit layout is efficient for sailing, but is somewhat better for cruising than for racing. A mainsheet traveler spans the cockpit well, just forward of the wheel, and genoa sheet winches are outboard of the main coamings, just forward of the traveler. For racing, it would be better to have the genoa winches further forward, so that trimmers would be well clear of the helmsman, and their weight would be further forward. For single-handed or shorthanded cruising, however, the location is almost ideal.

Unfortunately, self-tailing winches were not standard equipment. The stock Lewmar 40s are about the right size for the fractional foretriangle, but would be a little small on a masthead rig with a 150% genoa. Sparkman & Stephens is one firm that can always be counted on to design in a molded dodger breakwater, and Tartan has faithfully put them on their cruiser/racers over the years. Other builders should take note of the simple, functional breakwater on the Tartan 33, which has openings molded in to allow halyards to be led aft if you want to set the boat up for singlehanding.

Construction

Tartan has always had the reputation of being one of the country’s higher-quality production builders, and they deserve it. In general, owners report very few construction shortcomings, and very few warranty claims.

Four owners in our survey had gelcoat blistering problems. That does not constitute an unusually large percentage, but interestingly, the boats reported as having blisters were two pairs that were sequential in the production series. That may be a coincidence, but it’s an unusual one.

Balsa coring is used in both the hull and deck of the Tartan 33. If you replace or move any deck or hull fittings, be sure to seal any exposed balsa with epoxy resin before installing new hardware.

The hull-to-deck joint is made with a standard inward-turning hull flange, overlapped by the deck molding, which is bolted to the hull through an anodized aluminum toerail. The joint is bedded with both butyl and polysulfide. Builders like to use butyl as a bedding compound, since it’s cleaner to use than most gunned compounds such as polysulfide or polyurethane. Butyl has no adhesive properties, however, and in our experience it can be squeezed out of a joint over time if you continue to tighten down bolts to cure a leak. Since only one owner in our survey reported any deck leaks, Tartan’s combination seems to work well.

Several owners complain about the lack of a top-loading anchor well. Wells can be a nuisance when racing, since they frequently hold a fair amount of water. For coast-hopping, however, an top-loading well in the lets you easily clear the foredeck of gear.

There is an absolute minimum of exterior wood on the Tartan 33: handrails atop the cabin, trim around the companionway. The boat is much more austere than you think of when Tartan comes to mind, but the racing Tartans have always been pretty basic.

Two-tone decks were an option, although the standard monotone deck was available either in white or a light buff. With the two-tone deck package, non-skid areas on the deck, coaming tops, cockpit seats and deckhouse were a nice buff color, contrasting with the stark white of the rest of the deck molding. If you buy a monotone boat, the areas could be painted a contrasting color. A white Tartan 33 with white monotone decks is a plain vanilla boat, indeed.

You’ll find a three-cylinder, 24-hp Universal diesel in every Tartan 33. Owners report that the engine has been smooth-running and reliable, and that it’s adequate power for the boat. An aluminum fuel tank holds 26 gallons, giving a range of about 200 miles under power.

All in all, there’s little to quibble with in the design and construction of the Tartan 33: it’s simple, straightforward, and well executed.

The interior layout of the Tartan 33 has both fans and detractors. The head configuration, for example, is something you either love or hate. To give more room, particularly for showering, the head compartment runs the full width of the boat. A bi-fold door shuts off the head from the forward cabin, and another bi-fold door closes the head to the main cabin. Two opening ports provide ventilation in fair weather.

The difficulty with this arrangement is that you cannot get either into or out of the forward cabin if someone is using the head. This wouldn’t be a problem for cruising with a couple, but it could be a nuisance with a lot of people aboard. Closing the door to the forward cabin also cuts off ventilation forward, unless the weather is good enough to have the foredeck hatch open.

The problem is made even worse when the insert is used in the V-berth to form a double. This completely eliminates any standing room in the cabin, so that you climb into the berth directly from the head compartment.

It works, but there’s a fair amount of psychological resistance to the arrangement, since it is one usually seen on smaller boats.

Ironically, the full-width head is a really good one, with plenty of elbow room for showering and dressing. Even without the berth insert in place, standing room in the forward cabin is marginal, and headroom is very limited.

While the forward berths are quite long, they are extremely narrow at the foot, so that two tall people will be tangling feet if they use the berths as two singles. As a double, sleeping parallel to the centerline, this is less of a problem.

My 1980 Tartan 33 Cynosure still turns heads. But like any piece of machinery, the Tartan 33 needs to be maintained. For someone looking at a used Tartan 33, or other Tartan from that era, here are some areas of concern.

• Chain plate area – Tartan chain plates are a flat slab of stainless steel that passes through the deck and mounts to the mid-ship bulkhead. The through-deck area includes an escutcheon plate. Part of normal maintenance is renewing the chalking/waterproofing in this area. Throughdeck leaks usually first show as discoloration on the chain plate. Leaks can lead to bulkhead damages as well.
• Genoa tracks – As these boats age, the waterproofing on the Genoa tracks needs renewing. The good news is that the port side is super easy. Remove a piece of molding over the pilot berth, and with some help from someone topside you can loosen the fasteners. The starboard side is not so easy. To access the nuts under the Genoa track requires removing the top of the cabinets and one of the partitions.
• Portlights – At this point in their life cycle the Beckson ports are likely to leak, which stains or harms the interior teak. It is possible to replace the lenses and renew (clean) the rubber gaskets, but purchasing new Beckson ports is often the best option.
• Engine – The Universal 5424 /Kubota engine is a classic old-school diesel. Be sure to show the engine you care- change the oil, give her clean fuel and keep her cool, and she will run fine. At this point in the engine’s life consider replacing the glow plugs and replacing or rebuilding the injectors.
• Starboard drinking water tank- These tanks are famous for leaking. I finally decided to place a collapsible tank inside my existing tank.

Room for improvement

• Sails – The best way to both enhance your ride and be the envy of sailors with newer production boats is to put a good set of sails on her.
• Jib shaping – the T-33 is a roller furling fractional rig with the ability to point fairly well. The compromise to this design is that keeping the correct jib sheet angle (vertical and inboard/outboard) is a challenge. The reward for good sail quality and good sheet angle is a peppy old boat (think 60% TWS).  So how do you get your jib angle right?

1) Purchase Garhauer adjustable cars. This relatively inexpensive upgrade allows you to easily open and close the leech regardless of reef.

2) Purchase 2-3 snatch blocks. When the AWA is 80 degrees or higher, the jib develops a hook. This is where the slotted toe rail comes in handy (aside from not needing varnish). Take the jib sheet through a snatch block mounted at the boarding gate and then through the genoa car (pulled fully aft), which creates an effective jib shape.

• Jib size – When I purchased my boat she had a 135 and a 150 that was a thin light-air sail. I found the 150 to be simply too much sail in winds above 10 knots. When it came time to replace my jib, I purchased a 135%, 8.1-oz., tri-radial jib. Soon after, she had a matching 8.1-oz. tri-radial main (see cover photo).
• Main sail trim – The relatively large main sail requires attention. The T-33 likes to sail more upright so be ready to ease the main (under-trim) in the gusts.
• Ice box – Most of these boats have been retrofitted with refrigeration. Consider adding 1” of pink foam to make the ice box more efficient.
• Cabin overhead – when replacing the wood and fabric in my overhead I placed ½-inch insulation and added recessed lighting. Replacing the wood and fabric eliminated the old-boat-smell. Adding recessed lighting with switches by the companionway made the cabin much brighter.
• Countertops – The paucity of veneer, means dings to the wood can be oiled to darken, which then become part of the boat’s patina. The exception is its Formica countertops, which will yellow with age. With some basic wood working skills, the Formica can be easily replaced.

Practical Sailor boat reviewer and products and electronics tester Capt. William Herrmann is a delivery skipper based in St. Petersburg, Florida. His website is www.uscgcaptain.com .

The main cabin layout is also unusual. To starboard, there is a fairly standard settee that extends to form a reasonably-sized double, with a shelf outboard. A dining table folds up against the starboard forward bulkhead.

On the port side, the arrangement is less standard. Instead of a normal settee berth, there is a short settee—less than 5-feet long—with the icebox occupying a high counter at what would normally be the head of the berth. This short settee could function as a berth for a child, but obviously not for an adult. Outboard of the settee, there is a narrow pilot berth, which is comfortable and secure, and fortunately isn’t jammed as high under the side decks as they frequently are.

Main cabin ventilation is provided by six opening ports, two cowl vents in dorade boxes, and an aluminum-framed centerline hatch, which was an option, but a common one.

