Barbers
A few members of the JOD community have commented on the fact that we use barbers on Dinah to restore the most efficient shape after changing to the non-overlapping jibs. The system we came up with seems to work well, was relatively cheap, and didn’t need any new holes in the boat for fittings.
Back in the cockpit we use the upper jib sheet lead block for the barber control. The cleat built in to the block holds the load no problem. The barber is made long enough so that it can be led to the weather winch, allowing the barber to be adjusted easily even when the sheet is fully loaded. In the pic below you can see the green barber control line in its block. The whipping on the line marks the most common barber positions.
Further forward, we lashed a turning block to the front of the jib car track. The barber leads forward just above the jib car adjuster, and turns through the block, up to the base of the mast. At the base of the mast we shackled a block and beckett. The green barber line goes from that block to a ring and back to the beckett. The jib sheet leads through the ring, so the barber line pulls the ring (and thereby the sheet load) inboard as more pressure is put on the barber.
It’s simple, cheap, quick to install… and I find it makes a massive difference upwind.
