Rigging traps?

I have 4 trap wires (two sets) and am getting ready to rig the business ends so need some help and advice.

What kind of trap rigs do you guys use?

What do you recommend?

Is it important to you to be able to adjust on the fly or is a basic rig with a little block and simple rope stop the way to go (seems this basic rig is shown in most of the catalog pics)?

What about the "Double adjustable" rigs?- looks too complex, and more than I need.

I already have the parts to rig my traps in either the "Standard" (with little blocks and rope stops) or the "Deluxe" (with V-jam pulley) setups like those shown in the Hobie catalog.

On the standard rig I can see that you connect the retract bungee to the rope so that the rope and dog bone are retracted up to the block when that wire is not used.

How/where do you connect a bungee on the "Deluxe" rig since it uses a V-jam pulley cleat? and how does it retract? Do you have to "un-jam" it for it to retract and readjust/jam it each time you trap with that wire?

I'd stick with the basic setup. The less stuff you've got to go wrong the better. I'd also use the cable handles instead of the dog bones. Those things will brain you, hit you in the eye ans chip teeth.

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Most of the top racers I knew in the 80's & 90's (I haven't raced since then) used the stock system. I think the feeling was that if you made it to Nationals & were supplied a boat, you had to be used to the standard trap system provided.

That being said, I have used the "deluxe" system for years. I like it. I can really hang low, or in up-&-down wind conditions, stay higher. Since I like to single-hand, I can pull myself up higher and squat on the side bar without having to come all the way in. It's easier than getting all the way in & out.

Warning #1....I only found one line to work effectively, although the system I have is from the 1980's so the jam cleat might be different/better. Anyway, it was a gnarly lumpy looking line that was called Intrepid Line. Not cored, but coarsely braided. All other lines slipped. Which, by the way, will eventually will happen anyway. You may only drop a couple of inches, but it will feel like a mile.

I tied the bungee off to the dog-bone. I raised-up before swinging in. It became a habit and not hard to remember.

Warning #2...if you attach the bungee to the dog bone (like I do), you don't have a positive pull to keep the dog bone on the harness. You could lean back and find yourself in the drink.

Two reasons I didn't attach it to the line exiting the v-jam: 1. The bungee sometimes pulled the line enough to un-jam the line right before I went to trap-out. 2. Also the dog bone was dangling and could swing-about whacking me unmercifully. The wire type handles might be better (less mass), but still will swing-about.

Yes. It is more complicated, but I've gotten so used to the benefits during single handing that I don't mind.

I think most other people go with the simpler method.

Jon

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Sail Fast, Take Chances.

Jon,

Thanks for the thorough response. I think I have decided to start with the basic rig for now. I am still waiting on the small removable sheave blocks from Hobie. Once I get better at sailing and can trap fairly easily, I will experiment with an adjustable rig since I already have the most of the parts.

Just the other day I saw a picture of a rig, similar to the Hobie deluxe, where the V-jam pulley was mounted just below the trap handle, but only had a short amount of rope (just for fine tuning the trap height on the fly?). Small traveler (back-to-back) blocks, dog bone, rope stop, and bungee connection for coarse beach adjustment, were below that. Though there was only a single set of non-adjustable handles, that looked like a workable rig. You still had some adjust-on-the-fly capability, but also had bungee tension on the dog bone when trapping and almost full retract on everything when off the trap (the lower part of dog bone still hangs free).

Since I single hand most of the time, one alternative I'm considering is to rig one set of wires each way.

Comments?
How much can you adjust your dog bone height with the v-jam pulley? How much do you usually need to adjust it?

I will likely eventually switch over to soft dog bones.

FYI, I rigged my bungees similar to the diagram in the Hobie catalog; with the bungees crossing under the tramp three times, for plenty of stretch. The difference is, rather than having four single sheave blocks like Hobie, both my captain and crew bungees run through the same double sheave blocks, that I mounted, under and inside each rail.

Alan

I probably have 10-12" of adjustability. Even 8" makes a big difference.
It's great when you go to the foot loop near the rudder & need more length.

The double adjustable in the Hobie catalog looks intriguing, but I don't know any one who's used it. I haven't seen the one you're talking about.

As an aside, I have shortened my trap wires (as the Hobie double adjustable suggests), but only because I'm cheap. When I notiec a fray below the handle, I cut the wire and nicro-pressed on another thimble. Then I made a short pig-tail, thimble-to thimble with the trap wire. Put the handle on the pig tail.

People were always throwing out used wires at the beach I used to sail at. I'd scavenge them for other uses. Shrouds can become new forestays, etc...

If you're good at trapping out, or intend to get good. And if you single hand a lot....do get the adjustables. Here they are in-use:

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Sail Fast, Take Chances.

I was looking at Annapolis Performance Sailing & came across ths adjustable. It sounds interesting. Not too expensive. It's also not a 2-1 lifting advantage (like others).

http://www.apsltd.com/Tree/d3000/e764.asp

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Sail Fast, Take Chances.

Now that is a neat idea! Looks like it would be very effective, and a relatively simple mechanism. Unless you push the button to let the bungee retract the dog bone each time you unhook, you still have a problem with the dog bone flopping around, though.