Crossjack yard - generally did not carry a sail?

[Landlubber Mike]

Hi everyone,

 

I've been adding furled sails to the yards of my Caldercraft Brig Badger, and am a bit confused on what to do with the main yard.  The instructions say that the main yard is rigged as a crossjack, and later say that because it is rigged as a crossjack, there are no buntlines, cluelines, sheets or tacks rigged to it.  This got me confused as to how the main course would be bent to the yard if the yard didn't have this rigging and the associated blocks.

 

Tonight my copy of the Swan Class Volume 4 book arrived in the mail, and when flipping through it, I saw that the author mentions how one of the yards (I believe on the mizzen mast) is rigged as a crossjack and therefore carried no sails.  So a light went on in my dim head that maybe that's why the Badger's main yard lacks all that rigging and blocks.  If this is the case, I wish this light went on a couple of days ago before I spent hours furling the sail to the main yard 

 

I went back to my copy of Chapelle's "Search for Speed Under Sail" which discusses the Badger (or at least a number of ships during that period that were called the Badger), and has both a sail plan for a ship along with a picture of a model with both furled and full sails.  The sail plan looks to be the one that Caldercraft used in creating the kit.  Both the sail plan (below) and the model show four yards attached to the main mast, the fourth being referred to on the sail plan as the "main yard or spreader yard."

 

 

Chapelle goes on to say:  "The rig of the Badger [as shown in the sail plan] was that of a brigantine, to which an improvised main course had been added.  The main-topsail was sheeted to a spread yard, on a horse, as in a contemporary cutter's square topsail.  The course was laced to a crossjack of almost the same length as the spread yard. This yard was hoisted into the gored foot of the main-topsail, secured to the mast only with the yard's halyards.  It is possible that no braces were fitted to this yard, as it could be controlled by those of the spread yard.  The rig allowed the course and topsail to be lowered to the deck without interfering with the spanker."  By this description, I'm assuming that the main mast yards from top to bottom were the main topgallant, main topsail, main course, and spreader yard?

Edited October 30, 2013 by Landlubber Mike

[Landlubber Mike]

So I guess my question now is, if I decide to stick with the Caldercraft instructions, should I go ahead and remove the furled sail from the main yard?  I think I'm too far into the model right now to figure out how to rig it correctly with the spreader yard.  Chapelle's book has the sail plan for the Brig Swift from 1778, which is very similar to the Badger, and the plan does not show a main course.  So, I think only adding furled sails to the main topgallant and main topsail yards would be consistent with other similar vessels of that time period. 

 

Thanks very much in advance for any guidance or opinions.  I guess I'm getting what I deserved by going down the sail route

[Jim Lad]

Mike,

 

Note that Chapelle explains that an Improvised main course had been added.  It certainly wasn't usual at this period ant the lower yard was used simply to spread the foot of the topsail.  Chapelle also describes the improvised yard as being set 'flying' so it would only be there when the sail was set.

 

John

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks very much John, this is very helpful information.  I take it that the main yard would not hold a furled course then?

 

So it looks like if I stick with the instructions, and keep the lower yard rigged as a crossjack with no furled sail, the sail plan would look similar to the Collier sail plan (and I found a picture of the Lady Washington with sails set that seems to have no main course):

 

 

 

 

Just out of curiosity, if I went with the spreader yard and a modified main yard, how would these be rigged?  It looks like the main yard would no longer hold the clews down on the main topsail, so I would think that those blocks would be on the spreader yard.  And then the main yard would have to be modified to hold the main course?  Probably all moot if I am showing my model with furled sails, but just curious.

 

Thanks very much again John for your post and in advance for any answers you might have to these questions!

 

Mike

Edited October 31, 2013 by Landlubber Mike

[Jim Lad]

Mike,

 

The best way to think of a yard set flying is to think of it as just a stick across the top of the sail to hold it out.  That sail would be furled by simply letting go the halliards and dropping the whole lot down on deck.  When the sail wasn't set there'd be no evidence of it ever having been there (apart from a sheave for the halliard.

 

John

[Landlubber Mike]

Hi John, thanks so much for that explanation.  That makes a lot of sense.  So, it sounds like I shouldn't show a furled course on the main yard whichever direction I go - either including the spreader yard or not including the spreader yard.

 

If it's not too much to ask, how does the running rigging change if one goes with the spreader yard and the modified main yard like in the Chapelle plans?  In the kit instructions, the main yard has blocks for the sheets, lifts and braces.  With the spreader yard and modified main yard, from Chapelle it sounds like the blocks for the sheets are moved to the spreader yard (since the topsail is sheeted to the spreader yard, rather than the main yard).  Does the spreader yard have lifts and braces?  And does the modified main yard not include any blocks, except for those attached to the halyards? 

 

Thanks very much again in advance.

 

Mike

[Jim Lad]

Yes, Mike, the main yard would only carry the halliard and (possibly) braces.

 

John

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks again John!