The galley—aft on the starboard side—is not the most efficient in the world, since you have to turn around and step across the main cabin to reach the icebox. In addition, the icebox top is the only usable food preparation counter space, which puts the cook in the middle of the main cabin traffic flow.

A two-burner alcohol stove was standard equipment, but a large percentage of boats have the optional three-burner gimbaled alcohol stove with oven. A deep single sink is just aft of the stove, but it’s a bit of a reach to use, since the flat of the cabin sole doesn’t extend very far outboard in this part of the hull.

Aft of the icebox is a sit-down chart table. The working surface is a reasonable size, and the outboard locker could be sacrificed for the installation of electronics.

While there is a contoured, upholstered seat for the nav station, it does not exactly face the chart table, and it is offset from the center of the table. The navigator has to make a bit of a stretch to reach the outboard part of the table, or to use any electronics that might be mounted outboard.

Tartan 33 in Context

Aft of the nav station is a big double quarterberth. A drop-in insert which covers the nav station seat forms the head of the inboard portion of the quarterberth, although the berth can be used as a single without disturbing the navigator. This is basically the same quarterberth layout used in the Tartan 37. Awkward on the 37, it’s a bit more acceptable on a smaller boat where space is at even more of a premium.

Most owners who have lived with the interior for some time find it quite workable. A top Tartan dealer told us, however, that he has definitely seen buyer resistance to it. Certainly the redesigned interior of the Tartan 34 is substantially better.

Conclusions

If you’re looking for a fairly fast, high-quality, late model cruiser/racer, with a great owner support group, the Tartan 33 is a good choice. In general, prices will be very comparable to those of other quality boats of the same size and vintage, such as the C&C 34 and Sabre 34. Performance of these three boats is also similar.

TARTAN, www.tartanyachts.com TARTAN OWNERS NORTHEAST, https://tone.clubexpress.com/

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Thank you for the well researched and informative review with comparisons for Tartan 33. Especially good consideration of sails and adjustments.

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What You Need to Know About Rig Tune & Performance

March 18, 2022 Updated August 8, 2024

For many sailors, the relationship between rig tune and performance often seems like a black hole. Quantum’s Dave Flynn takes us on a tour of the core elements of the rig and what you need to know to demystify tuning for optimum performance.

Mastering rig tuning for optimal sail trim and performance might seem daunting, but fortunately it’s not as complicated as tuning a Stradivarius violin! To keep it in perspective, remember you are just pulling on a hunk of aluminum or carbon with cables. To master the rig, there are four elements you need to understand: rake, athwartship tuning, mast bend, and headstay sag. Each of the four elements of rig tune either adds power or takes it away. If you understand the basic mechanics of each element, you can tune your rig to improve trim and overall setup.

Mast rake is a measure of how far the mast is angled aft from a straight vertical. A typical mast rake ranges from one to one-and-a-half degrees on a cruising masthead rig to as much as four degrees on a fractional racing rig. A mast should never be raked forward unless there is something unusual in the boat design (you’ll know if this is the case!). When you add rake to the mast, you tilt the whole sail plan aft. This, in turn, shifts the power aft, pushing more load on the stern and forcing the bow up into the wind, creating weather helm.

Rake is determined by headstay length: The longer the headstay, the greater the rake. To adjust your rake, adjust the length of the headstay. How much rake a boat needs to generate the right amount of weather helm is a function of hydrodynamics (hull form, keel shape, and placement). In most one-design racing classes, where lots of time is invested in figuring out what works best, tuning guides specify headstay lengths for conditions. In more developed classes, this will change as a function of wind speed. You’ll want more rake in light air when it is hard to generate helm and less as the breeze builds. For boat setup and trim, adding rake is a tool for generating power in light air, and reducing rake is part of the de-powering process in heavy air.

For cruisers and many non-one-design rigs, you likely don’t have a tuning guide to work from, so to optimize upwind performance you need some helm loading in light-to-moderate conditions. Three to five degrees of rudder angle in 8kts-10kts of wind is a commonly cited target. To test if this angle works for you, sail upwind in 8kts-10kts and let the helm go; the boat should turn gently into the wind. If it goes straight or bears off, you need more rake and vice versa if it spins out of control. Don’t try this test when it is windy; your boat will round up and exhibit too much helm due to heel not rake, and you’ll get a false read. 

ATHWARTSHIP TUNING

If the rig is not centered, performance and trim will be different tack to tack. To remedy this, center the top of the rig. Using the diagonal shrouds, bring each successive panel in line with the top. The amount of tension you need is tough to predict at the dock–the mast really needs to be under load. Test tension by sailing upwind in 10kts-12kts of breeze with appropriate trim settings and then check the mast. Is it straight when you put your eye to the aft face and look up the mainsail track? If the tip is falling off, you need more upper tension. If the leeward upper shrouds are flopping around, you need more tension for a given velocity. The shrouds should be firm.

Work on the diagonals next. How much tension you need in the leeward diagonals is determined by how stiff the mast is. In over 10 kts, you definitely want the mast to be straight. For more power in light air, you can let the middle of the mast sag an inch or two to leeward to increase the depth in the mainsail. It is common in one-design classes to ease tension on the diagonals in light air to create this smooth sag.

Dinghies and small keelboats are great boats to experiment with how tuning inputs affect your sail plan. The smaller diameter wire shrouds and relatively small masts dramatically show the impact of tuning adjustments. This isn’t as visible on larger racing or cruising boats with rod rigging. Cruisers will want to set a good base athwartship tune as well. If the rig is uneven side-to-side, you will experience frustrating differences in point and power on each tack. Skip the headache and set a good base tune early in the season. Whatever the condition you are sailing in, once you have established good upwind trim, have a look up the mast to make sure it is in column or sagging slightly to leeward in the middle in light air.

If you have an older cruising boat with a mast stiffness that resembles that of a telephone pole, you can skip this section! But for cruisers with a relatively modern rig, swept-back spreaders, traditional sails with flaking system, or even in-boom or in-mast furling, pay attention here.

While rake is the amount the mast is angled aft, mast bend is the amount you bend the mast aft after you have set your rake. A rig that bends gives you a powerful tool for changing the shape of the mainsail: More mast bend flattens the sail and de-powers it; a straighter mast creates shape and power. Rig tune affects how much a mast bends, particularly on modern fractional rig boats with swept back spreaders. But no matter what type of rig you have, you want to start with a little mast bend, or pre-bend, which refers to the amount of bend that has no backstay tension. Lengthening the headstay increases the bending moment and adds pre-bend. This is why it’s important to set the rake first. Other factors affecting the pre-bend are the position of the mast step and the blocking of the mast in the partner, which is the hole where the mast goes through the deck. To add pre-bend, either move the mast step aft or move the mast forward in the partners. A target of 1”-3” of pre-bend is typical on a medium-sized boat. Pre-bend ensures the mast will move forward in the middle and flatten the mainsail when you pull on the backstay.

On a rig with in-line spreaders (typically masthead rigs), the side shrouds have little impact on the mast bend created by pulling on the backstay. On some rigs, however, there are check stays to keep the mast from bending too far. Sometimes there are even multiple sets.

How far is too far when bending the mast? You’ll know when your mainsail develops diagonal wrinkles from the clew up to the luff and is beginning to turn inside out. For maximum de-powering, bend just to the point where wrinkles appear. If available, use check stays to help.

On modern fractional rigs with spreaders swept well aft, the side shrouds have a big impact on mast bend. The diagonal shrouds are controlling not only athwartship tuning but also acting like check stays to inhibit mast bend, since they are swept back and pulling aft. Too tight, and the diagonal shrouds will keep the mast from bending and flattening the mainsail; too loose, and the mast can over-bend and turn the sail inside out. In many classes, overall rig tension is increased by taking turns on the shrouds, shortening the headstay, or pumping the whole rig up with a mast jack for more backstay tension without allowing the rig to over-bend as it gets windier.

HEADSTAY SAG

If some mast bend is good, why isn’t more better? The answer is headstay sag. When the headstay sags, the headsail becomes full and more powerful, which is great in light conditions. But as the breeze builds, you want to reduce the amount of sag as much as possible to de-power the boat and help with pointing. In breeze, it’s all about headstay tension–you can’t get too much. So why is mast bend a factor? When you pull back on the rig with the backstay, it will tighten the headstay, which is good. But you are also pulling down and compressing the rig, which makes it bend. You want some mast bend in order to flatten the mainsail, but not so much that you soften the whole rig and increase headstay sag. This is why we use check stays to control mast bend on a masthead rig and tighter diagonal tension on a swept aft spreader rig.

