TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands port and starboard main sheets

Just got back - Our sloop had a port and starboard main sheet system. I did some prep on this - "triangular system", etc. I gave myself a "B minus" on sail trim.

Any pearls of wisdom?

thx

I had it on a Leopard 4800 and will be going back to it on a Leopard 4600. Personally I like the system. Maybe not quite as tunable as traveler but far more robust in charter operations. In practice I used it much like a traveler. The key on any point of sail other than upwind is keep the downwind sheet tighter than you would expect and adjust with the upwind sheet.

Do you mean a German sheeting system? I have that on my boat and after 10K miles I'm happy.

I've had both systems. Like both and agree the traditional system offers more trimming range. From George's comment it sounds like Leopard is going back to the German system with the 46. I believe the new Leopard 52 is as well.

I am not sure if the change was a Leopard thought or a Moorings demand. I have seen some horrendous accidental jibs in the last year.

Heh George: What's the correct way to tack with the dual system? thx

Since you’re hard on the wind when tacking it’s exactly the same as a traveler. You simply tack and the main tends to itself. There might be some tweaking involved after the tack but the same can be said for a traveler. One nice advantage of this system when moored is you don’t get that squeaky noise from the boom rocking.

Looks like the 2026 Elba 45 we are chartering has a main with a traditional traveler.

But here is a review of the German System.

German Sheeting System review.

Not to be confused with the A frame system.

A Frame Sheeting System

I strongly prefer the double mainsheet system. It's quiet at anchor (as noted). It's much safer if people are up on the sky lounge while sailing. Even when not sailing, having the boom locked down is nice. I appreciate being able to jibe over the preventer without preparation.