MYSTERE 5.5 SPINNAKER

any pics?

Heres a photo of the spin lock mounted on the mast.The spin halyard runs through it down to a pully mounted on the cross beam next to the masts base mount. This arrangement locks the spin lock when pulling the sail up. Make sure that the spin lock has its angled base installed under it or it wont lock.

Here us a photo of the spinnaker Im using.Im experimenting and purchased a cheap Macgregor 21/22 symmetrical spinnaker, as most winds in our area blow inland and Im not racing and wanted a sail that would take me directly back home in light winds without to much gybing. I had 2 rings sewn on it and 2/3rds of the way to the top a couple of small holes put in to tie off the retreval line. The retreval line runs from this point of the sail, down into the snuffer ring and out the end of the snuffer bag to the deck. It continues as one line through the pulling on the cross beam,up through the spin lock to the top of the mast and becomes the haulyard.

A photo of how the snuffer pole fixes to the cross beam.Note that I put tape under the stainless where it come up against the cross beam to keep it away from the aluminum.

I found that the sheets jam when tacking the boat. They tend to jam under the furler as the sail drags them across in light winds and it can be frustrating, so I drilled 2 small holes in the furlers cage and tied a bit of thin line in. I then tied bungee to this line and ran it forward to the spin pole so that the lines drag over this point now and it works better!
I then drilled a small hole just under the furlers block and tied a support line (thin static line)down to the spin pole to help support it.

I attached the snuffer wires with a shackle.They come stock as the perfect length from Hobie and I didnt have to modify them. What a fluke!
The one line in the photo that has the purple static line attached goes from the point in the photo to the snuffer ring to add support to it so it doesnt twist the ring when under snuffing pressure.

The cross beam has the (red line) spinnaker outhaul line (cleat)attached next to the furler cleat. Im using differnt color lines so the crew can find them faster,as things become messy with all the ropes on deck.

another pic of that snuffer ring support line. I did air-craft wire with crimp on sleaves wherever possible so that I dont have to keep replacing static line as it weathers over the years.

The out-haul line (red) that comes back to the cross beam cleat.

very cool thanks

QUESTION REGARDING SPIN CONNECTION AT TOP OF MAST:
My Spinnaker is hoisted by the head of the sail to the top of the mast through a pulley. This pulley is secured at the top of the mast, not with a mast tang, but with a vertical line from an eye and a horizontal line. The horizontal line holds the pulley close to the mast and is threaded through two holes in the sail track. The unfortunate part is....when the sail is hoisted the load on this horizontal line breaks it. The pulley is then just suspended by the eye near the top of the mast and risks (by its load of pressure) snapping the mast as it bends dramatically. Has anyone used stainless steel line for this horizontal line? Any recommendations?

You need to use a better piece of line. Vectran or Spectra, etc.

I agree that the spinnaker halyard block bail line needs to be made of rope with higher abrasion resistance. (My attempt at proper use of the words

line

and

rope.

) I have never broken one that is made of

Amsteel.

Mine is either 3mm or 4mm size.

GARY

One other thing, don't ease the main off much with the chute up or you risk breaking the mast.

Thanks for the tip! Any advice on how you protect the pulley as it rotates around the mast from damaging the masts aluminum or its coating. I put bands of tape across the mast under the pully and after my first sail with he chute out it appears to have scrapped the coating. I just want to keep the 5.5 in good shape as I do things... any recommendations?Once this is done I can sail knowing its bomb proof, and not having to turn the boat over all of the time to repair it!
Regular vinyl tape deosnt cut it......

can i ask, how far down from the top of your mast is the block (measured at the top of sheave)?

Ill try to measure it next time I have the boat on its side. Its low......aproximatley 1ft above the jibs tang. I know its lower than most because I wanted to try a symmetrical sail I picked up cheap from a Mcgregor sailboat. It fits really well for what I wanted it for. Im in an area that startin out from the beach we tack all day until we are out in somewhat open water. At the end of the day I wanted to sail more down wind,than zip back and forth on a gybe for speed but never pointing to home. In the first tests of this sail I was exremely surprised how tigh I can pull the luff and in fact got some hang on speed as I call it with the crew at the rear of the boat trying to stop a pitch pole.Not entering races Im not as much driven to meet standards and want to experiment with what sails do. I have located a 21 sq meter Tiger sail that I will fashion on later for a bit of diversity. I know asymmetrical will allow me to tack, but I find the boat points well and has great speed now without increasing it. 15 knots of wind seems to create a sweet smooth ride. What do you think?

so you dont jybe at all with your symetrical? i love gybing with my spin....

I had a tiger spin on my 5.5. it was good for learning... but i am glad i moved up to a big spin (tornado)

Would you happen to have any photos of your spin up? Id like to see how high up the mast it runs.....
Any lines on a used tornado spinnaker?

No pics that show that.. but in this pic you can see the hound.
it was to high.. so i drilled holes in my track grove (8" lower) and made a dynema bale (bail?) for a block to swivel around.

