Sailing under main alone

[Bob S]

Don,
I've read your book at least 5 times and have your handy charts on sail trim. My wife thinks I'm nuts but it's starting to set in. thank you!
I launched Friday being my 5th season. I tuned my rig with a Loos gauge for the first time. Past years I did it by feel. That was based on having it was done for me in 2008. I also bought new sheaves from Garhauer and made up a new main sheet set up (sweet). The original was 17 years old and really sticky. I was able to play the main sheet and see the twist in my sail. It is a good feeling. It was blowing pretty good and I was able to get the top three telltales flying nicely but I couldn't get the bottom one. It kept flopping back to the leeward side. When i played the traveler I'd loose them all, same with the main sheets. The wind was pretty much 90° on both a starboard and port tack. I didn't have the jib on yet. too anxious to try me new main sheet set up. I was doing between 5 and 5.5 kts through the water. Would playing the outhaul or the halyard been my next move? I didn't try either and i don't have a Cunningham. What can I expect as far as speed through the water with just the main on a Cat 30?

I don't race but I'm having fun learning.

 

[Joe]

put up the head sail....your main will work better... they are a team and designed to function together. It is unusual to have the top tales flowing and not the bottom... I only have three... off the top three battens.. none on the bottom batten, the outhaul would be your trim control for the lower third of the sail.

 

[Don Guillette]

I just returned from a 14 day cruise to Alaska. What a beautiful part of our country. The farther north we went the less sailboats we saw UNTIL we got to Homer, where I watch a sail boat race!!

Bob S: thank you for purchasing my products. Joe's right that you should roll out the jib in order to maintain 100% efficiency. A C30 is not a Indy race car and about 6 knots is the average top speed which you'll attain when you roll out the jib. The main thing to remember is that the main and jib should mirror each other even if they are adjusted incorrectly ---- even if you're wrong you should look good and consistent!!!

Here's my suggestion since you're concentrating on the main. Along with your SAIL TRIM CHART I included a free QUICK REFERENCE, which identifies all the sail trim controls for the main and jib that are used to adjust draft depth, draft position, twist and angle of attack. Deal with one element at a time. For example, play with twist and then move to draft depth. Watch what happens to the shape of the sail as you push and pull each sail trim control. After you see what they do then you're ready to put them all together. After you finish with the mainsail, go to work on the jib.

I personnally hate adjusting the halyard. Instead, I use a cunningham which is very easy to install. I used a small Garhauer soft vang. The most important telltale on the main is the top one as it's your twist indicator. the others are important too.

When you adjusted the main with the traveler you changed the angle of attack and then when you started messing with the mainsheet you made matters worse regarding the angle of attack and you also were adjusting the draft position and twist. With that in mind it's no wonder your mainsail got confused and was wondering what you were doing.

You're going through a great learning curve which every sailor worldwide has gone through so just keep punching. You'll do much better at sial trim than the mates who just guess at the adjustments.