I've looked up the aft side of the mast to ensure it is straight and not a C or S shape.
What, should I be looking for? And up what side of the mast?
I clearly don't know what I'm doing.
I didn't realized there was a difference between pre-bend and rake.
I'm sure this is self explanatory to some people. Unfortunately, I'm not one of them.
Now, this part makes sense. This I get.
While pondering this, it occurred to me, that it's probably pretty easy to get this "measurement" of rake wrong. The idea of hanging a weight and measuring the distance aft if hangs has one HUGE problem. How is the boat sitting in the water? Simply by shifting some of my cargo forward, I could greatly change the measurement, without actually adjusting the rigging. Not to mention, you would get different measurements based on the height of the boom. If that is true, how do I know if I really have too much bend, or rake?