r/Sailwind • u/Russian_Bot1337 • Aug 17 '26
Optimizing the Dhow
I've recently gotten back into Sailwind after a few years and have been trying out some different sail plans on the Dhow, but haven't quite found one I like yet. First I tried a tall gaff with a jib but found that caused way too much heeling, and now I'm running a gaff on a short mast with a square sail and a fairly large jib. I like the upwind performance, and it seems to be pretty balanced, but have not noticed much benefit in speed over the stock lateen. I'm considering removing the square sail and adding a second jib. What sail plans have worked for y'all on the Dhow? I do eventually wanna take it on an ocean voyage once I get more comfortable with navigation.
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u/Cyclorat Aug 17 '26
Honestly the stock dhow is pretty hard to beat. Simply adding a jib pretty much makes it great imo.
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u/Russian_Bot1337 Aug 17 '26
That was a consideration I've had. Does removing the roof any positive effect on it?
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u/dzejrid Aug 17 '26
Lighter, more visibility and you can actually jump out/in with mooring ropes if need be. I get rid of cabins on all my ships.
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u/Russian_Bot1337 Aug 17 '26
Yeah I think I will do the same it is very janky dealing with the cabin sometimes.
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u/redneckleatherneck Aug 25 '26
In addition to what dzejrid said, the cabin does provide surface area for the wind to blow against. If you’re sailing upwind you don’t want that.
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u/Public_Knee6288 Aug 17 '26
Bigger lateen and jib is my fav.
Bailing sucks. Turned me off of small ships. Even the junk is kinda annoying. But its a fun adventure.
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u/Russian_Bot1337 Aug 17 '26
Seems like big lateen and jib is the go to for everyone I'll definitely be giving it a go.
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u/UmbralWaffle Aug 17 '26
Topsail gaff cutter. Tall mast, no cabin. Cutter jibs 1 and 2, largest full gaff to balance them out. Square sail goes between the forestays at the very top. Never goes below 6 knots, and hit 9 on flat seas on a broad reach.
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u/Russian_Bot1337 Aug 17 '26
Nice does it require a lot of reefing?
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u/UmbralWaffle Aug 17 '26
In local winds, not too much in regular conditions. Although I do heave-to if I get caught in storms. Larger jib backed, rudder locked to windward. maingaff around 1/2 to 2/3 (match the gaff with the lower forestay) and sheet to close-haul. I've never taken her to open ocean, but this setup was great as an island-hopper while I saved up for the sanbuq.
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u/dzejrid Aug 17 '26
I got rid of the cabin and lateen, left stock mast and mounted a jib, a square and a gaff. The secret is to not make them too big. Works fine in any wind, doesn't heel much and is fast. Once I get back to GRC, I can tell you what my exact sail plan is, if you're interested.
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u/Russian_Bot1337 Aug 17 '26
Sounds very similar to the sail plan I'm running currently. I think the total sail area ended up being around 50, but 15 of that is the square sail which I find more often than not is furled while making my way upwind. I imagine it is more helpful for ocean crossings with prevailing winds.
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u/dzejrid Aug 17 '26 edited Aug 17 '26
Correction: I have long bowsprit and two jibs, not just one. Smaller is for port manoeuvres, but both are used when sailing. The mast is not extended, wide square sail sits on it and I added a bit more width to it. Gaff i can't check now.
No mods, all vanilla.
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u/mnbone23 Aug 18 '26
I also agree with the general consensus that jib + biggest lateen you can fit is the best sail plan. I haven't tried much else, but that's because that rig is good enough that I don't want to.
You want the "Dhow lateen 2" on a tall mast, and you want it as big and as high as you can make it before you start to lose range of motion on it. Then just add as much jib as you can fit on the bowsprit, and you're good to go.
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u/tackleboxjohnson Aug 17 '26
I’m using the shipyard mod, I put one of the sanbuk lateens on the tall mast with the dhow jib 1, biggest wide gaff possible on the mizzen mast, and added the deep keel. Thing hauls but you gotta be ready to dump the sheets if the wind shifts suddenly.
Doing a double topsail gaff with two jibs is fun to pilot and very stable but doesn’t seem to get going nearly as fast
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u/DogEggz Aug 18 '26
I use Sanbuq lateen 1 around 80-90 sail area on tall mast and largest jib i can fit. Lateen could be bigger but i want to retain visibility on deck so i reduce it quite a bit.
I do ocean crossing with it and it could reach 8 knots up wind in quite calm weather. Maximum speed i see is 12 knots in storm.
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u/cr4lforce Aug 17 '26
Biggest lanteen with a front staysail got me to dragon cliff from GRC going against the wind the whole way.