Posted by summersloop (summersloop@…>)
I am interested in whether anyone has any information regarding what the proper
forestay
tension should be on a Freedom 30. I have noticed there to be a fairly acute
bend in the
forestay where the jib boom roller attached. The bend is also present when the
jib is raised
and tensioned. Is this normal?
Posted by dehoma (dehoma@…>)
The forestay should bend, for reference there is an F35 photo at
perrottidesign website:
http://www.perrottidesign.com/freedom.html
-David
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “summersloop”
<summersloop@y…> wrote:
I am interested in whether anyone has any information regarding
what the proper forestay
tension should be on a Freedom 30. I have noticed there to be a
fairly acute bend in the
forestay where the jib boom roller attached. The bend is also
present when the jib is raised
and tensioned. Is this normal?
Posted by macks011 (macks04@…>)
From the F36 Owners Manual…" Halyard tension should only be
sufficient to flatten Luff. The jib boom system is designed to
automatically increase tension on the head stay in order to maintain
an efficient leading edge. The headstay should not be pretensioned.
Tighten turnbuckle only to remove slack in the wire. the rig will
provide all the tension required."
The rule of thumb I’ve been using is 6" head stay displacement at
shoulder level
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “summersloop”
<summersloop@y…> wrote:
I am interested in whether anyone has any information regarding
what the proper forestay
tension should be on a Freedom 30. I have noticed there to be a
fairly acute bend in the
forestay where the jib boom roller attached. The bend is also
present when the jib is raised
and tensioned. Is this normal?
Posted by rick_simonds (rick_simonds@…>)
The bend is absolutely normal but, if you like tweaking a bit, I had
a wonderful conversation with Dave Beirig about this subject when I
bought my new jib from him. His advice:
Headstay tension on a Beirig jib is the control you have over the
jib’s leech tension. It’s the exact equivalent adjustment as changing
the fore and aft position of the lead cars on a conventional jib.
More headstay tension will give the jib a looser leech (the same as
moving a conventional lead car aft), less headstay tension gives a
tighter leech (the same as moving a conventional lead car forward.)
Study the curve of the jib’s leech in relation to the curve of the
main, especially about 1/3 of the way from the top. The curves should
match, the gap between the sails should be uniform along the entire
length. If the top is closer the leech is too tight and you should
tighten the headstay (loosen the leach). If the top is farther away,
loosen the headstay (tighten the leach.)
Or, the textbook test of the lead of a conventional jib is, when
tacking, adjust it fore and aft so the whole length of the luff of
the jib “breaks” (goes soft) at the same time. This test works but
it’s not quite as obvious on a Beirig jib because of the presence of
the camber spar. Still, go out and tack a few times while watching
the luff of the jib, it should all break at once. If the top breaks
first the leech is too loose (the headstay is too tight) and vice
versa.
My own opinion: A tight leech is a speed killer and headstay tension
isn`t as readily adjustable as lead cars. I also think the “break all
at once” textbook answer, in general, results in a bit too much
leech tension. I’d start there but tighten the headstay over time so
that in most conditions the top of the jib wants to break just
slightly ahead of the bottom.
But then, I like tweaking.
Posted by macks011 (macks04@…>)
Great Post. I’ve printed it out and added it to my manual.
What do you think about this statement?: The freedom Camberspar jib
is less about horsepower and more about air flow over the main.
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “rick_simonds”
<rick_simonds@y…> wrote:
The bend is absolutely normal but, if you like tweaking a bit, I
had
a wonderful conversation with Dave Beirig about this subject when
I
bought my new jib from him. His advice:Headstay tension on a Beirig jib is the control you have over the
jib’s leech tension. It’s the exact equivalent adjustment as
changing
the fore and aft position of the lead cars on a conventional jib.
More headstay tension will give the jib a looser leech (the same
as
moving a conventional lead car aft), less headstay tension gives a
tighter leech (the same as moving a conventional lead car
forward.)Study the curve of the jib’s leech in relation to the curve of the
main, especially about 1/3 of the way from the top. The curves
should
match, the gap between the sails should be uniform along the
entire
length. If the top is closer the leech is too tight and you should
tighten the headstay (loosen the leach). If the top is farther
away,
loosen the headstay (tighten the leach.)Or, the textbook test of the lead of a conventional jib is, when
tacking, adjust it fore and aft so the whole length of the luff of
the jib “breaks” (goes soft) at the same time. This test works but
it’s not quite as obvious on a Beirig jib because of the presence
of
the camber spar. Still, go out and tack a few times while watching
the luff of the jib, it should all break at once. If the top
breaks
first the leech is too loose (the headstay is too tight) and vice
versa.My own opinion: A tight leech is a speed killer and headstay
tension
isn`t as readily adjustable as lead cars. I also think the “break
all
at once” textbook answer, in general, results in a bit too much
leech tension. I’d start there but tighten the headstay over time
so
that in most conditions the top of the jib wants to break just
slightly ahead of the bottom.But then, I like tweaking.
Posted by rick_simonds (rick_simonds@…>)
Woops! I went sailing this weekend and happened across my notes about
this:
Tightening the forestay TIGHTENS the leech of the jib, loosening it
loosens the leech. I had it backwards in my previous post.