B

[PrincessoftheLake]

We own a 1985 Hunter 34. My questions are: How much "bend" should be in this mast?There appears to be at least 8"-9" at mid-mast. I've read that there should be a few inches, but none of the other Hunter big boats in our marina have as much bend as ours does. I've also always heard that unless yours is a racing boat, a straight mast is a happy mast. Is "tuning" this mast something that we could or should do ourselves?We are both middle-aged and not prone to "climbing" a 50 foot mast. We have much competent marine service help in our area and have been very satisfied with the work we have hired out.Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Fred Ficarra]

Answer; 5 inches.

But what makes you think that you have so much bend? It can only be measured with a tight string between the masthead and the gooseneck. When you have 5 inches, it'll look like a foot.OK, no jokes here! Don't worry about middle age and climbing the mast to adjust it. It needs to be done on the hard anyway.And with this rig, that saying about a happy mast is totally wrong.

 

[Steve Dion]

and the answer is!

http://www.hunterowners.com/ref/br.htmlThis link can be found on this website under the Resource tab and then the Reference Library. It will give you the step-by-step process of setting up the rig.You really do not need to listen to those straight stick guys. They only lust after those B&R Rigs.

 

[Daryl]

Mast Bend

I measured mine when I ordered a new sail from an overseas loft and determeined it was five inches. Clearly the amount of bend in your rig may be adjusted to match your sail. Forget the numbers. Have an experienced sail maker, rigger or boat bum study the sail shape. If you adjust it wrong you'll see the wrinkles.I'm over 50 and still get up the mast without help but never changed the mast bend on my h34. Get 'er done!

 

[PrincessoftheLake]

All right, I'll double check the amount of bend

but the other thing I wonder about is how don't know how much tension I should have on the upper and lower diagonals. I did look at the instructions online and I noticed they are for a single spreader rig while mine is a double spreader. Does that make any difference? One last thing, we did sail our H34 last weekend three different times in light and medium winds and I thought the sail shape was good, no wrinkles.

 

[Fred Ficarra]

The tension on the diagonals means nothing.

Only the mast bend is checked and set. And use the instructions for a mastheaded double spreader B&R rig. Why take a chance?