Does my forestay need to be tightened

Oct 7, 2016
68
Hunter 356 Little Creek, Norfolk VA
I sailed my new to me hunter 356 for the first time i any real wind this sunday.

I noticed some movement in the fore stay which can be seen on the youtube link.

I think the wind was 13 to 18 knots. We were motor sailing and doing about 8 knots. I was in a hurry to beat the weather as i was moving the boat from topping va to its new home in norfolk.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 
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Oct 3, 2006
1,003
Hunter 23 Philadelphia
There are plenty of B&R experts on here - I'm not one of them

But in general, I think you'll find that you set the forestay length (subsequently, the mast rake), and then apply shroud tension

On your boat, tensioning the shrouds is not necessarily straightforward; get someone who knows that rig to help ( they may have to go aloft!)

Yes, shortening the forestay will increase tension, but it also changes mast rake and sailing characteristics.
 
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Mar 26, 2011
3,401
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
With a B&R rig (and most multihulls) some of the the forestay tension comes from mainsheet tension. If you want tight forestay for weather work, reef the main and keep it tight. There is no backstay and the raked shrouds can only do so much. A loose main sheet with a lot of twist just about insures a loose forestay. Another option is to reef the jib more, to reduce the pressure on the forestay. The right answer depends on the helm balance. Since you have wheel steering, mark the wheel at just a few degrees of helm each side, and go by that.

The main has a horrible draft-aft shape to it. I also see some putters near the mast, suggesting something is amiss with the in-mast furling, but I don't know much about them. I suspect it is something in the procedure, since the sails look new and the jib is fine.

Looks like fun! Not enough Chesapeake sailor go out off season, so good on you.
 
Jan 1, 2006
7,039
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
Yeah I think the forestay is a bit loose. It looks like the jib sheet tension is distorting the smooth curve of the forestay. I had a 356 but wouldn't consider myself expert in tuning it. I think more cap shroud tension will make your forestay tension better. But with the B&R rig one adjustment may mean others - some of which I found counter intuitive. Also it looks like your main outhaul should be more tight. I would guess a victim of a too stretchy outhaul line or sail. Selden tuning guides should be available on this site, or at least in past posts.
 
Oct 7, 2016
68
Hunter 356 Little Creek, Norfolk VA
Thx guys. It may well have to do more with my inexperience than anything to with the rig.
 
Oct 29, 2016
1,915
Hunter 41 DS Port Huron
The main was reefed about 20% I don't see anything wrong with the out haul, but the fore stay does look like it needs more tension.
Have a look first at the rake of the mast (too much aft and you induce weather helm), look at your mast athwartship and then finally look at the bend/prebend. How was the helm when you were sailing with those winds? lots of weather helm?
 
Oct 7, 2016
68
Hunter 356 Little Creek, Norfolk VA
I dont recall there being any significant weather helm. But unfortunately, beyond the short sea trial, this was really my first sail on her. And first on a boat with a wheel. I was so excited to be taking her home i could have missed anything. We were banging along at 8 to 9 knots motor sailing. Trying to beat the forecasted down pour.
 
Oct 29, 2016
1,915
Hunter 41 DS Port Huron
I can now better understand, the shape of the luff of the jib was being changed considerably with the fact that you were motoring, I would bet it wouldn't look near as dramatic under strictly sail power. I would sail her a few time before making any adjustments, but I would check the rake, bend and straightness of the mast.
 
Mar 20, 2004
1,729
Hunter 356 and 216 Portland, ME
Congratulations on your 356! Thinwater and shemandr hit a lot of the main points. On the B&R, you have to set the shrouds first and also have the sails trimmed properly to do an in-place evaluation.
Assuming the diamonds/cap shrouds are set up correctly, you should have about a 2" prebend with in-mast. Measure this by taking your main halyard or topping lift and holding it snug at the gooseneck; the max gap between it and the mast shows your prebend. too much will cause furling issues and a baggy main. the stock UK sail is pretty soft, and needs to be trimmed properly for best performance. In calm air, with the sail fully out, tighten the halyard until all of those luff wrinkles disappear. In 13-18 you should be reefed, at least the main - reef the main first. I reef the main and fly the full jib unless it's really blowing. the foot of the main should be tight to the boom and the sheet trimmed for proper flow. this will move the max draft further forward where it should be. Then use your traveler to control the main, easing it to reduce power and heel in puffs, and bringing it in to power up.Some forestay sag is normal, as is some bouncing - the mast is a pretty long lever arm and blasting thru waves can cause this. Once the mast and main are set, sail her - too much weather helm would indicate too much rake. the step by step tuning process guide is on the Selden website;it's hard to be definitive without hands on. She's a great boat, you 'll love sailing her! We've still got 15" of snow, more coming Sunday (sob!). Thanks for the video!
 
