Level for setting rake
Put your level on the cockpit floor, running fore and aft. Mac cockpits are level with the boat loaded even. Great for mast tuning, bad for drainage. Level across the gunwales is great for side to side level. Remember, the first tuning is like getting a rifle bore sighted. It gets you in the ball park. Final tuning takes place out on the water. Lee helm rake the mast back more, too much weather helm lessen the rake. A little weather helm is the goal. You don't want the boat to fall off the wind if you drop the tiller. It should round up into the wind if you let go of the tiller. But it shouldn't need a lot of force, and should be straight when sailing straight on a beat. Just remember, the upper shrouds are what put the tension on the forstay, not the back stay on these boats. Excissive back stay tension will give you more rake, but will also destroy your main sails shape and power. To increase the rake tighten the upper shrouds, only put light tension on the back stay. Make sure your mast is straight looking from the side, from bottom (step) to top (cats head) and not bending back (too much back stay tension). Macs do OK with sloppy rigging, but are much faster and point higher, and are stronger with the rig tuned right. As for tensions on the shrouds, the lower shrouds shouldn't go limp on the lee side, and the uppers should be twice a tight as the lowers. Of corse starboard and port they should be the same. I go by the mast (straight not bending side to side or back at the top) as out of 3 Macs I tune, they all take very different tensions, do to who knows how many times the masts have been dropped. My masts are not straight with no tension on them, but do straighten up and tune fine. Sure would love to tune one with a straight mast to start with.