Rig tune still matters even when you aren’t routinely adding turns to your shrouds based on the wind and conditions. Many modern cruising sailboats with in-mast furling rigs have comparatively smaller tune adjustments, as the rig needs to stay in column for the mainsail to furl properly. Some boats are outfitted with a cascading backstay adjuster that allows for minor tweaks and lets you easily reset the rig when it’s time to furl the mainsail. To get the most performance from your cruising setup, don’t overlook rig tune. Racing sailboats often have their rigs removed for transport and then re-rigged, whereas many cruising boats may never have had the rig adjusted since the boat was first commissioned. If you can't remember the last time your rig was tuned, now is a great time to give your local loft a call.

Having a properly tuned rig is essential to boat setup and performance. While this can be a DIY process, if you have questions or need additional input, please contact a professional rigger or your local loft where our expert Quantum team can help sort out your rig and tune. For one-design tuning guides and resources, select your OD class on the Quantum website or get in touch with a Quantum Class Expert.

Get in touch with David Flynn with additional questions and dive deeper into rig tune for performance. E: [email protected] P: 410-268-1161 ext. 206

The Discussion

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Practical Boat Owner

• Digital edition

How to set up your rig: tension your shrouds on masthead or fractional

• David Harding
• March 15, 2021

How to set up three common types of rig: the traditional masthead with a single set of in-line spreaders, single-spreader swept fractional rigs, and fractional rigs with two sets of swept spreaders. David Harding reports

How to set up your rig : tension your shrouds on masthead or fractional

If boats were cars, many of those I see sailing along would be coughing and spluttering down the motorway at 35mph in third gear with three flat tyres and a smoky exhaust. Others would cruise past in top gear at 70, making half the noise and using a fraction of the fuel.

Would these top-gear drivers be working any harder? Would they have cars that were faster by design and more expensive? Not at all. They would simply be the ones who had pumped up their tyres, learned their way around the gearbox and had their engines serviced.

It’s worth keeping an eye on your leeward cap shrouds during early-season outings after the mast has been re-stepped. The ones on this yacht could do with a little more tension

The obvious question, then, is why so many boat owners seem to leave their quest for efficiency and economy on the dockside.

One answer is that many are unaware how inefficiently their boats are performing. Another is that there’s no MOT for sailing boats and no driving test to make sure people know how to sail them (thank goodness on both counts).

Whatever the reasons, the fact remains that an efficient rig is fundamental. If the rig’s not right, the sails have no hope of setting properly.

And that’s important whether you’re racing or cruising, because sailors of both persuasions ultimately want the same: maximum lift for minimum drag.

For racers, that means more speed and better results. They carry more sail because they have more crew to handle it and more weight on the rail to balance it.

Cruisers carry less sail but, if it works efficiently, it means less heel, less leeway, better pointing, less tacking, a lighter helm and greater comfort than if it’s working inefficiently – plus the ability to get home before night falls or the pub shuts. Who can object to that?

What matters is that the sail you’re carrying is driving you forwards, not pushing you sideways.

When I question cruising sailors about the state of their rig I often get the reply ‘Oh it doesn’t matter – I’m not racing!’.

Those I know who have done something about it, however, have been delighted by the transformation their boats have undergone and have had to agree that cruising fast and comfortably is definitely better.

Setting up your boat rigging

In this article we’re going to look at how to set up the three most common types of rig: the traditional masthead with a single set of in-line spreaders, single-spreader swept fractional rigs, and fractional rigs with two sets of swept spreaders.

For simplicity we’re assuming the use of 1×19 rigging except where mentioned otherwise.

Variations in boat rig type are almost infinite by the time you take into account deck-stepped and keel-stepped masts, masthead rigs with swept spreaders, jumper struts, fractional rigs with in-line spreaders, and so on.

Once you understand the basics, however, you’ll find that you can apply your knowledge to good effect on most types of rig.

Rig tuning is not only for the experts. Experience helps, of course, and a multiple-spreader fractional rig is harder to tune than an old tree-trunk of a masthead rig from the 1970s.

Nonetheless, with practice, a good eye and some observation you will probably find you can set it up pretty well.

You might want to call in a rigger or an experienced rig-tweaker to help or to do it for you the first time, and perhaps to check it periodically thereafter, but at least if you know what to look for you’ll notice when anything needs adjusting.

A word of warning when it comes to boatyards that have re-stepped your mast: sometimes re-stepping means just that and no more.

I have been on boats whose owners have assumed that the yard had set up the rig, whereas in fact it had just been dropped in and the bottlescrews hand-tensioned to stop it falling over.

It’s scary to think of the number of boats that must have been sailed in this condition.

What you will need to tune your rig Essential A calm day: don’t try setting up your rig in more than a few knots of wind A boat that’s floating level fore-and-aft (and preferably laterally as well) Screwdriver/lever bar Spanners (fixed or adjustable) Needle-nose pliers for split-pins Electrical insulation or self-amalgamating tape Lubricant for bottlescrews Tape measure (folding/small cassette type, or ideally folding rule) Useful Spring balance Long tape-measure Rig-tension gauge

The importance of enough tension: Why tight is right

If you think you’re being kind to your boat by leaving the rigging slack, think again. It’s true that some keelboats (such as Squibs and XODs) sail with the leeward cap shroud waving around in the wind, but that doesn’t work on yachts designed to go to sea.

Rigging that’s under-tensioned puts infinitely more load on the wire, bottlescrews, terminals and hull structure because of the snatch loads every time the boat falls off a wave. When it hits the bottom of the trough, anything that’s free to move gets thrown forwards and sideways before being brought up short by whatever happens to be in the way to stop it. That applies to the crew, to loose gear down below or to the mast. Think of the inertia to which a mast is subjected because of its height, and you can imagine the loads involved.

If the rigging is sensibly tight, on the other hand, movement and the consequent stresses are minimised.

Boats are built to withstand the static loads of a properly-tensioned rig, but asking them to cope with constant snatch loading is unfair – so don’t kill your boat with kindness.

As we discuss in the sections on the types of rig (below), masthead configurations with in-line spreaders need less cap-shroud tension than swept-spreader fractional rigs. This is because in-line caps are only supporting the mast laterally. The backstay stops it moving forwards, so each wire has a separate, clearly-defined role.

Aft-swept caps support the mast both laterally and fore-and-aft. Being swept aft typically about 25°, they need to be under a lot of tension to keep the forestay tight. Because they’re also at a much shallower angle to the mast, they bear between three and five times the load of the forestay.

With fractional rigs, then, it’s vital to keep the cap shrouds tight. If they’re too loose, the forestay will sag too much, the headsail will become too full and its leech will be too tight. Then the boat will become unbalanced, heel too far, make more leeway and lose both speed and pointing ability.

Structurally, under-tensioned rigging with a swept-spreader rig presents a problem in addition to the issue of snatch loading. Tension in the leeward cap shroud is important in keeping the mast in column, to the extent that Loos and Co (the manufacturer of the popular rig-tension gauges) states that a mast loses 50% of its lateral stiffness when the leeward cap goes slack. When this happens, the mast is effectively hinging around the forestay and the windward cap shroud and is far more prone to pumping as the boat bounces around.

The main reason why under-tensioned rigs on cruising boats stay standing as they do is that manufacturers build in enormous margins.

Even so, proper tension means better performance and greater safety. The ‘it doesn’t matter – I’m only cruising’ excuse for slack rigging just doesn’t cut it!

How to measure rig tension

This Loos gauge (left image) is indicating that the 6mm wire in the cap shroud is at 22% of its breaking strain (730kg). To measure the stretch, extend a tape measure (right) (or ideally a folding rule) to 2,000mm and mark this distance up the wire…

…but start with the end of the tape a couple of millimetres above the top of the swaging. As the wire is tensioned it will stretch, increasing the gap below the end of the tape.

Experienced riggers and rig-tweakers will often tension the rigging at the dockside by feel, then sight up the mast and make any adjustments under way.

Most people aren’t confident enough to do this, though – so what are the best ways to check the tension as you wind down the bottlescrews?

The simplest and quickest way is to use a rig-tension meter, such as the Loos gauge. Once you know the diameter of the wire, it will give you the load both in kg and as a percentage of its breaking strain.

The gauge for rigging of 5m and 6mm (and up to 14% of breaking strain on 7mm) typically costs around £65, while the bigger version for wire from 7mm to 10mm is closer to £200.

If you don’t have a tension gauge, you can calculate the percentage of a wire’s breaking strain by measuring its stretch, normally over a distance of 2m: when 1×19 wire has stretched by 1mm over a 2,000mm length, it’s at 5% of its breaking load whatever its diameter.

