Equipping a Catamaran with the standing and running rigging with a Leopard 46'.

On a monohull or a catamaran, it is possible to sail with the four sheet system. On the Leopard 46 catamaran, the two tack lines have been replaced with a continuous tackline controlled from the pair of mast stem winches. The reason for this is to avoid line crouding in the cockpit, and to avoid rigging more guides and jammers where there is limited space in the pilot station. The continuous tack line system is easy to use with a crew on the foredeck. For your rigging requirements on your sailboat contact me by clicking here........ 

The sheets

The sheets are simple to rig. On the port side from the primary winch across through the guide blocks to the 100mm Black Majic block for the sheet and outside the guardrail and shrouds to the sail clews. On the starboard side, straight from the winch, to the 100mm Black Magic sheet block and then outside to the clew of the sail. Simpe shock cord suspenders keep the block off the deck when not loaded. Straphead blocks can replace the shackle system. The are lighter, strong, and not noisy on the deck.

Equipment - 2 of 25m 12mm yacht braid; two 100mm Harken Black Magic blocks code 3007 (or Straphead 3015). Shock cord keeps the unloaded blocks off the deck.

The Tack Lines

The continuous tackline worked well for us. It goes from the clew, through the bow block, across the deck turning vertically through the mastbase block, onto the winch. We then fed it around the front of the mast to the winch on the other side, and mirrored the same on the other side. The padeyes on the bow and mastbase are fitted standard by R&C and can take 10 tons or so of load. The mastbase padeyes are used for snatch blocks for reefing the mainsail, but when you have the Parasailor up, the mainsail is stowed well away. Use the shock cord suspenders to keep the blocks off the deck when not under load. We used the cleats on the mast and the stainless guardrail at the bow to loop the suspenders through.

Four 75mm Harken Black Magic single swivel blocks (Code 1969) or Straphead blocks (code 1999). We don't like standup blocks as they limit the flexibility of the block orientation. R&C standard padeyes are fitted only. Four shock cord suspenders. 30m of one continuous 12mm yacht braid for the tack lines. Straphead blocks - quiet and strong.

Some images of the system at work

St Helena to port. Fernando de Noronha, Brazil- appears out of the haze