spreaders

[iblewis]

My spreaders do not go 90 degrees out from the mast. They seem to angle back and look as if they could colapse.What should it be?

 

[novelman17128]

The spreaders are angled back to help strenghten the backstay which inturn prevents the mast from angling forward. The positive part of this is that the genoa can be sheeted closer to the main, but the negative side is that the main cannot be fully let-out when running directly down wind (this is usually not a major problem since the main feeds air to the genoa at less than 90 degree settings.)Novelman

 

[Dan McGuire]

Natural Position

The shroud is anchored to the boat a few inches behind the mast. The spreader will line up in a line between the anchor point on the mast and the mast. That is the shortest distance and there is no way it can collapse any further.