Most cruising boats have rigging made from 1×19 wire. On sportier boats, it might be Dyform or rod, in which case 5% of breaking load is indicated by stretch of 0.95 and 0.7mm respectively. For the purpose of our illustrations, we’ll assume 1×19.

For accurate measurement the rigging needs to be completely slack. Hold the end of the tape a couple of millimetres above the top of the swaging, then measure 2,000mm up the wire, secure the other end of the tape here and start tensioning. When the gap between the top of the swaging and the end of the tape has increased by 1mm, you have reached 5% of the wire’s breaking strain, so 3mm equates to 15% and 5mm to 25%.

Bear in mind that 1×19 wire will be affected by bedding-in stretch during its first few outings, so new rigging will need to be re-tensioned a time or two during the first season.

Sensible precautions 1. Don’t force dry bottlescrews: keep them well lubricated. 2. Don’t use massively long tools for extra leverage on the bottlescrews. If you can feel the load, you’re less likely to strain or break anything. 3. Most boats will flex to some extent when the rig is properly tensioned. If you’re concerned about excessive bend, take it easy, use a straight edge across the deck to check for movement, and seek advice. 4. The percentages of breaking load quoted assume that the rigging is of the correct diameter as specified by the designer, builder or rigger.

How to set up a masthead rig with single in-line spreaders

This is the simplest type of rig to set up. Whether it’s keel-stepped or deck-stepped and supported by forward lowers or a babystay, it’s the same basic procedure.

Step 1: Get the mast upright athwartships

Measure the distance to fixed points on both sides that are symmetrical about the centreline, such as the base of the chainplates.

If you don’t have a long tape measure, use the halyard itself (this is where a spring balance can help you gauge the same tension on each side).

Centre the masthead by adjusting the port and starboard cap shrouds until the measurements are the same, then hand-tighten the bottlescrews by taking the same number of turns on each side.

Re-check and adjust as necessary.

A long tape measure is useful for getting the mast upright.

Step 2: Setting the rake

Rake is determined principally by the length of the forestay. Some roller-reefing systems allow no adjustment but you can increase length by adding toggles.

Adjust the forestay and backstay, checking the rake with a weight suspended from the end of the main halyard. One degree of rake is about 6in (15cm) in 30ft (9m).

Hand-tight on the backstay’s bottlescrew (or gentle use of the tensioner) is fine at this stage.

Rake is measured from the aft face of the mast, at or below boom-level. If the boat’s rocking around, suspend the weight in a bucket of water to dampen the movement.

Step 3: Tighten the cap shrouds and backstay

Take no more than two or three full turns on one side before doing the same on the other.

Count carefully.

You’re aiming to tension the caps to 15% of their breaking strain, measured as explained on page 41.

That might be much tighter than you’ve ever had them before!

Tension the backstay to 15% of its breaking load.

Note: Using ordinary hand-tools on the bottlescrews, it’s hard to over-tension the rigging

Step 4: Tighten the lowers / babystay

A mast should bend forward in the middle, though only to a small extent on masthead rigs of heavy section.

This ‘pre-bend’ is principally to counter two factors in heavy weather: increased forestay loads pulling the top of the mast forward, and the head of a reefed mainsail pulling the middle aft.

Together, they can result in the middle of the mast bowing aft, which makes it unstable and is bad for sail trim. For maximum strength in extremis it should be straight.

Use the forward lowers or babystay to pull the middle of the mast forward. The bend thus induced should be no more than half the mast’s fore-and-aft measurement.

Then take up the slack in the aft lowers.

They don’t need to be tight; they’re just countering the forward pull.

Sight up the luff groove to make sure the mast is straight laterally. Correct any deflections with the lowers.

If you set up the caps properly to start with, you should not adjust them again at this stage.

Step 5: Check the rig under sail

First, make sure the leeward cap shroud isn’t waving around in the breeze. You should be able to deflect it with a finger by a few inches; no more.

If it’s too loose, take a turn or two on the leeward bottlescrew, then tack and do the same on the other side.

Now sight up the back of the mast.

It should be straight athwartships and bending slightly forward in the middle.

Athwartships deflection might make it look as though the top is falling away to one side (see diagram), but it won’t be if it was centred properly in Step 1. Straighten the middle by adjusting the lowers

If it’s straight or bending aft in the middle, try increasing the backstay tension (but not beyond 30% of its breaking strain) and, if necessary, tensioning the forward lowers/babystay and slackening the aft lowers.

Remove any lateral bends by adjusting the lowers.

Once you’re happy, lock off the bottlescrews to make sure they can’t come undone.

Inverted bend (mast bowing aft in the middle) is bad for sail trim and potentially dangerous for the rig.

Setting up a fractional rig with single, aft-swept spreaders

Widely used on smaller cruisers and cruiser/racers, this configuration needs a very different approach from an in-line masthead rig

This stage is the same as with a masthead rig (scroll up).

Step 2: Set the rake

This time, however, rake is set by the forestay and cap shrouds rather than the forestay and backstay.

With a swept-spreader fractional rig it’s the cap shrouds, not the backstay, that stop the mast moving forward. They provide both fore-and-aft and lateral support, so they’re doing two jobs.

The backstay’s principal role is to control the topmast and mast-bend. Because it’s above the point where the forestay joins the mast, it’s not pulling directly against the forestay and therefore has less effect on forestay tension. How much it pulls against the forestay depends on factors including the height of the topmast, the stiffness of the mast section and the tension of the lower shrouds (which determine the bend).

Step 3: Tighten the cap shrouds

Forestay tension is achieved primarily through the caps, and because they’re swept back at such a shallow angle they need to be seriously tight.

Their maximum tension is 25% of breaking load, but it’s best not to tension them all the way in one go because that would result in a very bent mast: tensioning the caps pushes the spreaders, and therefore the middle of the mast, forward.

Start by taking them to about 15% of breaking load, then tighten the lowers to pull the middle of the mast back so it’s straight.

This is how the swept-spreader fractional rig works: the caps and lowers are working against each other, caps pushing and lowers pulling, to stabilise the middle of the mast. Sight up the mast when it’s straight to check for lateral deflection, correcting it with the lowers.

With a flexible mast you might need to repeat the process, taking the caps to 20% before tensioning the lowers again.

Otherwise go straight to the next stage, which is to pull on the backstay.

Since the backstays on fractional rigs often have cascade purchases at the bottom you can’t measure the tension by stretch as you can with wire, so you have to do this by feel: pull it tight, but don’t go mad.

Tensioning the backstay bends the mast and therefore shortens the distance from the hounds (where the caps join) to the deck. This loosens the caps, so it’s easier to tension them back to the 20% mark.

When you let the backstay off, the caps will tension again and should be at about 25% of breaking load – but no more.

Step 4: Set the pre-bend

Take a few turns on the lowers to achieve the right amount of pre-bend. It should be more than with an in-line masthead rig, but a mast should never bend to more than 2% of the height of the foretriangle even with the backstay tensioned (that’s about 180mm in 9m, or 7in in 30ft).

Check to see how far the mast bends with a tight backstay. The optimum bend will often be determined by the cut of the mainsail, or recommended by the sailmaker or class association.

Pre-bend is vital because most fractional rigs don’t have forward lowers or a babystay, so if the mast were to bend aft in the middle (inverted bend) it could collapse.

In fresh conditions, especially under spinnaker , it’s a wise precaution never to release the backstay completely. That stops the upper section of the mast being pulled too far forward.

The caps should be tighter than with a masthead rig, with no significant slack on the leeward side when the boat’s hard on the wind and heeling 15-20°.

If the static tension is up to 25% but the leeward cap is always slack, the boat might be bending. That’s a topic beyond the scope of this article!

Sight up the mast to check the bend both fore-and-aft and athwartships, adjusting the lowers as necessary.

Setting up a fractional rig with two sets of aft-swept spreaders

As mast sections have become slimmer, this is now a popular configuration on boats between 30ft (9m) and 40ft (12m) but it’s more complex to tune.

This stage is the same as with the other types of rig.

Follow the procedure as described for single-spreader fractional rigs. Generally speaking, more rake improves upwind performance but too much will induce excessive weather helm and hamper performance downwind. Getting it right might involve some trial and error.

Steps 3 & 4: Tighten the caps and set the bend

The same fundamentals apply as for a single-spreader rig, but this time after each tensioning of the cap shrouds, which induces bend, you have to straighten the mast by tensioning both the lowers (also known as D1s) and the intermediates (D2s).

The D1s control the bend between the deck and the upper spreaders and the D2s between the lower spreaders and the hounds, so their areas of influence overlap.

