Traveler setup

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neilmac
Posts: 54
Joined: Wed Feb 06, 2013 2:15 pm
Location: Elsternwick Vic

Traveler setup

Post by neilmac »

Still working out the mysteries of my boat. For some reason somebody put a bolt into the traveler which obviously stops the car from going too far to starboard (see pic - 2 holes from sheet block) Why would they do that? Shouldn't the block be able to go all the way along the length of the Traveler? The other question I have is it normal to have just 1 Car - How do you adjust it if the main is pushed out on the port side?
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121`23.jpg
Neil
Compass Rose, Elsternwick Vic
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Raya
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Re: Traveler setup

Post by Raya »

Neil,

You only need one car and it should be free to move across the entire length of the traveller. I'd remove the bolts stopping the movement as I can't see what purpose they would serve. You need to set up cam cleats on the car so that you can control the position of the car. I've attached a picture of my traveller to show you what I mean. Here is a useful video about the purpose of the traveller [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0wfGzhlRhI].

Some investigators have the traveller mounted on wooden strips and some don't. There must have been a design change somewhere along the way.
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Traveller.jpg
Ray
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Yara50
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Re: Traveler setup

Post by Yara50 »

Neil, not being rude, but your traveller setup is weird! Search this site for "Mainsheet Traveller" and you will find some info.
It looks like your track is mounted on its side. For the travellers which do not have rope controls, there are usually spring loaded pins which limit the range of travel on each side. You either have to wait until you tack to adjust the pins, or use brute force on the main sheet to move it along so you can relocate the end stop.
With rope control on the car on Yara, there is a mechanical advantage, and I can adjust under load. Typically if the boat is overpowered, I will dump the traveller before the mainsheet.
Ian B
Ex Investigator 563 #50 Yara
neilmac
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Re: Traveler setup

Post by neilmac »

Thanks Ray and Ian
This is how it was set up when I got it. Ive only just getting to know how to use and why so wondered what was going on. I actually meant the stopper not the car - as in why is their only one. here is a close shot and yes it is mounted on an angle. I have scoured the web for photos but I only see modern versions so hard to work out how it should be set up. Will try to work out how to add cleats. Their are lots of stuff on the boat that a odd. The pipe below the tiller (in first pic) is to raise and lower the keel. Seems no other INV has this setup. It works but looks like crap so I might take it back to original.
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Neil
Compass Rose, Elsternwick Vic
Dr. Peter
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Re: Traveler setup

Post by Dr. Peter »

On Sundays I crew on a boat with all the bells and whistles and we work the traveller pretty well constantly particularly in bigger winds. Life on Pip is simpler. I use a rope horse with some amount of pre-set but not what I would call instant adjustment. I changed to the rope horse as a consequence of fitting a Hartley 18 rudder whose tiller handle wanted to pass through the little track that was there. Before the block would move from side to side within the limits of the stoppers (don't know their technical name). It does the same thing now just along a rope horse. I reckon its fine for cruising.

OK - I have a Mac. I used preview to open my pictures and then chose the re-size option in the tools menu.
Rope horse - 1.jpg
Thanks for the push, Neil, I looked harder for a solution. OK I Googled it ;)

The mainsheet is attached to the boom at one end and a block running along a rope horse at the boat end. Mine is the green rope. As you tack and gybe the mainsheet just moves along the rope. You can get some adjustment by changing the length of the rope horse or playing with the position of the stoppers. Hopefully, the image helps understanding.

I read about the horse in a really old textbook, "Sailing Small Cruisers (1964 - 3rd edition) by Guy Pennant. Publisher Adam and Charles Black of London.

On page 23 of a very extensive glossary is an explanation of the term horse as being 'a wire or rail across the stern on which the mainsheet travels. There is an illustration of a mainsheet horse in the book which shows the bottom block of the mainsheet being attached to a solid metal bar, which is bent at each end to allow attachment to the stern, by D-shackle.
Last edited by Dr. Peter on Thu Oct 05, 2017 6:00 pm, edited 3 times in total.
Peter
Pip #127
neilmac
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Location: Elsternwick Vic

Re: Traveler setup

Post by neilmac »

Thanks Peter
Don't know what a rope horse is, tried google but that didn't help.

Re posting images - Im assuming that you are on a PC and if so there is some advice from TS place that may help;
http://www.trailersailerplace.com.au/ph ... =35&t=8236

Another option is free hosting sites that you can use to link images - The best is Imgur.com (Thanks Ray) You just set up an account - then upload the image - the interface is quite good and easy to use, - Once your images are uploaded by clicking on an image you can get an "link code" - The one I use is BBcode (designed for sites like this)- copy the code and paste it into your "Post"

There are issues with linking photos as sometimes these sites disappear (see Cruiser Petes post)

I would like to tackle this image posting situation and have PM'd Ian to see if I can help out with this site but he hasn't got back to me yet.
Neil
Compass Rose, Elsternwick Vic
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Ozzie
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Re: Traveler setup

Post by Ozzie »

https://www.practical-sailor.com/news/M ... 499-1.html

Ray, not specifically referring to your boat but I really don't think there is a wrong way to set up a sailing vessel to the extent that every sailer I've seen seems to have minor idiosyncratic changes to suite the owner. Re the remote centreboard raiser, maybe the previous owner sailed in shoaled areas and wanted to be able to easily raise it from the tiller or had a thing about pulling it up in stages at different points of sail. Me, I'm a lazy sod and don't bother other than the occasional long run downwind on the lake.

For what it's worth my traveller is set up as Ian describes. I tried googling "angled traveller " in case this is a special setup pioneered by Norwegian shrimp fisherman in the late 18 th century. I'm only half joking as the investigator's original boom roller reefing was apparently widely used by Northern American fishermen in the old days . These guys were sailing in atrocious conditions to make a living so it must have had something going for it at the time. Anyway I got the site above with the picture below
Angled traveller track
Angled traveller track
IMG_0894.JPG (28.91 KiB) Viewed 3825 times
It's done this way to angle the base towards the pull direction. Sounds logical.

As an aside, over on the dark side I usually used to advise people new to sailing to try whatever their existing rig is for a while and see how they liked it , particularly with things like roller furling jib etc . I understand you're not at that stage now but there may be that loading advantage to the angled traveller. My $0.02 worth anyway.
Ozzie
Investigator #143 "SPRITZIG II"

The Mariner - “It’s too strange here. It doesn’t move right." ...
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Yara50
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Re: Traveler setup

Post by Yara50 »

Yes, there is less friction on an angled track, and less torque on the track mountings. However, in this case, you can see that it necessitated a cut-out on the top of the rudder for clearance. Seems fine, so might as well leave it.
Ian B
Ex Investigator 563 #50 Yara
neilmac
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Re: Traveler setup

Post by neilmac »

Hi

Bought another stopper for the traveller, and with a bit of advice from Phil Carr got it sorted. We both agreed that probably a former owner had lost one stopper and had put a screw in its place. Angle of traveller not an issue.
Neil
Compass Rose, Elsternwick Vic
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