I TRYING TO FIND WHAT TENSION IS ON MAIN STAY FOREWARD AND AFT I CANT FIND TENSION FOR MAST ANY HELP
MAIN STAY
- Thread starter gypsywind1980
- Start date
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 23,188
Welcome to the SBO forum. There is a reason for the lack of specific numbers. For racers the forestay amd back stay are adjustable. When going into the wind you want the forestay to be tight so you tighten the back stay. This pulls or bends the mast a bit. Giving the boat a better pointing ability.
When going down wind the easing of the back stay slows the forestay to sag a bit allowing the fore sails to be a bit more rounded adding power to the sails.
These adjustments allow you to trim the sails.
This is an area of study for the newer sailor. For now once you have the mast vertical “in column “ with the shrouds on the side rails, then tighten the forestay enough that tte mast has a small rake. That is leaning back 2-5 degrees when forestay feels firm but not stretched taut. Then add or release tension on the back stay as you sail to trim the boat.
Of note you are not just tensioning the shrouds and stays you are forcing the mast against the keel, and pulling up on the hull. You are in fact tensioning the whole boat. Proceed with care. You are looking for that Goldilocks tension. Not to tight. Not too loose. That just right feeling that gives you control and speed.
When going down wind the easing of the back stay slows the forestay to sag a bit allowing the fore sails to be a bit more rounded adding power to the sails.
These adjustments allow you to trim the sails.
This is an area of study for the newer sailor. For now once you have the mast vertical “in column “ with the shrouds on the side rails, then tighten the forestay enough that tte mast has a small rake. That is leaning back 2-5 degrees when forestay feels firm but not stretched taut. Then add or release tension on the back stay as you sail to trim the boat.
Of note you are not just tensioning the shrouds and stays you are forcing the mast against the keel, and pulling up on the hull. You are in fact tensioning the whole boat. Proceed with care. You are looking for that Goldilocks tension. Not to tight. Not too loose. That just right feeling that gives you control and speed.
ok thank u for info when i bought boat ther was no info on shroud tension and yesterday measureing that they are not all of them are all the way drawed down i think it has the wrong turnbuckles and i m going to have to find shorter on s to be able to set tensin on loos guage
If you have a Loos gauge, you should be able to get the tension close using their guide (based in wire size).
As you note in your second post, you need to keep the shrouds tensioned equally and keep the mast vertical.
For shrouds, I generally sail on a beam reach with decent wind, and see if the leeward shrouds are too loose. They will slacken some, but should not be sloppy loose.
Greg
The tension on standing rigging is about 1/5 of the Safe Working Load of the diameter of the wire being used. It is somewhat of an arbitrary number. It is the length of the forestay that is important. The safe tension is on the sticker on my Loos gauge. As JSsailem wrote, boats with an adjustable backstay can add or subtract tension on the forestay, and mast by adjustment of the backstay.