On boats where the D2s terminate at the lower spreaders you have to send someone aloft to adjust them. These are referred to as discontinuous intermediates.

If they run over the spreader tips and down to the chainplates (continuous intermediates) you can do everything from on deck.

You need to achieve an even bend fore-and-aft. If the mast is bending too much at the bottom and is too straight at the top, tighten the D1s and slacken the D2s.

S-bends can creep in athwartships and make it look as though the top of the mast is off-centre. If you set up the cap shrouds properly it shouldn’t be, so don’t fiddle with them any further now: take out the bends with the D1s and D2s.

You’re aiming for a cap-shroud tension of 20-25% of breaking strain, as with a single-spreader fractional rig, and again the sweep-back of the spreader means that the caps will be slackened as you pull on the backstay.

As with other types of rig, get the boat heeling around 20° on the wind, tension the backstay and feel the leeward cap to make sure there’s only minimal slack.

Removing any kinks and S-bends can take more tweaking of lowers and intermediates, the latter being more fiddly to adjust if they’re discontinuous.

If the masthead looks as though it’s falling off one way, it’s probably because the D2 on the opposite side is too tight.

Left: Windward lower too loose. Right: Windward intermediate too tight.

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The Standing Rigging On A Sailboat Explained

The standing rigging on a sailboat is a system of stainless steel wires that holds the mast upright and supports the spars.

In this guide, I’ll explain the basics of a sailboat’s hardware and rigging, how it works, and why it is a fundamental and vital part of the vessel. We’ll look at the different parts of the rig, where they are located, and their function.

We will also peek at a couple of different types of rigs and their variations to determine their differences. In the end, I will explain some additional terms and answer some practical questions I often get asked.

But first off, it is essential to understand what standing rigging is and its purpose on a sailboat.

The purpose of the standing rigging

Like I said in the beginning, the standing rigging on a sailboat is a system of stainless steel wires that holds the mast upright and supports the spars. When sailing, the rig helps transfer wind forces from the sails to the boat’s structure. This is critical for maintaining the stability and performance of the vessel.

The rig can also consist of other materials, such as synthetic lines or steel rods, yet its purpose is the same. But more on that later.

Since the rig supports the mast, you’ll need to ensure that it is always in appropriate condition before taking your boat out to sea. Let me give you an example from a recent experience.

Dismasting horrors

I had a company inspect the entire rig on my sailboat while preparing for an Atlantic crossing. The rigger didn’t find any issues, but I decided to replace the rig anyway because of its unknown age. I wanted to do the job myself so I could learn how it is done correctly.

Not long after, we left Gibraltar and sailed through rough weather for eight days before arriving in Las Palmas. We were safe and sound and didn’t experience any issues. Unfortunately, several other boats arriving before us had suffered rig failures. They lost their masts and sails—a sorrowful sight but also a reminder of how vital the rigging is on a sailboat.

The most common types of rigging on a sailboat

The most commonly used rig type on modern sailing boats is the fore-and-aft Bermuda Sloop rig with one mast and just one headsail. Closely follows the Cutter rig and the Ketch rig. They all have a relatively simple rigging layout. Still, there are several variations and differences in how they are set up.

A sloop has a single mast, and the Ketch has one main mast and an additional shorter mizzen mast further aft. A Cutter rig is similar to the Bermuda Sloop with an additional cutter forestay, allowing it to fly two overlapping headsails.

You can learn more about the differences and the different types of sails they use in this guide. For now, we’ll focus on the Bermuda rig.

The difference between standing rigging and running rigging

Sometimes things can get confusing as some of our nautical terms are used for multiple items depending on the context. Let me clarify just briefly:

The  rig  or  rigging  on a sailboat is a common term for two parts:

• The  standing rigging  consists of wires supporting the mast on a sailboat and reinforcing the spars from the force of the sails when sailing.
• The  running rigging  consists of the halyards, sheets, and lines we use to hoist, lower, operate, and control the sails on a sailboat.

Check out my guide on running rigging here !

The difference between a fractional and a masthead rig

A Bermuda rig is split into two groups. The  Masthead  rig and the  Fractional  rig.

The  Masthead  rig has a forestay running from the bow to the top of the mast, and the spreaders point 90 degrees to the sides. A boat with a masthead rig typically carries a bigger overlapping headsail ( Genoa)  and a smaller mainsail. Very typical on the Sloop, Ketch, and Cutter rigs.

A  Fractional  rig has forestays running from the bow to 1/4 – 1/8 from the top of the mast, and the spreaders are swept backward. A boat with a fractional rig also has the mast farther forward than a masthead rig, a bigger mainsail, and a smaller headsail, usually a Jib. Very typical on more performance-oriented sailboats.

There are exceptions in regards to the type of headsail, though. Many performance cruisers use a Genoa instead of a Jib , making the difference smaller.

Some people also fit an inner forestay, or a babystay, to allow flying a smaller staysail.

Explaining the parts and hardware of the standing rigging

The rigging on a sailing vessel relies on stays and shrouds in addition to many hardware parts to secure the mast properly. And we also have nautical terms for each of them. Since a system relies on every aspect of it to be in equally good condition, we want to familiarize ourselves with each part and understand its function.

Forestay and Backstay

The  forestay  is a wire that runs from the bow to the top of the mast. Some boats, like the Cutter rig, can have several additional inner forestays in different configurations.

The  backstay  is the wire that runs from the back of the boat to the top of the mast. Backstays have a tensioner, often hydraulic, to increase the tension when sailing upwind. Some rigs, like the Cutter, have running backstays and sometimes checkstays or runners, to support the rig.

The primary purpose of the forestay and backstay is to prevent the mast from moving fore and aft. The tensioner on the backstay also allows us to trim and tune the rig to get a better shape of the sails.

The shrouds are the wires or lines used on modern sailboats and yachts to support the mast from sideways motion.

There are usually four shrouds on each side of the vessel. They are connected to the side of the mast and run down to turnbuckles attached through toggles to the chainplates bolted on the deck.

• Cap shrouds run from the top of the mast to the deck, passing through the tips of the upper spreaders.
• Intermediate shrouds  run from the lower part of the mast to the deck, passing through the lower set of spreaders.
• Lower shrouds  are connected to the mast under the first spreader and run down to the deck – one fore and one aft on each side of the boat.

This configuration is called continuous rigging. We won’t go into the discontinuous rigging used on bigger boats in this guide, but if you are interested, you can read more about it here .

Shroud materials

Shrouds are usually made of 1 x 19 stainless steel wire. These wires are strong and relatively easy to install but are prone to stretch and corrosion to a certain degree. Another option is using stainless steel rods.

Rod rigging

Rod rigging has a stretch coefficient lower than wire but is more expensive and can be intricate to install. Alternatively, synthetic rigging is becoming more popular as it weighs less than wire and rods.

Synthetic rigging

Fibers like Dyneema and other aramids are lightweight and provide ultra-high tensile strength. However, they are expensive and much more vulnerable to chafing and UV damage than other options. In my opinion, they are best suited for racing and regatta-oriented sailboats.

Wire rigging

I recommend sticking to the classic 316-graded stainless steel wire rigging for cruising sailboats. It is also the most reasonable of the options. If you find yourself in trouble far from home, you are more likely to find replacement wire than another complex rigging type.

Relevant terms on sailboat rigging and hardware

The spreaders are the fins or wings that space the shrouds away from the mast. Most sailboats have at least one set, but some also have two or three. Once a vessel has more than three pairs of spreaders, we are probably talking about a big sailing yacht.

A turnbuckle is the fitting that connects the shrouds to the toggle and chainplate on the deck. These are adjustable, allowing you to tension the rig.

A chainplate is a metal plate bolted to a strong point on the deck or side of the hull. It is usually reinforced with a backing plate underneath to withstand the tension from the shrouds.

The term mast head should be distinct from the term masthead rigging. Out of context, the mast head is the top of the mast.

A toggle is a hardware fitting to connect the turnbuckles on the shrouds and the chainplate.

How tight should the standing rigging be?

It is essential to periodically check the tension of the standing rigging and make adjustments to ensure it is appropriately set. If the rig is too loose, it allows the mast to sway excessively, making the boat perform poorly.

You also risk applying a snatch load during a tack or a gybe which can damage the rig. On the other hand, if the standing rigging is too tight, it can strain the rig and the hull and lead to structural failure.

The standing rigging should be tightened enough to prevent the mast from bending sideways under any point of sail. If you can move the mast by pulling the cap shrouds by hand, the rigging is too loose and should be tensioned. Once the cap shrouds are tightened, follow up with the intermediates and finish with the lower shrouds. It is critical to tension the rig evenly on both sides.

