Dodger on a Tall Rig

[Mike and Joanne Stimmler]

Has anyone put a dodger on a tall rig? I recently had a bimini made for our boat and was considering a dodger too but never realized how low the boom is and it seems impractical to do it. I'm assuming that all tall rigs have a lower boom than standard rigs.

Mike

[BillG]

Actually, I think the mast on a tall rig is approximately 2 ft taller than the standard. I have a tall rig and have no problem with my dodger, thought everyone had one. 

[Steve Sayian]

Mike,

The 1988 Owners Manual (can view it under "Manuals") shows that the tall rig mast is 2 feet taller.  There doesn't appear any difference in the gooseneck position for either the tall or standard rig.

I was on a tall rig a few weeks ago and the boom was about the same height as my standard rig.

May want to find a standard rig boat and take some measurements to be sure.

Steve

[Phil Spicer]

Mike: I have a tall rig. Thought my boom was lower than the standard rig after seeing a standard rig with dodger & bimini, both withboom clearance. The owner said the bimini was a little over 6' tall and no change to the boom or sail. To do that on my tall rig I cut the foot of the main at an angle so the back of the boom is above the bimini. I did not move the gooseneck. So now the boom has a slight uphill angle to it. Do not remember if I cut 8 or 12" off the back edge, whatever it took to clear the bimini. I am only 5'8 or 5'9 tall. On my boat the boom could hit me, and I am short. The boom cleared me om the 27, but not on the 34. Strange!!! So on my tall rig the boom is low. I made the change that worked for me.

[Phil Spicer]

Mike: I forgot about the dodger. It is low ,about the height of my chin, so my wife can see over it when she docks. Yes......she docks, not me, she likes it that way.
So our dodger may be a little low for some, but it works for us. Do you want to look under or over the dodger? Solve that question then start to build.

[Mike and Joanne Stimmler]

Thanks for all the replies. My bimini stops just short of the boom and if I wind up getting a dodger later on,
     I would definitely be looking over it. I'll see how it goes with just the bimini for now.

Mike

[Braxton]

I have a tall rig with a dodger and a bimini.   The dodger and bimini have a piece of sunbrella with a plastic window insert that connect the two.   I'll try and take some measurements and pics this weekend to share.   The system works well but you have to make sure you duck when going under the dodger.

[Stu Jackson]

Mike, among others, see reply #7, here:  http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,3329.0.html

[Mike and Joanne Stimmler]

Stu, thanks for the reference back to last years thread which I remember very well. As you can see, I did a lot of research on the dodger and bimini but the finances weren't up to par at that time so this year I deiced to go with the bimini first, just to get some relief from the sun this summer and then consider the dodger next year. When I did the research, the issue never came up about the boom height because I just ASSUMED mine was like everyone else's. The guy doing by bimini brought it to my attention that my low boom may make a dodger impractical. The price quotes I got last year were all desk quotes because there are so many Catalinas in the area.
I know you said that you opted for a low dodger but I think that was by choice, so you can look over the dodger and not because of a low boom.

I wound up not using Marshal Murphy simply because he was booked up past august and I wanted the bimini for the summer.
Instead I went with Travis Freeman, known as "That Canvas Guy" here in San Diego and I'm very happy with his work. The total came to just over $1700. and included a window panel in order to be able to see the top of the mast and a cover for the window. I had origionally wanted to be able to fold the bimini up and cover it with a boot but Travis advised against that with having the window panel.

George Sedgwick, did you ever get your canvas work done and if so who did you use?

I'm going to check with Catalina on Monday to find out about about the boom height issue but from the other posts it looks like the low boom is normal for the tall rig.

Thanks everyone for the responses,
Mike

[Rick Johnson]

Mike,

I sent you an email with the dodger drawings I got from Catalina.  Not sure if it will help.

Cheers,

Rick

[Mike and Joanne Stimmler]

OK, I finally called Catalina to find out about the boom height and was told that although the mast is taller on the tall rig, the gooseneck is the same height as the standard rig which is 37 inches from the deck at the mast.
So, when I went to the boat last weekend I measured the distance on the mast from the coach roof to the gooseneck and it was indeed 37 inches.
I was able to adjust the topping lift to get the boom at a respectable height (above my head so as to not get coldcocked) but this was at the dock and I understand that the topping lift should be released when sailing so either this is normal that the boom hangs low when sailing (I don't think so) or my sail has been measured incorrectly when replaced by the P O or that the sail is not going all the way to the top of the mast. Actually, I have noticed that there is sometimes a small amount of slack in the luff of the main but not enough to account for a 12 inch drop in boom height.
I'll have to recheck the main under actual sailing conditions the next time I'm at the boat. I guess if I had a solid vang I wouldn't have to worry about it but that hasn't surfaced to the to the top of my to do list yet.
I'll let you know what I find and as always, any ideas are welcome

Mike

[Stu Jackson]

Mike, it would seem that checking the sail at the dock may be superior than trying it underway.  This way you could make measurements.  Using the boom vang to keep up the main isn't preferred, since it'd drop when it came across and you wouldn't get any sail shape.  I think you may be onto something about the cut of the sail.

[Mike and Joanne Stimmler]

Yes Stu, Phil Spicer in a reply above also mentioned that he trimed the foot of his sail to get the boom raised to a usable height. I wonder if both of our P O's had the same sailmaker.
I also want to confirm that my sail is getting to the very top of the mast.

I also purchased a prime Climb Mast ladder system that slides into the sailtrack grove and I haven't had a chance to try it out yet. I've been wanting to see why I don't have a anchor loght among other things.

[BillG]

I was amazed how much higher my boom was when I replaced my original main with a new one this year.  i attributed that to  20 years of stretching.

[Ken Juul]

I had a triangle of material removed from the foot of my 16 year old sail a few years ago to get the boom off my bimini/dodger.  Took approximately 12" off at the clew.  The Dacron sails do stretch!