Complete step-by-step instructions for setting up your GP14 sailboat
Perfect for new GP14 sailors and experienced racers looking for easier rigging methods
Because the GP14 is not a true one-design boat, it has many variations in the way it can be rigged, although this has become more standardised in recent boats.
This guide is designed not only for those new to the Class but also to help more experienced sailors find easier ways to operate their boat. While it's impossible to represent all possible rigging combinations, these examples will help you understand your boat's rigging system.
For most, this is a 2-person job
Before fitting the mast, ensure that all rope ends are present (not lost in mast!) and are not tangled. This is best done with mast vertical.
Stand mast vertical beside boat and lift into boat. Ensure its base is correctly slotted in.
Lean mast aft and fit each shroud in turn in the marked holes (yes, you did mark them at the end of last season, didn't you?).
Return mast to vertical and check that mast is approx. 25mm aft of mast gate position with shrouds taut.
Push mast forward and engage mast gate.
Check mast pre-bend by pulling down main halyard tight to gooseneck.
The gap between mast and halyard should be 15-20mm
If not correct, move shroud pins up (to reduce bend) or down until setting is correct.
Attach forestay using the pin most forward of the two on the bow deck. This should be fitted using rope as the main attachment with a piece of parallel shock cord to prevent sag when tension is applied to rig.
The front (luff) of the foresail should be attached to the boat using the rear of the two pins on the bow deck. After it has been raised, the jib wire must be tensioned to a pre-set value, which causes the mast to straighten and the shrouds to become taut.
Correct rig tension is essential to prevent luff sag and to maintain the necessary amount of mast bend.
Normal Rig Tension
400 lbs
Measured on the shroud
Maximum Rig Tension
350 lbs
Without mast step conversion
CAUTION! Highfield levers are notorious for finger injuries!
Operation:
Note: Some boats have the lever system inverted (push up to tension - more difficult)
Modern boats use a multi-purchase pulley system which has superseded the Highfield lever.
Advantages:
Pro Tip: Mark the positions of the wire loop at various tension levels on the mast using permanent ink or a self-adhesive calibration scale. Use a rig tension gauge to obtain correct settings initially.
The use of a jib rather than a genoa requires cleats which are closer to the centre of the boat than for a genoa, and they are sheeted inside rather than outside the shrouds.
Through-deck sheeting: When threading the genoa sheet, remember to feed the rope through the below-deck pulley before threading it through the side deck hole.
The traveller position is set so that when fully sheeted in, an imaginary continuation of the genoa sheet from traveller to sail luff intersects the luff midway up its length.
To Check Setting:
There are a number of alternative rigging possibilities including the use of centre or transom main, the use of wire or rope halyard and kicker, and various possibilities for positioning of kicker and outhaul controls.
Traditional system with mainsheet attached at transom
The tails of the mainsheet hawses are normally whipped into the mainsheet
Using a looped wire pulled through the mast by rope tail (as for the jib halyard) and retained by securing the loop on a toothed rack.
View: Lower end of mast showing rope tail, wire loop and toothrack
By use of a full rope halyard using Dynema or Kevlar. This is retained with a clam on the mast and is pulled up via a pulley below.
View: Lower end of mast showing rope, cleat and pulley
The kicker is a multi-purchase pulley system which controls the boom (prevents it lifting) and allows the shape of the mainsail to be altered to suit varying wind conditions. It does this by tightening the leech of the sail and applying mast bend.
Racing Importance:
For racing, it is important that the kicker is accessible to the helm at all times since this control plays a vital part in efficient sail trimming. The boat is normally rigged so that kicker controls come to the seat on each side of the boat.
Note regarding re-installing kicker: Where 2 control lines are used for the kicker and Cunningham, make sure before attaching kicker to mast that the kicker assembly is correctly routed between the two lines.
Installation Tip: It is easier to install the kicker if the boom is installed in the gooseneck and held in a horizontal position by temporarily attaching main halyard.
This is a device providing extra flattening for the mainsail in heavy weather and consists of a rope with a loop on the end which passes through the eye or pulley on the luff of the mainsail approx. 300mm above the gooseneck.
The Cunningham only tends to be used in hiking conditions (heavy weather)
This guide concentrates on the use of 2:1 gearing for the spinnaker halyard. Some people have used 1:1 and others have used 4:1, but 2:1 is the norm.
The use of twinning lines is well established and a great aid to racing, but can be considered optional for cruising.
In order to facilitate rapid hoisting, the halyard is normally hoisted using 2:1 gearing. This allows the helm to hoist the sail most or all of the way up in a single pull.
Series 1 Boats (Typical)
Pulley and ring system running up the forestay
Halyard normally cleated on centreboard casing
Series 2 Boats (Most)
Pulley running along the bottom of the boat
Allows faster hoisting (less rope). Halyard runs via floor-mounted pulley beneath transom to floor-mounted cleat
Pro Tip: When attaching the sail to the halyard, use a stopper knot and bobble approx. 100mm from the attached sail to keep the sail away from the mast.
It is normal to use a tapered sheet consisting of thick rope with two thinner tails. The sheets pass behind the crew and across the boat via cleats on each side.
These cleats are rarely used when racing, but are very useful when cruising.
Twinning lines are optional for cruising but considered essential for racing since they permit rapid setting of the sail and prevent contact between pole and genoa luff.
The stopper knot on the spinnaker sheet (which allows the sheet to be controlled by a stainless steel ring tied to the twinning line) should be set so that the pole is approximately 50mm from the genoa luff with the pole at its highest position and the line fully engaged.
Special Note for Through-Deck Sheeting:
With through-deck sheeting, a knot cannot be used. It is normal to either use cotton whipping on the spinnaker sheet or, with tapered sheets, to set the twinners so they are correct when the bobble is stopped by the change in rope diameter.
The pole should be adjustable so that it can be raised from low position (horizontal) to high position (90 degrees to genoa luff). Normal rigging uses a rope uphaul and elastic downhaul.
Tie elastic (below front deck) to the pole loop rope and run it via a single pulley to a fixing point on the boat floor. Use a suitably positioned stopper knot in the rope below the front deck to limit pole height in high winds.
The uphaul control should be accessible to the helm (or crew if preferred) and is normally positioned on the centreboard casing.
The loop in which the pole sits should be just big enough for the pole to fit at its broadest. The loop should form the upper end of the lower rope (the one connected to the elastic) and should be attached to the uphaul by a thumbknot and loop which is untied during de-rigging.
Advantage:
This means that the pole does not have to be removed from the loop during de-rigging and that carefully set rope-length settings are maintained.
It is normal to stow the pole with the front hanging from its loop and its rear in a double plastic covered wire sling attached to the boom.
Author: Maurice Cooper
Published: June 2010
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