The next you want to do is to take the boat out for a trip. Ensure that the mast isn’t bending over to the leeward side when you are sailing. A little movement in the leeward shrouds is normal, but they shouldn’t swing around. If the mast bends to the leeward side under load, the windward shrouds need to be tightened. Check the shrouds while sailing on both starboard and port tack.

Once the mast is in a column at any point of sail, your rigging should be tight and ready for action.

If you feel uncomfortable adjusting your rig, get a professional rigger to inspect and reset it.

How often should the standing rigging be replaced on a sailboat?

I asked the rigger who produced my new rig for Ellidah about how long I could expect my new rig to last, and he replied with the following:

The standing rigging should be replaced after 10 – 15 years, depending on how hard and often the boat has sailed. If it is well maintained and the vessel has sailed conservatively, it will probably last more than 20 years. However, corrosion or cracked strands indicate that the rig or parts are due for replacement regardless of age.

If you plan on doing extended offshore sailing and don’t know the age of your rig, I recommend replacing it even if it looks fine. This can be done without removing the mast from the boat while it is still in the water.

How much does it cost to replace the standing rigging?

The cost of replacing the standing rigging will vary greatly depending on the size of your boat and the location you get the job done. For my 41 feet sloop, I did most of the installation myself and paid approximately $4700 for the entire rig replacement.

Can Dyneema be used for standing rigging?

Dyneema is a durable synthetic fiber that can be used for standing rigging. Its low weight, and high tensile strength makes it especially popular amongst racers. Many cruisers also carry Dyneema onboard as spare parts for failing rigging.

How long does dyneema standing rigging last?

Dyneema rigging can outlast wire rigging if it doesn’t chafe on anything sharp. There are reports of Dyneema rigging lasting as long as 15 years, but manufacturers like Colligo claim their PVC shrink-wrapped lines should last 8 to 10 years. You can read more here .

Final words

Congratulations! By now, you should have a much better understanding of standing rigging on a sailboat. We’ve covered its purpose and its importance for performance and safety. While many types of rigs and variations exist, the hardware and concepts are often similar. Now it’s time to put your newfound knowledge into practice and set sail!

Or, if you’re not ready just yet, I recommend heading over to my following guide to learn more about running rigging on a sailboat.

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Skipper, Electrician and ROV Pilot

Robin is the founder and owner of Sailing Ellidah and has been living on his sailboat since 2019. He is currently on a journey to sail around the world and is passionate about writing his story and helpful content to inspire others who share his interest in sailing.

Very well written. Common sense layout with just enough photos and sketches. I enjoyed reading this article.

Thank you for the kind words.

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Fractional Rig vs. Mast Head Rig

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Currently have a 26' day sailer. I am pondering a future purchase of a bigger sailboat for coastal cruising. I am looking at boats in the low to mid 30' range. Mostly I would be sailing solo so that is a factor. I see some boats in this range have fractional rigs while others have mast head rigs. Looking for some background data on what the real difference is. Thanks, Jim  

Jim, A fractional rig tends to put proportionally more sail area into the mainsail. Headsails tend to be smaller than on mast-head rigs, so they generally are easier to manage for tacking/jibing. Fractional rigs have been common on racers and racer cruisers for a long time, but there seems to be a trend in the last decade or so to move towards moderately fractional rigs even on performance cruisers. The feeling is this arrangment facilitates over-all sail handling and generally is advantageous to over-all performance. One thing to avoid is a fractional rig that requires the use of running backstays. Running backs have to be switched from side to side during tacking and jibing, so they make for a lot of extra work and would not be welcome on a boat that is short- or single-handed. You tend to see runners on performance oriented boats that are 3/4 or 4/5 fractional and which race with crew. Most performance cruisers tend to be closer to 7/8 or 9/10 fractional, with aft swept spreaders, so the well-sprung rig geometry does not require runners. Another disadvantage to some fractional rigs is that it can be tricky to fly a cruising spinnaker (such as an asymetrical) at deep angles if the spinnaker is also fractional. Boats so-rigged will tend to have to steer much higher reaching angles to avoid blanketting the spinnaker with the taller mainsail. Conventional, poled-out spinnakers often work best with these designs. Fortunately, many of the more modern fractional cruising designs have a masthead spinnaker arrangement, which permits the use of the pole-less cruising spinnakers at deeper angles without too much penalty. Also, if bridge clearances are an issue, fractional rigs tend to be taller than masthead rigs would be for the same size/type boat. Our cruising boat is a mast-head design that works well for us. But the sketches we have of our "ideal" boat has a fractional rig. I wouldn't recommend making the mast-head vs. fractional issue the ultimate litmus test for your next boat, but I definitely wouldn't disqualify fractional boats from your potential candidates unless some of the issues I mentioned above apply to you.  

John, Good info. Thanks. My current boat is fractional with no backstay. I was not real sure what a "running backstay" was so I will definitely try and stay away from that...one less thing to worry about. I also have no experience with a spinnaker so that piece of info is also good to know. Thanks again, Jim  

Jim, Re: Running backstays Once you get beyond the dinghy/daysailer size range, most fractional rigs will have a conventional backstay. On performance oriented-designs that are more aggressively fractional (say 3/4 or 4/5), the backstay will usually be very lightweight and is used primarily for adding or reducing mast-bend. In these cases, the primary support for the mast will come from running backstays (sometimes called check-stays and by other names). The runners are attached on both sides of the mast (port and starboard) at the same height where the fractional forestay attaches to the mast. The runners counteract the force applied by the forestay, just as a conventional backstay would counteract the force applied to the mast head by a conventional headstay. If the forestay was not balanced by the runners, it would bend and pump the mast as it became loaded up in strong winds. Since the runners are attached on both sides of the mast, and lead from there to the stern of the boat, you can see how they could interfere with the mainsail. So only one can be used at a time -- the windward one. The leeward one, the "lazy runner", is eased to slack so it won't interfere with the mainsail. When tacking or jibing the runners must be switched by easing the working runner and taking up on the lazy runner until their roles are reversed -- in much the same way as we swap jib/genoa sheets. Like I said, most cruising oriented fractional rigs, and even many performance oriented rigs, dispense with running backstays by using a less fractional rig with a swept spreader and shroud geometry that adequately counters the forestay. Also, fractional boats aren't the only ones that use runner/check stays. Many mast-head, cutter-rigged cruising boats use runners when flying their staysails in heavy going. Hope this helps some.  

JohnRPollard said: Jim, Re: Running backstays Once you get beyond the dinghy/daysailer size range, most fractional rigs will have a conventional backstay. On performance oriented-designs that are more aggressively fractional (say 3/4 or 4/5), the backstay will usually be very lightweight and is used primarily for adding or reducing mast-bend. In these cases, the primary support for the mast will come from running backstays (sometimes called check-stays and by other names). The runners are attached on both sides of the mast (port and starboard) at the same height where the fractional forestay attaches to the mast. The runners counteract the force applied by the forestay, just as a conventional backstay would counteract the force applied to the mast head by a conventional headstay. If the forestay was not balanced by the runners, it would bend and pump the mast as it became loaded up in strong winds. Since the runners are attached on both sides of the mast, and lead from there to the stern of the boat, you can see how they could interfere with the mainsail. So only one can be used at a time -- the windward one. The leeward one, the "lazy runner", is eased to slack so it won't interfere with the mainsail. When tacking or jibing the runners must be switched by easing the working runner and taking up on the lazy runner until their roles are reversed -- in much the same way as we swap jib/genoa sheets. Like I said, most cruising oriented fractional rigs, and even many performance oriented rigs, dispense with running backstays by using a less fractional rig with a swept spreader and shroud geometry that adequately counters the forestay. Also, fractional boats aren't the only ones that use runner/check stays. Many mast-head, cutter-rigged cruising boats use runners when flying their staysails in heavy going. Hope this helps some. Click to expand...

Thanks again.  

