New sprit rig for Speedwell

As some may recall, I’ve been looking to replace the standard, 10 year old friendly, marconi rig with a traditional sprit sail. The plan was to make the spars and order a suitable sail. But I saw a Thread on the WoodenBoat Forum where a Cape Cod member had an extra rig that needed a good home. Consider it found.

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As it turns out, the rig is too long to sheet as a loose footed sail. The boat it was designed for was a similar length but the mast was stepped closer to the bow. The sheet here is tied around the rudder gudgeon and is at too steep an angle to be effective. Having the sail sheeting point within reach would make it worse. So I’ll make a sprit boom, set up like the peak sprit. It’ll be easier to sheet, using the existing traveler set-up.

There also needs to be a fitting made to accept the base of the new mast that will fit into the existing mast step. Wood noodling coming up.

The sail was made by Nat Wilson of East Boothbay, ME., one of the best traditional sail makers around.

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WoodenBoat Show pics from Mystic to follow.