Jan 24, 2017
666
Hunter 34 Toms River Nj
I'm not an expert on your model, but It looks a little slack.
Questions?
Where you under full sail?
How did the boat feel, looked like it was a little unstable by the video.?
You might want to check the technical archives
Here. If no info can be obtained then find out the mast mfg, might be rig rite see if you can get a spec sheet. Someone here might be able to tell you for sure if its slack . My h34 gets a little slack in 18-20 knots however not that much and I'm usually reefed at that point. My B&R rig is quite a bit taller then yours and I have to reef or the boat gets over powered.
Agree with DayDreamer that to much bend will produce to much weather helm. Very temperamental rig. It's a fine line.

I would see how much mast bend you have now and how much weather helm you have with 10-15 knots full sail, before making any adjustments. 15-20 knots is a lot of wind under full sail for that boat. If you need to make any adjustments make them very gradually. B&R rigs react tremendously with very little adjustments.

Hope this helps
 
Oct 7, 2016
68
Hunter 356 Little Creek, Norfolk VA
Thx. That is a lot of good info. I am going to have to reread these comments a few times to digest everything. You are welcome to join me for some hands on here on the Chesapeake!
 
Mar 26, 2011
3,401
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
Lots of good comments.
  • If the sag was too much, the jib draft would be pushed aft, which I am not seeing.Some sag is normal in multies and B&R rigs. The sailmaker knows this and compensates for it (if he is smart).
And now you have a reason to go sailing again; all this advise to sort through, on the water.
 
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Feb 6, 2008
86
Hunter 41 Punta Gorda
When we took delivery of our new h41, we quickly found out if there was a gust near 15 kts you better hang onto the wheel with both hands. Later after talking with Selden and taking most of the 10" of rake out of the set up, the tendency to round up was minimal.
If you have too much bend it will be difficult to furl.
These are just general guide lines I have discovered after owning and racing the boat for 15 years.
 
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viper

.
Jul 31, 2016
131
Hunter 380 Cape Coral, Fl
I have a H380... with a lot of mast... Mast for Self furling has a pre bend of no more than 4". Anymore and furling problems occur more often.

The H380 is very tender, so mainsail furling at 15 knots is a must and your boat is similar in sailing characteristics.
My front stay has just a little less bend in the 15 knots and its new.
Main sheet looks OK to me also for a infurling, and you are under power, so not a time for any real diagnostics. Always keep some of the Genoa out when under power. better ride and better performance( there are always exceptions).

Boat looked in very good condition from what I can see,
The weather looked terrible, but then I'm in South Florida. LOL!
Regards,
Viper
 
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Oct 7, 2016
68
Hunter 356 Little Creek, Norfolk VA
Thx Viper. I will be glad to get more time under sail to get a better feel for the boat and rig. I am very excited.
 

AlexB

.
Aug 9, 2016
37
C&C 36 Great Kills harbor.
I sailed my new to me hunter 356 for the first time i any real wind this sunday.

I noticed some movement in the fore stay which can be seen on the youtube link.

I think the wind was 13 to 18 knots. We were motor sailing and doing about 8 knots. I was in a hurry to beat the weather as i was moving the boat from topping va to its new home in norfolk.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

https://webcache.googleusercontent....20Manual%202004.pdf+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
 
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Dec 19, 2006
5,809
Hunter 36 Punta Gorda
When I sailed my 356/36 from NY to Florida 99% out in the ocean I had 3 none Hunter
lovers and sailing in 15 + wind doing 7 knots the forestry was shaking like crazy and they
were saying that was not good and worried but one said he did a lot researching on my boat
and the B&G rig was very good and strong rig and the forestry was loose to give and too tight would be too much stress on it.
Been that way since 2008 and I never tried changing it and even race now and no problems.
Nick
 
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