PS you should post in the general forum if you want more responce.. this forum is basically dead. You could ask about used gear there as well..

http://a611628.sites.myregisteredsite.com/a/cat/mar-16-07g.jpg (paste this in for full size image)

Maybe Jeff Bower would like to come on board,as he is one of the only 6.0 sailors I hve met who has an understanding of the nuances that make this design sail at the top of its game well....Bob

There was a day. Last weekend was not it. There are many much more qualified than I. Bob Curry, Mike Catley, Robbie Daniels. There are several problems with getting this boat tuned in. The rudders are the first(Many of us have changed to different rudders). The second is getting the most out of the sails. Mystere only produced fast sails for 1 or two years. The North sails all had problems with the seams seperating on the mains. The 97-99 sails were great. The ones I saw from the factory after that(the Sprint series) all seemed to flat. I had Saber cut me a set but they ended up being to full and I had them recut. Many of us on the west coast of Florida are using the used Tornado sails. Something I would like to try. Since there has never been an large number of the 6.0s we never had a loft really take on the task of creating great sails that fit the boat and the mast(Like Randy did for the P19). We are an orphan boat so class sails are no longer available. You have to experiment with what you have. With the recut sails I raked the mast forward about 2 inches and the boat goes to weather about 5 degrees higher and just as fast.
I love the boat because it best fits my needs. I spend a great deal of time sailing compared to the amount of time I race. In the ocean with big swell and chop it is a hard boat to beat for fun and comfort. I have a setups for 8.5 and 10 ft beam. 10 ft is fun but kind of a pain and really stresses the hulls in big wind.(Ask me how I know). I would love to get my hand on one of the later year boats with the larger diamiter beams and epoxy layup.
I have 2 spins. Neither work well on the boat(anybody want a spin cheap). If I were to consider moving to a spin again I would consider changing the jib to a SC22 type setup where you could tack the jib low and a mid pole snuffer(Cleanup the tramp,simpler sets and jibes, easier on the crew(wife)).

I've give some of what I know. First the 5.5 and the 6.0 are identical from the front beam back. There's about a ten inch difference between the two boats. It would seem that to make the 6.0 they just added ten inches to the front of the 5.5. So we have the problem with the 6.0. The front beam is not at the center of the hulls. It's about 10

s farther back. This places the mast behind the center of the hull. Then they put this roachy main on the boat which combines to greatly load the rudders.

Now off the wind this setup won't hurt your speed as the 6.0 owned a lot of distance records. Sail area and powerful bows.

The 6.0 sails best with the mast straight up, almost no rake. If you try to rake the mast back you'll just increase the load on the rudders which translates into drag.

Now some of us got tornado sails which if layed on top of a stock main are about 14

shorter mid girth. So now assuming you had your helm balanced with the stock main in order to maintain that same helm or balance of the boat you have to rake back. Is it faster with a T main that is raked back? Depends on the wind, sailing double or single etc. Funny thing I'm still messing with the rake and lately I've tried to go a little farther back and I noticed the boat slow down a lot. This boat like the mast more upright pressuring the bows.

Now the 5.5 has the front beam at the mid point so the boat is better balanced to start with. Frankly the 5.5's dpn should make a very tough boat to beat if it's well sailed. I've seen a friend on one sail away from a well sailed Nacra 6.0.

I think the T chute works great on the 5.5. The T chute is mainly designed to sail deep. The 5.5 has a powerful jib ( the same jib as the 6.0) so when reaching you have a powerful sail plan. The F-18's have little jibs good for going upwind but they lack for reaching. They compensate for this with flatter chutes.

Now what's better is up to the type of sailing you do. Since like Jeff I do more general sailing than racing I like the larger jib that furls and the fuller chute. This gives me the all-around boat that I want.

The rudders. First the later version of the Mystere rudders are copies of a T shape. Not the design but the shape. So they are a good shape. From what I've seen on the 5.5 there is enough adjustment to rake the rudders forward to get a good feel on the helm even with a fair amount of mast rake. The 6.0 is a different story. The rudders have the delrin inserts so re drilling the pivot points is difficult. Then they use some light weight filler instead of foam inside so they're not very strong. This weakness shows up in a hurry if you try to rake them forward. Almost every set I've seen cracks where it rests in the lower casting. Another problem is the tiller arms are short. They're like a foot long. They have to be so they don't hit the back beam when up. So a little weather helm is going to feel like a lot because of the lack of leverage you have.

What to do? If your's works use it, otherwise invest in another system. Mine is a Nacra system with Nacra rudders. It's not ideal but it works and is strong. One issue is I've lost 7 inches of in the water rudder blade compared to the Mystere blades, but I have tiller arms that are longer which I like.

Mike,
Other way around. They cut the length of the 6.0 to make the 5.5. Off the bow and the top of the mast.
The newer blades have repositioned holes. Much better but still bad. I just broke another one this weekend when it did not kick up.
The later year 6.0's had the center boards moved back about 3 inches. This reduced weather helm.

I wasn't sure about which one came first. I though the 5.5 came before the 6.0.

Mike,
Have you found a good source for Jibs? Mine are getting pretty beat.

No, mine are the same way. A friend that works at JSI just bought a M 6.0. He's looking at some new sails. Might be a discount to get more than one made.

Let me know what he finds out. I have a North jib that is in Ok shape but horizontal battens and not so good for furling. My Bob Johnson sail is starting to feel like an 85' H16 main. Not sure if I want to go mylar for the jib. The Dacrons have held up better for fun sailing.