Here's some before and after shots of my latest functional improvement to jib sheet handling (not necessarily in before-after order as attached). The before pics show the original jam cleat in the original location, and the big hefty cam cleat that some previous owner added. The after pics show my relocation of the cam cleats, close to the winch, on a riser block, angled for easier handling. For some reason they put those cam cleats way aft on the coaming, and with no riser blocks. A really awkward location and mounting. Everything is in the way - the tiller, any passengers one might have in the cockpit, the coaming itself due to the angle of sheet from winch to cam cleat (can't get sheet into cleat with one hand if there's any tension on it). The reach is awkward. To get a solid pull on the sheet was awkward. I hadn't used a handle on the winch but that would be awkward too because of the distance from winch to cleat. Having tested the mod last few days out sailing, it is WAY better, for reasons that I think will be obvious from the pics. Angle, reach, location, height, ability to pull hard and get sheet in cam with one hand. Big thanks to Dave Scobie for the raw material that I made the risers out of (some scrap 1" brown starboard from his shop)! A nice bonus was that the fasteners for the cam cleats were way longer than needed for the original mounting, and just the right length for the new mounting on the riser blocks. cheers, John S. -- John Schinnerer - M.A., Whole Systems Design -------------------------------------------- - Eco-Living - Whole Systems Design Services People - Place - Learning - Integration john@eco-living.net - 510.982.1334 http://eco-living.net http://sociocracyconsulting.com
