Mainsheet double bridle

You still get the ability to control leech tension as the final purchase has much less affect that the 2:1 off the end of the boom and the direction of pull is never straight foreword. Good point about the tiller extension, this was my main concern with the Blaze but a small change in technique and it's fine. If I did take the final purchase to the floor L@ser style there would be nowhere for the extension to go (not a problem on a narrow boat/short extension but with racks/trap you need long extension).

A belated thanks Glitcher7 for posting that schematic, if I can't fix a temporary solution to my broken turret I shall give that a try.

I find all these methods interesting, none of them however beat just holding that boom in both hands and sheeting it in, I wish I could come up with something that gives a similar live feel in a boat, at the moment I'm still centre sheeted with a few purchases secured to the turret which I'm sure is why the top of the aluminium turret just ripped open last week.

I don't like sheeting off the rear of the boat, can't stand rope at the best of the times so having loads of it behind me is a no no, it's hopeless in light airs and a potential disaster in gybes if like me you're prone to not holding the wiggle stick thing properly I've lost count the number of times I've had it ripped from my grip as the rope passes across.

Interesting thread though keep em coming.

Edited by iGRF - 06 Jan 17 at 10:38am

There's a lot of misunderstanding of purchases on here! The ratio is counted at the moving part, which on a mainsheet is the boom. If the sheet starts here, goes to a block fixed to the boat and back around a single block on the boom the ratio is 3:1 (Laser arrangement). If you turn the same arrangement around so the sheet starts at the fixed block, goes around a block on the boom and then back around a fixed block there's only 2 parts on the moving boom and the ratio is 2:1 (Enterprise arrangement). With a bridle at the stern and a take off block further forward the forward block is only changing the position of the take off, the purchase is still working at the bridle position. Clearly if the purchase is moved forward (centre main) the mechanical lever is reduced and the loads will be higher, which is why a centre main usually has a higher ratio than a transom main, regardless of where the take of point is. So a Laser mainsheet is a 3:1 working at the end of the boom.

Yes Mossy, no problem with sheeting angles. This is an oval section carbon boom which is really oversize for the boat but allowed the pivot block to be recessed up into the boom so the sheet can run inside and prevent hanging incidents.
With a gantry at the transom I can just get a long enough trapezing tiller extension to be passed thru forward laser style.
The wrap is enough for the ratchet. I thought it would take more work to develop trapeze helming techniques without a cleat, but it hasn't been too bad.
I'm sure I need to do more to tweak bridle lengths and kicker tensions, but without other Farr's for boat on boat comparison it's tough to work out

Originally posted by Dave.B Yes Mossy, no problem with sheeting angles. This is an oval section carbon boom which is really oversize for the boat but allowed the pivot block to be recessed up into the boom so the sheet can run inside and prevent hanging incidents. With a gantry at the transom I can just get a long enough trapezing tiller extension to be passed thru forward laser style. The wrap is enough for the ratchet. I thought it would take more work to develop trapeze helming techniques without a cleat, but it hasn't been too bad. I'm sure I need to do more to tweak bridle lengths and kicker tensions, but without other Farr's for boat on boat comparison it's tough to work out

The wrap also gets less in light air when you are sat forwards, and more in a breeze when you move back.
So less drag from the ratchet in lighter air.
Some boats use a two block arrangement on the kite sheets to get this effect.