Cabot 36 Weather Helm ???

Hi Guys,

It's me again, with a question.

I've heard some rumors from the guys at YachtSmiths, that the Cabot 36 has a bit of a weather helm. And, I've been told that at least one owner has moved the forestay out onto a small bowsprit which either corrected this situation, or at least improved it. I'd love to know how far the forestay was moved up, and whether this balanced the helm, or simply reduced the weather helm.

One of the decisions I'm faced with, in the addition of the pilothouse, is do I trim a bit off the bottom of the main sail. The pilothouse is two feet taller than the cabin top. Based on the original drawings, I would still have clearance below to boom, as it was originally drawn, though not a whole lot. If the boat does, in fact have a weather helm, trimming say a foot off the bottom of the main, may not be a bad thing.

Any thoughts or comments ???

Thanks,
Mike