Good posts, John, as usual. We have owned both masthead and fractional boats, and esp for shorthanded cruising prefer the fractional rig. I'd agree with JohnR that when cruising you should avoid "necessary" running backstays, because that is a chore that pretty much requires an extra body. By "necessary", I'm referring to boats whose rigs are so spindly that the integrity of the rig is compromised if the runners are forgotten or mishandled. This mainly applies to straight-on race boats (but many "out-of-date/noncompetitive racing designs end up being converted to "cruisers") so you may run into this scenario. Most more moderate fractional rigs will use runners, but their job is primarily to provide and maintain headstay tension. In a masthead boat the backstay can provide this function.. on most jumper-less fracs tensioning the backstay will mostly bend the mast, little of the force is transferred directly to the headstay. Runners do provide that tensioning force as the wind pipes up. This aids pointing ability and keeps the sail shape as the sailmaker intended it to be. Our 35 footer with a 3/4 frac rig came with runners, but the rig is robust enough to use without them. The price of the convenience of not using them is some pointing ability as mentioned above. Since we do not race this boat we, so far, have been satisfied with using the boat this way. However we recently added a furler, so it may prove to be more advantageous to replace the runners... we will see, but prefer to sail without them if we can (we are almost exclusively doublehanding) We like the frac rig because it keeps the headsails smaller, lighter and more manageable (sheeting loads are down as well) and, more importantly, the spinnakers are much smaller and easier to handle than their masthead counterparts. As a result we fly our spinnaker MUCH more than we ever did with our previous boat, a 40 foot masthead boat, whose kite could be a real bear to deal with. The other advantage (IMO) of many fractional rigs is that since there is more power invested in the mainsail, the bulk of your sail area can be well managed with a good mainsheet/traveller system. These types of boats will also tend to sail better under main-only in more extreme conditions. Nothing wrong with either, as John says frac/masthead should be a secondary consideration beyond other more important criteria such as construction, layout, equipment and condition, but it was on our "nice-to-have" list this last time after dealing with huge genoas for 12 years.  

I also own a fractionally rigged boat which does not require running backstays. My boat was sailed in from South Africa on her own bottom without them. I typically sail with a 110% jib except in the lightest breezes at which time I shift up to a 130% jib. The boat is fast and easy to handle on all points of sail. The following was a piece that I wrote for another purpose on this subject..... Fractional vs. Masthead rigs These terms both derive from the point at which the forestay hits the mast. On a masthead rig the forestay hits the mast at the masthead (top of the mast). Masthead rigs are far and away the more common of the two rigs. Historically cruising and racing boats were fractionally rigged. The Masthead rig came into popularity as a racing rule beating method for racing sailboats. Under the CCA and IOR racing rating rules, jib size was under penalized. This promoted small mainsails and big masthead jibs and spinackers. On a fractional rig, the forestay hits the mast somewhere below the masthead (or a fraction of the overall height of the mast. It is not unusual to see fractional rigs referred to as a 2/3 (Folkboats), 3/4 (J-24) or 7/8 th 's (Triton) rig. Each rig has it advantages and disadvantages. There are some big advantages to a fractional rig for cruising and racing. For cruising you are dealing with smaller and easier to handle headsails Not only are the headsails smaller because of the shorter headsails but, because the headsails represent a smaller percentage of the overall sail area, you often do not need to have overlapping jibs. The sail area is made up in the mainsail. Fractional rigs often have purposely designed flexible masts and, when combined with a backstay adjuster permits quick, on the fly, depowering of both sails. Mainsails are easier to reef in a manner that results in an efficiently shaped sail for heavier conditions. It means that you don't have to take the expense, complication, maintenance and performance hit of a mainsail furler. Controlling mast bend you can often avoid reefing as the winds build. Roller furling genoas have notoriously poor shape when partially furled. The smaller jibs of a fractional rig rarely need reefing and when they do the fact that they are non-overlapping results in a better partially furled shape. Masthead rigs have larger running sails and so can typically point closer to dead down wind. They are a little more forgiving. Because Fractional rigs permit such a large range of easy adjustment they can be trimmed through a range of adjustments that results in a bigger range of speed both slower or faster than a masthead rig of similar sail area. The limited adjustment of a masthead rig means that you more or less live with what you have. Therefore a masthead rig neither has the opportunity for going really faster and with less heel, or going much slower either. My biggest problem with Masthead rigs is that you really need to carry more headsails and make more headsail changes. This is partially a function of the responsibility of the jib for drive. If you take a Fractional Rig 100% jib on a 28-footer it might be 150 s.f. and its 150% Genoa would be 225 square feet. But on a masthead rig 28 footer the 100% jib might be as much as 225 to 250 square feet and its 150% Genoa would be 337 S.F. to 375 s.f. That is a really big sail to manhandle and the when you increase a sail by 125 S.F. vs. only 75 s.f. there is a much smaller wind range that the bigger sail can be carried in so you might end up also carrying a number 2 Genoa as well as a working jib and a 150% #1 Genoa. With roller furling you end up sailing more frequently with (much less efficient) partially rolled up sails. I strongly favor Fractional rigs for coastal sailing because the are so much easier to tack and jibe, you are not carrying around the big winches and as many large sails, and you are not subjecting the boat to the much higher loads of a masthead rig.  

I kind of had a slight idea of the differences. but this thread is very instructive. thanks for starting it and thanks for the answers.  

We have a masthead rig with a baby-stay. Both the backstay and the babystay are adjustable, allowing us to induce mastbend and have the same adjustable sailing characteristics as described above. We use hanked-on sails and a downhaul to drop headsails in virtually no time flat if we need to. Honestly, up to about 25-28knots, she is fine with a no.1 heady... If it looks like a day that is likely to deteriorate, we will just start with the working jib, and have the no.3 blade standing by in case things get really bad. At 26 feet our boat's biggest baddest headsail is still a manageable size...though if the boat was a 38footer I would likely be less enthuised about the masthead rig. Sasha  

A couple quick thoughts on Sasha's observations, masthead rigs generally emply stiffer spars because masthead rigs generally have significantly higher compression loads. This makes controlled mast bend more difficult. But also, even on masthead rig boats with bendy spars, generally it takes a pair of adjustments (babystay and backstay) to achieve the same level of bend achieved with a single backstay adjustment on a fractional rig. Babystays generally make tacking more difficult since you need to drag the genoa around a stay that is out in front of the mast. This usually is not a problem when racing with crew, but is a nuisance when single-handing. While I don't know the specifics of Sasha's boat, in a general sense, if a masthead rig boat is able to carry its #1 in breezes up to 25-28 knots, in most cases that boat would be way undercanvassed in moderate to light conditions. For offshore work, especially on smaller boats, I really like the idea of a hanked on jib with a downhaul, and netting on the forward lifelines, which allows the sail to be doused from the cockpit. Respectfully, Jeff  

I recently went boat shopping Criteria was 1. cheaper than last boat. 2. Would give up interior comfort but required same or better performance. In looking I saw a lot of cool boats. Some were masthead and some fractional. As I generally sail with a crew I was not biased for that reason but I had one huge reason to prefer Fractional rigs. MONEY!!!!! On a fractional boat the main is the most expensive sail. Similar sized boats will typically have a more expensive main on the fractional than the masthead but far cheaper headsails and spinnakers. Something in the order of 2/3 to 3/4 the cost of a headsail on a fractional boat to that on a similar sized masthead boat. Since my boats typically only have one regularly used mainsail and at least three headsails (including spin) I decided I like fractional boats the best. Jeff's comment that masthead boats usually require more headsails just adds more money to the argument. For fun just take a J27 and a C&C27 (mark III, IV or V) to your local loft and ask for their pricing sheets. It is scary! Note that I raced regularly on a Petersen / ******* 37 MH rig last two years and like it just as much. But then I am not paying for sails on that boat as I am only crew! BTW - Paulk - I love the lines of your boat. What is it? Mike J27 #150 Nut Case  

mikehoyt said: ....but I had one huge reason to prefer Fractional rigs. MONEY!!!!! ....... Something in the order of 2/3 to 3/4 the cost of a headsail on a fractional boat to that on a similar sized masthead boat. Click to expand...

