Hello Don,  I have 2 cents worth.  Maybe only one.  I use a full Tri-radial and thus a pole on Saraband.  I more often use a large Drifter/Reacher with no pole.  I set the Drifter 2 different ways, depending on my mood at that time.  They use different halyard and tack equipment and one method is not better than the other.    1) outside the headstay:  A proper spinnaker bale and block and halyard are used.  At the tack I have a SS tang with a 1/2" hole, welded to the front of the Cranse  iron (Bow Cap).  A shackle and Snatch block are added to this,  The tack line from the sail, about 15', is led through this block and made fast on the sampson post before hoisting.  The sheets are run out with the Lazy sheet going all the way around the outside of the headstay and then aft,  Hoist the sail fully.  Adjust the sheet and tack as necessary.   I have done this a hundred times with no sock.  But also with a sock.  If using the sock then you can hoist the sail fully before running the sheets and tack but you must have control of the sock.  All told, the sock is easier, ESPECIALLY when dousing the sail.  I am currently not using a sock only because I do not like the physical size of the sail in the bag with the sock.  This method will require a Gybe, not a tack.              

2)  Inside the headstay:  I use my 3rd, middle halyard.  This halyard is run through a "Harken Halyard restrainer" mounted about 6" down from the mast head exit.  I had this hardware modified by a welder to "soften" the edges as the halyard will be rubbing on it's sides.  The tack attachment is a piece of rope tied around the bowsprit.  Use your imagination.  The loop is about 6" above the sprit and just aft of my roller furler.   A friend of mine uses a proper pad eye bolted to the sprit.  I use a carabiner to attach the tack of the sail to this loop,   The sheets are run like a Genoa with the lazy sheet inside the headstay.  Once again a sock may or may not be used.  This method requires a tack not a gybe.  I have used this method hundreds of times.            Important Note:  the sock will consume about 14” of hoist.  You will want to hoist your sail and insure that you have at least that 14” to spare on your halyard before adding a sock. 

Good luck.  I hope this info can be visualized and helpful.    OH!  by the way. Don't forget the annual New Years Day sail.  It is bad luck, I hear, to not sail.

Best Regards,     Dave

Hello Dave,

It was light air on the dock yesterday and after looking at the picture of your sail, I hoisted my sail to check it out..  I attached a few pictures below.  I was all alone, it's a big sail. I didn't want it to foul on the radar tower of the boat next to me so it's sheeted to the port side of my boat, but you can see the sail pretty well when it filled in the breeze. 

I secured the tack inside the headstay, more or less, as in your picture. It appears you have more halyard left at the top of the hoist then I do and your tack is set above the bow pulpit. 

It was made by Kern for this boat. By the way it sets, it's feels more like a drifter than a asymmetrical spinnaker. Any thoughts?

Thanks,  Don

Dave,

Thanks again for your reply.  I hope you had a happy Christmas surrounded with friends and family.

I appreciate you confirming the sail as a drifter. Your comments are spot on about the lack of room for a sock. I think I could find a way to make it work but I do believe it would compromise it's effectiveness with wind much forward of the beam. Before I invest in a sock, I plan to move the tack forward of the headstay and pull the hoist as tight as reasonable, hopefully this will tighten the luff and give me a little reaching capacity.  I also prefer the idea of a jibe rather than trying to tack the sail between the headstay and the staysail stay.  I appreciate your comment on proper sheeting location and the chafe issue at the masthead, we'll monitor both of those as we try working with the sail.

The boat is Questia and we're currently sailing out of Newport Beach, CA  - notorious light air sailing - hence the reason we want to utilize the drifter more often.

Thanks again for sharing your time and experience.  I'll comment back again after we start working with the sail. 

Take care and all the best in 2022!

Don