Rig Tension

[Ron Mehringer]

My 1997 Hunter 26 has the usual B&R rig (fractional, no backstay, aft-swept spreaders, upper & lower shrouds, forestay) with a CDI roller furler. I have a loos rigging guage, but with the plastic luff on the forestay, there is no way to measure tension there (unless someone know some trick).Can I assume that if I have the lower shrouds at 10% of breaking strength, the uppers at 20%, and the right amount of mast rake, that the forestay will be properly tensioned by default? Also, are the 10%/20% numbers correct for this rig?Thanks in advance.s/v Hydro-Therapy

 

[Ron Mehringer]

Here's the answer

Greg at Hunter Marine informed me via email that 10% for lowers and 20% for uppers is correct. Since the shrouds are 3/16 stainless, the breaking strenght is 4700lbs. So, lowers should be tensioned to 470#, uppers to 940#. (note, Greg only confirmed the percentages, I got the pounds from other sources). Greg also says that 1 degree is the appropriate amount of mast rake.Based on input from other sources, the forestay tension doesn't need to be measured for this rig. If the shrouds have proper tension and the mast rake is right, then the forestay is set by default.If you don't have a tension guage, I'd suggest getting one. They're about $45. Not much when you consider the improved performance and safety of a properly tuned rig. Also, slack rigs are bad because of the shock loads they experience.Hope someone finds this helpful.s/v Hydro-Therapy