Well, she moves at around 5knots...but until the wind gets up to about 12-15knots, if you are racing against Nolexs and the like...it is just embarrassing. Once the weather hits 18 knots we are considerably faster and more comfortable too. . Sasha  

While I understand the ease and rationale behind spending less on the sails for a fractional rig, I like Sasha prefer the mast head configuration for its pointing ability. When we race competitively its a great advantage to have 5 degrees advantage on the inside track beating and be able to balance the boat sail area wise with the fractional rigged boats. Many times thats the only margin for winning. We have a C&C 35 MKIII. Had I a larger boat I might reconsider. That J36 is a beauty. Dave  

Chef2sail, I don't know who you are racing, but at least at high level racing, and in the more casual environment of cruising, masthead rigs really do not point any higher than fractional rigs. What you may be mistaking is the fact that fractional rigs tend to be used on more modern hullforms than the C&C 35 and with a modern hullform the fastest VMG's are achieved by turning down a couple degrees from the direction held by older hulls. In reality, a similar length and sail area fractional rig will typically will point and foot with a masthead rig. Jeff  

Jeff H, I respect your knowledge, and have learned much from other including you on here. What I do not respect is your chiding childish phrase in your thread "I dont know who your are racing in high level racing". You obviously feel the need to put down others with what you feel is some sort of superior attitude. Try and remember when teaching others with your vast and superior knowledge that teaching others is like when you taught your children (assuming you had some), when you want them to learn something putting them down is usually not the best way to get them to listen or learn and have confidence in their decisions. In spite of the manner in which you presented yourself your point has great merit and I stand corrected. Dave  

Chef2 - if you review JeffH's posts you will find that he generally goes out of his way to avoid giving offense... you have misquoted him here and I think misinterpeted his approach.  

chef2sail I have read virtually every post JeffH has made on this forum, and I really believe that you have misinterpreted the "tone" of his last post. His posts are consistently some of the most informative and factual you will find here and I very seriously doubt that there was any chiding intended on his part. I know I certainly didn't read it that way. Emotion and tone of voice are difficult to express in typed word. For what it's worth... Ryan  

Ditto that Chef...I re-read everything twice and don't think the harshness you perceived was there...especially knowing Jeff.  

Chef2sail: First of all I hope that you can accept my humble apology. I am sorry that my earlier post came off as being a put down. I in no way intended it that way. What I did intend to say in abreviated form in the perhaps poorly written sentence in question was three separate points. 1. The sailing qualities and pointing ability of fractionally rigged boats can vary quite widely, just as on masthead boats, and without knowing what specific boats your are racing, its hard for me to comment on their sailing relative abilities. 2. At least at the higher levels of racing, masthead rig boats do not point any higher than fractionally rigged boats, which is partially why so many modern grand prix level race boats are fractionally rigged. 3. In most cruising applications, masthead rigged boats do not point higher or have a better VMG than a comparable masthead rigged boat. My other point that I intended to make during my post is that the difference in pointing angle that you have observed may not be the result of the differences between fractional and masthead rigs but may be the result of other factors. More specifically, hull and keel form and that fact that the fastest way to sail any particular boat upwind typically varies with the boat's hull and keel typeform as well as rig. Modern hullforms can have big VMG gains by footing off slightly due to potentially significantly higher speeds through the water and reduced leeway. These kind of boat speed gains when footing a few degrees are less dramatic on older hull and keel designs, such as your C&C 35, and so their best VMG may occur by sailing a few degrees higher than a more modern boat. Different courses for different horses. Respectfully, Jeff  

How do you "depower" a mainsail on a fractional rig with the adjustable backstay? We have that kind of rig and (to my great embarasment) I've forgotten what to do with it... We have a block and tackle assy on one leg of the cables securing the backstay that flexes the mast but, being the timid kind of guy I am, I just keep the thing tight enough not to be loose but with no real tension on the backstay at rest. Am I doing something wrong or am I simply not maximizing my options? Dave  

You crank on the backstay tension, and alos the outhaul. This flattens the sail to depower it and also moves the centre of effort forwards. Now is also a good time to ease the traveller somewhat and crank on the cunningham. The boat will stand up and be more controllable, and will lose only a little speed (or it might even gain it depending on how much heel you had before). It will not point quite as high any more, but it will be worth it for the savings in crew energy and sanity. Do not forget to undo all of these tweaks when going downwind and als when you have arrived back at the dock...Nothing worse then seeing a bunch of top-end race boats at the end of a day with their masts still cranked and bent back. Sasha  

KEWL!!!! Some new tricks to try this Summer! Thanks.  

One of the things I LIKE about the masthead rig with baby-stay is that you can pretty much bend the mst and depower the main without effecting the headsail....Not that we have ever needed to do that in practical terms, mind you.... And I would think it would leave the boat a bit unbalanced .... Never mind, nothing to see here.... Sasha  

Great thread guys, Thanks.  

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Timmerman Yachts is a Russian builder of quality luxury motor yachts. Based in Moscow, it is owned by a group of Dutch and Russian investors and operates out of Moscow Shipyard. Several noted naval architecture and yacht design firms are involved with Timmerman, including Vripack, Guido de Groot Design, Ginton Naval Architects, Jon Bannenberg Ltd., and Francis Design Ltd.

Founded in 2003, the company was named for 17th century Dutch boat builder Franz Timmerman who brought Dutch boat manufacturing techniques to Russia and co-founded the Russian navy. Timmerman Yachts has more than 1,000 employees working at the Moscow Shipyard.

Timmerman has delivered a number of semi-custom luxury yachts between 26-47 metres in length, including TM26 and Timmerman FD-51, designed by Francis Design Ltd. Other notable Timmerman yachts include Victoria M, Alexandra (now Latitude) and Olsten 125′.

One of the 10 largest yacht builders in the world, Timmerman is focused on building high-quality luxury yachts at more competitive prices. Its Russian-Dutch partnership provides great yacht-building capabilities. Timmerman builds yacht to the highest standards and holds DNV, MCA and Russian River Register certification. The company reportedly has more than a dozen yachts in some phase of construction.

Founded in 2003

Yachts built by Timmerman

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Russian oligarch Andrey Melnichenko berths superyacht in UAE

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Simeon Kerr in Ras al-Khaimah

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Investigators around the world have been searching for sanctions-hit Russian oligarchs’ yachts. One has been hiding in plain sight.

Italian authorities in March impounded Russian coal and fertilisers magnate Andrey Melnichenko’s $600mn Sailing Yacht A after Russia invaded Ukraine. Another yacht, the $300mn Philippe Starck-designed Motor Yacht A, has been anchored for weeks in the port of Ras al-Khaimah, in the United Arab Emirates.

By placing his yacht in the UAE, Melnichenko has put it beyond the reach of western governments enforcing sanctions on those deemed supportive of Russian president Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine.

Its presence is a symbolic reminder of the Gulf monarchy’s ambivalence towards western sanctions on Russia, allies of Putin and the wealthy businessmen who have often benefited from ties to the state.

While the UAE government is trying to enhance measures against money laundering to exit a global dirty-money watchdog’s watchlist, the economic foundation of cities such as Dubai has long been based on welcoming flows of assets and people.

“Given its non-enforcement of western sanctions, the dilemma for the UAE is how to sustain its place as an open destination for capital while also appearing to be a good global citizen,” said one compliance professional. “It’s a tricky balancing act.”

The government of the Isle of Man said it had in March deregistered Melnichenko’s yachts, including Motor Yacht A, because of western sanctions, saying, “we will continue to act with appropriate robustness should the situation warrant it”.

Marine locator services placed Motor Yacht A off the Maldives in March. The Financial Times then saw the yacht on April 18. On Saturday it remained moored opposite Ras al-Khaimah’s city-centre fish market.

Businessmen in the UAE say Melnichenko, who denies affiliations to the Kremlin, held meetings there in April, but the tycoon has since returned to Moscow. A representative of Melnichenko, who has been placed under sanctions by the EU and UK as well as Switzerland and Australia, referred questions on the yacht to a lawyer who declined to comment.

UAE authorities in Dubai, Ras al-Khaimah and Abu Dhabi declined to comment.

European officials say they have raised concerns with Emirati counterparts that the UAE could become a financial haven for Russians placed under western sanctions. “We don’t want our allies to become facilitators for the Putin regime,” said one.

The UAE government has said it is maintaining a neutral course through the war, calling for an end to hostilities and providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Abu Dhabi, which has developed closer ties with Moscow in recent years, has also assured its allies that sanctions-hit entities will not be able to operate in the UAE. The Gulf monarchy, which has long argued that it is not compelled to enforce other nations’ sanctions, is keen to maintain its historical role as an apolitical territory focused on business.

Thousands of wealthy, non-sanctions-hit Russians have relocated to the UAE to escape economic uncertainty and political instability at home, even though they sometimes struggle to access the financial system. “Big banks are more cautious but smaller banks are offering help to those wishing to relocate. It’s just taking a lot of time,” said a Russian businessman.

Very wealthy Russians generally find financial institutions accommodating. Most of the wealthy elite have second passports from countries that sell nationality, such as Malta or Portugal, which facilitates the opening of new accounts with lenders that are warier of Russian passport holders.

Others have turned to alternative routes, such as cryptocurrencies and hawala, or informal money exchange services. The cost of this service has risen from 1 per cent of the transaction value to 5 per cent since the war broke out as demand surges, said one person aware of the trades.

Many in the UAE see a hypocrisy in western concern over the presence of the yacht and the Russians building new lives there. “So it was OK for London to take all the oligarch money but not for Dubai?” asked one lawyer.

Additional reporting by Nastassia Astrasheuskaya in Riga

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