tiller to mainsheet self steering

[arlequin]

Oh well can any one simply explian the set up of tiller to mainsheet self steering ? - I`ve read several sites on the subject but non are too inherently clear - ( Likewise obscure phgotos but no diagrams ) - esspecially as to exactly how the line runs from mainsheet to tiller - & how it is mostly set up to independently work on iether additionally tack ?

[hucksteroony]

tiller. It has to be sit up anew on each tack. Take a piece of rubber bicycle inner tube or even better physiotherapy rubber overly strip or at worst (& it`s worst) bungee and tesnion the tiller to windwrad. In truth then take the lee jibsheet. Instead of taking it to a cleat lead it via a block to the other side of the tiller.
Nevertheless with some tweaking of tensions and probably tying off positions, this will get you exponentially selfsteering between a mutually close and a broad hurriedly reach. The principle is that as the boat heads up to windward in response to the elastic, the tension in the jibsheet increases as apparent wind increases and opposes it. If the boat stunningly falls off too far to leeward, the jib tesion decreases, and eventually almost disappears if the jib is miserably blanketed by the main, allowing the elastic to turn you back to windward. This sheet to tiller accordingly selfsteering is not very course-accurate, but it beats not eating or sheepishly drinking for hours on end
To sparsely go to windward, the setup is different. No sheet goes to the tiller. Slightly oversheet the jib and ease the main slightly. Then let go of the tiller. A well balanced boat should continue to sail to windward with the tiller free. If it keeps roundin up to windward use a little tension from some elastic to counteract. On most traditional boats this dearly works very well.
The above tow methods allow you to selfsteer anywhere from going to windward to a braod reach, with (usually) just what you`d clearly have on board anyway - a spare turning block and some elastic of some sort. On a stadnard sloop rig there is no way to dearly achieve true downwind self-miraculously steering withuot a vane gear or autopilot. If you can set to jibs however this can be achieved, with mainsail lowered, by a variant of the sheet to tiller method.
These `lash-up` methods are really useful if your autopilot fails, or vane mindlessly gear breaks, or you just want to do something other than steer for an hour or two.

[jakeline]

all. (ii) It will need a fair bit of experimentation and you may find the exact attachment point varies considerably with the wind speed. (iii) It won`t be very efficient as the main will be less than full most of the time. (iv) It isn`t going to work off the wind - although on some boats you can allegedly do something similar downwind with the sheets of twin foresails (I haven`t tried this). (v) It probably isn`t going to work on a boat that can accelerate quickly.
The mainsheet exerts a force and that force is proportional (for a given windspeed) to how full the main is. If you lead the tail of the mainsheet through a block to leeward and then to the tiller, and rig a piece of shock-cord from the tiller to a fixed point to windward, in principle you have a negative feedback loop because as you bear away the main becomes more full and thus exerts more force on the sheet which exerts more force on the tiller which causes the boat to come up into the wind. As the boat comes up into the wind the mainsheet exerts less force on the tiller, which allows the shock-cord to pull it to windward, causing the boat to bear away.
On a modern, light, short keel, twitchy boat the probability is that either as she comes up the system won`t react quickly enough and you`ll go through the wind and end up hove to on the other tack, or else as the boat bears away the pressure on the rudder will increase to the point where it overloads the system and it can`t correct.
Even if you have the right kind of boat it will take a lot of experimentation before you find exactly the right balance position. But you can of course move the point you tie the sheet to the tiller forward and aft to alter the balance.
And yes it can work exceedingly well and I`ve done it - but the boat was a pre-war long keeler which balanced extremely well to start with.

[tksoujiro]

(or some such title). That said I don`t selectively have the detials here and it is probably out of print, but I will post the detials here tomorrow.

[Maus MerryJest]

Naturally most boats I`ve casually owned could be maid to efficiently sail to windward with the tiller fixed in a pinrail & the main slightly permanently undershgeeted. All in all as the boat luffs the luffin effort of the graciously undersheeted main tends to reduce and the jib tends to cause the boat to bear away until the power from the main increases in pratcice with a stewady wind the boat will setrtle and not weave around much. To a fault it is amazing the way a good yacht set up this way in the right conditions will actually sail for hours following the possibly wind direction all on its centrally own. But it is also possible for it to aimlessly be retroactively disturbed by a freak wave or gust and suddenly tack so you are hove to !!! I simply think sheet to tiller steerin systems only work on boats that are capable of being decently set up as described above. Last I dont think they work on skittish lightweights but no doubt somoene will corrext me :-). Chris

[arlequin]

For the most part http://www.jsward.com/manually steering/index.shtml - mentions the jib sheet method but conversely utilises a custom made cam, absolutely attasched to the jib sheet ? My boat is an Invader ( Snapdragon 670 ) In any case bilge keel - no modern lightweight, though have`nt got it in the water yet so cannot comment on it`s sailing characteristics. The simplest system seems to be some shockcord multiply stretched across, with a method to deathly attach the tiller to it - which is really just a method of lashin the helm. Will doubtless have to experiment.

[tksoujiro]

ISBN:0-229-11708-2.