GP14 Sailing Forums Forum New GP14 Owner

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    • #22376
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      Hello,

      I’ve just returned to sailing after a 30 year break, and have bought a GP14 (#7533). It’s a GRP hull dating back to 1968 (got the history through from the office today).

      It came with a full set of sails (main, jib, genoa and spinnaker).

      I’ve put the mast up and the main / jib rigging is all fine, but not sure how to setup the spinnaker. I had a look at the rigging guides, and they all seem quite different to my boat.

      There is  spare slot on the mast next to the main halyard – I’m guessing that would be where the spinnaker halyard would be setup, but wanted to check if anyone else had one of a similar era and could share a couple of pictures of their spinnaker rigging? Also, there are no cleats for the spinnaker sheets – would these normally be hand-held on an older boat?

      Many thanks,

      James.

    • #22377
      Oliver Shaw
      Moderator

      James,

      On a mast of your era the two sheaves side by side at the bottom of the mast were intended for main and jib (or genoa) halliards,   with the spinnaker halliard being led through a third sheave slightly above them (and central).   It is of course entirely possible that your genoa halliard may have subsequently been modified (and possibly the main halliard also) to accord with more modern practice;  but that is what was envisaged when the mast was new.

      A good start for setting up your spinnaker,  a sort of half-way house between the very simple system originally fitted on your boat and a modern system,  is that described by Simon Relph in The Basic Boating Book (pages 20-21),  available on this site in the Members’ Area.   Since he is a past World Champion (twice),  although the system he describes is now regarded as somewhat dated it is nonetheless a system which works well.

      I also attach a paper which is a composite of three articles on spinnaker rigging,  of different eras and by different authors.   Of perhaps the most relevant to your boat is the second one,  by Brian Hayes,  taken from the 1st edition of The Basic Boating book and dating from 1982,  when your boat was still comparatively young.   It also includes the relevant extract from Simon Relph’s article,  and the paper starts with my own article on the subject.

      Hope this helps,

       

      Oliver

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      • #22379
        Anonymous
        Inactive

        Hi Oliver,

        Many thanks for the information provided. It would seem that the main halyard has been left as originally designed, and the genoa halyard has been modified to run externally. As the spinnaker halyard is missing, it sounds like I will be rethreading it into the mast.

        Providing the replacement spinnaker halyard arrives in time, I will have a go at setting this up over the weekend.

        James.

    • #22380
      Oliver Shaw
      Moderator

      Three tips for re-threading the spinnaker halliard into the mast.

      If you have a detachable upper sheave for the spinnaker halliard and all the halliards run down the inside of the mast (this depends on the make of mast),  you can temporarily take out the sheave,  and then use the main halliard to pull the spinnaker halliard down the mast.   Use either tape or a length of thread to secure the two halliards to each other.

      However the early IYE metal masts used a different system,  with a welded curved tube in place of the upper sheave,  and the halliards then ran down the front of the (unusually large) mast slot.   I have never done the job,  or seen it done,  on one of these masts.   You may perhaps be able to poke a length of moderately stiff twine down the tube and across the mast slot chamber,  to emerge through the slot,  and then use this to pull the halliard down the mast;   it would seem to be worth a try,  but I don’t know whether it would work.

      The traditional method is to use a “mouse” in the form of a short length of small section chain to pull a length of light twine down the mast.   Feed in the chain at the top,  then set up the mast vertically,  and shake it so that the chain falls down inside and pulls the light twine after it.

      Good luck!

       

      Oliver

    • #22383
      Anonymous
      Inactive

      I’ve been down to look this afternoon, and it it indeed the older design with a very large gap for the halyards. I think a bit of fishing line with a lead pellet weight or two will do the job of rethreading it quite easily.

      I’ll let you know!

      James.

       

       

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