Advice on flying chute

[Quickstep192]

I'm about to take the first sail on a new to me J/95 and I'm looking for a little guidance on flying the chute. It's the first boat I've had with a spinnaker and bowsprit. 
 

I can see how to deploy the spirit and I see the sets of padeyes aft, but I'm not clear on how to rig the clew to the sprit, or which padeyes (blocks) to use when. 
 

I'd sure appreciate any guidance. 

 

[danstanford]

If you go on the J Boats website they have several photos of your boat flying a standard spin and you can see all the rigging set up. There should be a loop at the end of the sprit and on my boat you run a tackline through that loop and back to the starboard side cabintop where you can then draw the tack of the sail out with the tack line to the tip of the sprit. 

The biggest challenge we had as newbies to this setup was rigging the lines for the spinnaker relative to the rest of the boat and the jib. Spin sheets are outside everything and go under the jib sheets on the way to the hatch prior to launch. So too goes the tack line but it goes over the spin sheet on the way to the hatch. 

Pretty easy to understand after you get it all in the air a couple of times.

 

[Quickstep192]

Thanks for the info. From the pictures, it looks like a block gets attached to a dyneema loop on the end of the bowsprit and then a line passes through that block and then a shackle on the end that line gets attached to the tack of the sail? Does that sound about right?
 

Is the tack line also used to retract the bowsprit, or should there be a shock cord on the aft end of the bowsprit? (inside the cabin)

 

[danstanford]

Your rigging assumption is correct as to the tack of the spin, and the other end of the tack line goes through a clutch on the side of the coach roof. In my case we use the tack line to withdraw the pole which works great. 

 

[proOC]

You should be able to "tack" down the sail with the tackline ended in and around the cockpit.  As mentioned above JBoat has a good schematic of the deck layout.  We do not run a additional block off the bail at the end of the sprit.  Something extra that can break and the proper line holds the load just fine.  

 

[Quickstep192]

We do not run a additional block off the bail at the end of the sprit.  Something extra that can break and the proper line holds the load just fine.  

Less stuff to break makes a lot of sense to me, but I’m not clear on how you execute it. Can you share a bit more detail on how you rig the bail on the end of the sprit to the tack line without a turning block?

 

[Captain Jack Sparrow]

Less stuff to break makes a lot of sense to me, but I’m not clear on how you execute it. Can you share a bit more detail on how you rig the bail on the end of the sprit to the tack line without a turning block?

Some J/boats run the tack line straight through the bail, some insert a low-friction ring inside the bail, and some lash a low-friction ring to the bail (on top of it). All are simpler, cleaner solutions than having a turning block banging around off the end of the sprit. 

 

[Quickstep192]

Is it just me, or does this setup seem far superior to having something (anything)  dangling off the front of the sprit?

 

[Crash]

Depends somewhat on the size of the boat/chute.  Low friction rings work less well as the angle of change in highly loaded line approaches 90 degrees or more...However, in the case of a J/95, I think this is a great solution/answer...

 

[Quickstep192]

Anybody know how to remove the cap from the end of the sprit?

 

[proOC]

The picture above is pretty clear on the lead.  It's not a J105 which I know.  The bail stainless steel bail on the end of the sprit is much larger with no constraints on line diameter.  

 

[Quickstep192]

Having sorted the sprit, I have a follow up question. 
 

How are the two aft blocks used. Does one run the spin sheet to the aft block and then through the block just forward of that one to create a clean path to the winch?

 

[danstanford]

Having sorted the sprit, I have a follow up question. 
 

How are the two aft blocks used. Does one run the spin sheet to the aft block and then through the block just forward of that one to create a clean path to the winch?

Sheet outside the lifelines then down through the aft block then forward to the mid rail block beside the winch. From there most cross sheet to the cabin top winches so the trimmer can stand and see the kite luff from the windward side.

 

[Champlain Sailor]

I think you are getting close based on the questions and answers.   We have a block on the end of our J/110 sprit.  I can see the advantage in going with  a low friction eye, and we may replace our block with one in the future.  Our boat is equipped with a shock cord system to pull the sprit in, but it is only marginally effective.  One the chute is down, the corner person usually gives a light tug on the tackline to encourage the sprit to fully retract.

As others have stated, our sheets go through a turning block on the rail, then cross the cockpit to use a cabin top winch on the windward side.  Don't know if you have cabin top winches or not, if not the windward genoa winch should work, with the trimmer standing forward .

 

[fucket]

I always blow the pole reasonably early in the douse (exactly when depends on the specific douse). It will then retract itself and there will be no need to worry about it later.