@flipwalker ok I get what you’re going for I think but I do believe you’re headed in the wrong direction with tuning. It sounds like your new to sailing and the C22 so first you need to understand why tuning is important and when its needed.
First tuning is just rig tension. The most important parts are making sure your mast is straight and “in column” with the boat. This is done once with a tape measure when you set the boat up for the season and then checked if you’re going to race. So long as the stays are on the boat and the pins are in then the mast will stay up. Everything else is simply fine tuning of the boat. Generally a properly tuned boat will make about 2 deg. better to windward (or more) for racing. Having the adjustable backstay allows you to remove the head stay sag when making windward progress and then add that sag back in for better downwind performance. Our boats are a mast head rig so rake is set initially while the boat is in the water and the backstay adjuster has little or nothing to do with it as it is simply pulling against the head stay.
Those are the fundamentals and they become very important to racers. I know because I both race and cruise my boat. However it does not sound like you’re a racer at this point (the bug may bite). If you’re simply a trailer sailor looking for a good time don’t over complicate this. Rig the mast with all rings instead of cotter pins for all pins and turnbuckles. If your cables are bottomed out then yes thy need to be replaced. Will they come apart as soon as you take the boat out likely not unless you’re out in 15+ winds but most avoid this wind speed that I have encountered here. Set the backstay to be adjusted half way for its turn buckle length, attach the uppers and aft lowers and put the mast up. Then attach the forward lowers and the forestay (head stay). Use a tape measure to make sure the mast is straight from side to side. If you don’t have a tape measure then use the halyard making sure it hits the deck at the same point on both sides of the boat.
Next launch the boat and hang a weight (wrench works) from the mast to set the rake. Tighten the backstay and loosen the head stay till you have 4-8 inches of rake. This cannot be done on the trailer as the boat is not “on her lines” and floating properly. Most of these boats are stern heavy. Once the rake is set tighten the lowers so they are sung but not too tight. The goal is equal tension all the way around. Then tighten the forestay until its tight to eliminate as much head stay sag as you can without it being super tight. Go sailing and you should see the leeward shrouds all fall sloppy loose. If they are tight your rig is to tight so back them off a turn or so when you put the boat away and check them on the next trip.
At the end of the day loosen the forestay and the 2 forward lowers only to drop the mast. If you pinned the other turn buckles then you will not need to mess with them again for the season. It’s more to type than it is to describe by far. As for releasing the mast follow Stingy sailor and use the mainsheet or the boom vang to hold the mast. Pull tight and the shrouds should almost loosen up. If you want a quicker path go with the quick release turnbuckles from CD. There spendy but I can’t find them anywhere else.
Once you have done this once or twice you will be able to rig the boat in about an hour. I know because it take me about that long alone at the start of the season and I slowly get faster thought summer until the snow flies and I forget everything again. There is no need to use a tension gauge and tune the rig unless you want peak performance. If that’s the case and you want to start racing let me know. You’ll want that backstay adjuster and a few other things to get the boat moving faster. The C22 tech manual has some great article about getting max performance on these boats for the race course and I highly recommend them. If you really want an education join the association at nationals and just talk with the other sailors. It’s a family friendly group and a great time. You’ll learn more in a week with them than in 10 years on these forums.
I hope this helps and if you have other questions let us all know. Not many (any?) c22 racers here that I know of but there are on the FB group and a few other places when and if the bug should bite you. Have fun sailing and don’t sweat the small stuff.
