Sayes rig

  • June 04, 2019 3:35 PM
    Message # 7556047
    Anonymous

    hello,


    my westsail came with a sayes rig wind vane that needs to be reinstalled.  I have read that they are not ideal for westsail and that an monitor or aries windvane would be better choices.  I am not planning on actually purchasing a windvane for some time so my question is, is the sayes rig windvane good enough to reinstall and work with for now?



  • June 06, 2019 10:42 AM
    Reply # 7560029 on 7556047

    I have only sailed on one boat with a Sayes vane, the simple answer is Yes.  Its an awkward set up, but the Sayes will do the job. 

    The Monitor, Aries and  Cape Horn are the more commonly seen/used vanes.  Keep in mind that the Sayes and most other windvanes will add to your LOA and that might be an issue depending on your slip length.  If your just cruising in Puget Sound you will find a vane will be of limited use.

     

     

     

     

  • June 06, 2019 5:39 PM
    Reply # 7562449 on 7556047

    My WS32 also had a Sayes rig on it when I purchased it and it had been on the boat when she was launched in 1982 in Ca. I believed that the only objection to its installation on a WS32 is the mounting on the boomkin with the outboard rudder doesn't permit a long enough arm to be install for leverage where as a WS42 with a canoe stern the arm has additional 3' of leverage . . . . 

  • June 06, 2019 9:38 PM
    Reply # 7562919 on 7556047

    My W32, Sea Breeze, came with a Sayes Rig,  I bought the boat in the BVI, spent some months there getting it ready to go offshore, and then sailed her straight into Charleston SC USA.

    The Sayes Rig would not steer the boat.  Accordingly, when I got to Charleston, just about the second thing I did was rip the thing off and take it to a used marine equipment joint.  I bought a Cape Horn, which works well.

    I talked to the manufacturer of  the Sayes Rig at the Miami Boat Show.  At that point in time, the Westsail 32.was not on the list of boats he'd recommend for the Sayes Rig.

    As a result of that experience and a few other things, mostly that I've read, I believe that the only self steerers that will steer a sailboat are the servo pendulums--Monitor, Aries, Fleming, Cape Horn for example.

    Joe Kovacs

  • June 07, 2019 6:51 AM
    Reply # 7563502 on 7556047

    Our 32 came with a Says Rig and I'm impressed with it's capability to steer us across open water. It's simplicity is befuddling and consequently it requires some skill to use.

    To adjust your course, pretend the counter-weight arm is a tiller. CCW rotation of the counter-weight arm changes the course to starboard; CW adjustment changes the course to port.

    My longest ocean run was 8 days from Marsh Harbour to the Chesapeake Bay, and "Charlie" manned the helm the whole trip without any issues, sometimes in seas where I would not be comfortable with my own steering skills.

    On the minus side: The oar MUST be removed when you want to play helmsman, either under power or under sail. The acrobatics required to lower or raise the oar is a source of amusement for the crew. Remember, tie a lanyard to the oar before venturing out upon the boomkin !

    BTW, I leave the rig's sail up all the time. It makes a great wind vane for our WestSails' low-aspect rigs.

    Ed & Karen

    CAPRICA #687


  • June 26, 2019 8:09 PM
    Reply # 7675435 on 7556047

    When I was cruising the Salish I used a windvane as much as I could while under sail. If you can get it rigged and learn how to use it, you will find it very useful and come to depend on it. I use a tiller pilot when motoring and when transitioning to windvane, so the combination is pretty much how the boat is steered when short or single handed. I am rarely steering the boat so I can save energy for going forward to trim sails, or setup rigging. It took me a while to figure it out, but once I discovered when the windvane worked, it steered better than I will ever be able to.

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