Craig: If you have the board out, the pennant would be easy to replace...if you can get the boat suspended somehow...but since you have the board out, I assume you can handle that. If yours is like mine, you could drop the new pennant through the hole in the CB trunk to let it dangle down. It then connects to a clevis on the CB. On mine, the pennant passes through the clevis and is held by a simple stopper knot...overhand knot or figure eight.....but I suppose the LE (Luxury Edition) would be an end splice with thimble....stainless or nylon on a 3/8" braided pennant line. Stayset or Stayset X. I'm guessing that most of the stress and chafe would occur during long rides on the trailer with the board hanging from the pennant. The thimble might prolong the life during these times. BTW, a pennant is a big help in getting the board back in. Install the pivot pin, install the pennant, crank it up and install the stopper pin. Funny thing about that 155% genoa. I didn't use mine much initially, thinking it would way overpower the boat, but as I use it more, I'm surprised at how much wind it will take and still keep things under control. The boat seems to balance well with it. I've not used mine in anything that would approach white caps, but on last year's CBR, we had one brisk day and Tod was flying his 155% and was doing fine with it. But that is Tod and you have to factor that in. He is immortal. So I'd say it would be useful up to about 12 to 15 knots at which point I'd drop down. If you could roll that up to a 110%, you would be comfortable to maybe 20 knots...with reefs in the main. Lately, with this persistent high pressure and really light winds, I've been wondering how big you can go with a genny....I'd like to try a 180% or asymetrical. But does an M17 really need 4 headsails? The full batten main is not much higher, if any, that a regular main. The battens hold the foil shape of the sail in all winds....and seems to perform well for me....but it is also new...so that has to be considered. One thing I hadn't counted on was the roach of the full batten main hangs on the backstay in light air jibes running off the wind. I worry about chafe. I think there is a bit more work handling the sail and the battens have to be removed and stored some place when the sail is taken off. I fold mine. Some roll them and that would not be a problem. I've not seen them in person, but Sailnet offers some interesting sails. http://www.sailnet.com/airforce/options_quoter/index.cfm?page=desc If you go deep enough, they have specs for the M17, and you can see the quotes. Mine came from Kern and were a bit more expensive. Howard M17, #278
I've seen the diagrams, I've been looking at my c-board, out of its nest for two months now, but I still can't figure it out for myself: Is the centerboard line (halyard? "rope"?) difficult to replace? If so, wouldn't it be prudent to replace it now while the board is out so I'm starting with spanking new nylon that I won't so much as have to inspect for years? Do you have to drop the board to replace its whatchamacallit rope?
I'm still hoping someone will weigh in on whether a 155% jib is unnecessary (or, perhaps, even a disadvantage) in any area with relatively consistent winds (West coast of Michigan), or whether it's worth considering on a CDI furler.
I am also dying of curiousity: Is a fully battened main prohibitively expensive, does it improve performance significantly, is it a maintenance headache?
Thanks!
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