- Status
Mike: Let's say your closehauled in 18 to 20 knots of wind and the boat is heeling excessively and you want to get it back on its feet. Yes, you would do the things you suggest. In addition, you would want to want to drop the traveler and ease the mainsheet. The problem is that you have to be careful with the adjustments because one thing leads to another. For example, if you ease the mainsheet too much the draft position starts to move aft and draft aft increases the power. On Cunningham verses halyard - I don't mess with the halyard from an adjustment standpoint. I pull the halyard up to full hoist and then back it off slightly and then leave it. I make all halyard adjustment with the Cunningham, which give me a more precise adjustment plus i can see the change happening. With all the weight of the mainsail on the halyard, every time I tried adjusting I ended up with a pile of line on the deck and the sail dropped 2'. My halyard was not led back to the cockpit. Even if it was, I'd still use the Cunningham. On mast bend - on a production boat, I personally think it is a waste of time. The boats (Catalina, Hunter, Benny's) are just not designed for it. "J" boat they ain't. They are cruising boats. I'm sure there are mates out there that will disagree and if they do then just crank on the backstay adjuster and have a ball. Mates should concentrate on effectively using the vang, mainsheet, traveler, outhaul etc. Your boat will go just as fast (probably faster) as the guy who is messing with mast bend. I was working with a race crew a couple of weeks ago that is preparing for their season in March and the skipper suggested bending the mast. I asked him what effect he was after? I then asked him if he wanted to change the draft position or adjust the draft depth? He said he was happy with both, so why would you want to bend the mast because that is what is going to happen? The point is, you have to know WHY you are making a particular sail trim adjustment.
Mast bend a waste of time, Come on
This is so far off We race our 28.5 and have a 16-1 backstay system. We crank on it in heavy air and it does wonder's for our pointing. When we have the blade up and it's blowing 20 knots we do have some leeward sag on the rig but I expect that. But letting the luff fall off to leeward and aft is slow when we want the blade to be fast and very very flat. It also helps keep the boat on it's feet, Letting the headstay sag just gives the sail a little more belly and this is what I don't want. When it is blowing like this we take up a few turns on the forstay turn buckle and when the air is real light and we want a fuller 155 we let off a few turns. If the conditions change and we have a lose forstay we need the backstay adjuster to help take away some of the slack and when we crank on the backstay we move the draft of the main a little forward to depower the main not power it up. The new Hunter B&R rigs the end result of the orginal design which the 80's boats have. Because the new rigs take the shround and spreader's out to the toe rail they are getting more support and with this they do not need the backstay. Also Hunter's are not the only boats to have this rig. I am pretty sure allot fo the BOC boats and Vandee Globe Challenge boats have a rig that is very simular and they do have backstay's. Cliff
This is so far off We race our 28.5 and have a 16-1 backstay system. We crank on it in heavy air and it does wonder's for our pointing. When we have the blade up and it's blowing 20 knots we do have some leeward sag on the rig but I expect that. But letting the luff fall off to leeward and aft is slow when we want the blade to be fast and very very flat. It also helps keep the boat on it's feet, Letting the headstay sag just gives the sail a little more belly and this is what I don't want. When it is blowing like this we take up a few turns on the forstay turn buckle and when the air is real light and we want a fuller 155 we let off a few turns. If the conditions change and we have a lose forstay we need the backstay adjuster to help take away some of the slack and when we crank on the backstay we move the draft of the main a little forward to depower the main not power it up. The new Hunter B&R rigs the end result of the orginal design which the 80's boats have. Because the new rigs take the shround and spreader's out to the toe rail they are getting more support and with this they do not need the backstay. Also Hunter's are not the only boats to have this rig. I am pretty sure allot fo the BOC boats and Vandee Globe Challenge boats have a rig that is very simular and they do have backstay's. Cliff
- Status