Shroud Tension for Haulout

[jneely]

I will be having our CD27 Troika hauled soon. This year I am opting to leave the mast up. Any recommendations for shroud tension?

[Jim Walsh]

There should be no need to touch the standing rigging presuming your boat is properly blocked. If you use a tension gage to tune your rig you could always check that everything falls within your settings after haul out. If you use some other method it’s subjective so I guess you could satisfy yourself that nothing has dramatically changed once on the hard.

[jneely]

Thanks.

[gates_cliff]

My rigging seemed to be a little too loose. so i checked the owners manual linked on this board and it said not to get it too tight,"not bar tight" and that there should be about an inch of slack. Am i misreading or does that sound right?

[jfischgrund]

I store my 27' for the winter with the mast up and don't mess with the tension at all. I had all of the standing rigging re-done about 4 years ago and they also tuned it so I have left it that way, and it seems to feel ok every year. I don't use a gauge and I am not sure what one inch of slack actually means. I'm thinking this is one thing I should pay more attention to and learn more about, so this thread will prompt me to do that. Thanks.

[Steve Laume]

As others have said, you want to leave the wires tensioned all the time. When the rig is lose, it can work back and forth, which is what you do when to want to break something.

I would say that most boats do not have properly tuned rigs. The yard doesn't usually tune the rig. Yes they do try to get it close. If you actually put a gauge on it when they are done, you will probably find that the numbers are all over but generally hold up the mast. That doesn't mean it is right and good luck to you if you think you can feel or hear the difference between wires on one side and the other.

With a gauge, you can set each wire to a percentage of it's breaking strength and have numbers to go by. You can then check those numbers before a trip or after you re launch to see if they have changed.

Most people would not feel comfortable driving down the highway without a speedometer to keep them at the speed limit or 7 MPH over. You may drive every day and yet it is hard to tell your exact speed by feel or sound. How could you possibly expect to get the wire tension right when you only do it once a year or so?

Buy a gauge or borrow one and keep those wires tight, Steve.

[keneasley]

As others have said, you want to leave the wires tensioned all the time. When the rig is lose, it can work back and forth, which is what you do when to want to break something.

I would say that most boats do not have properly tuned rigs. The yard doesn't usually tune the rig. Yes they do try to get it close. If you actually put a gauge on it when they are done, you will probably find that the numbers are all over but generally hold up the mast. That doesn't mean it is right and good luck to you if you think you can feel or hear the difference between wires on one side and the other.

With a gauge, you can set each wire to a percentage of it's breaking strength and have numbers to go by. You can then check those numbers before a trip or after you re launch to see if they have changed.

Most people would not feel comfortable driving down the highway without a speedometer to keep them at the speed limit or 7 MPH over. You may drive every day and yet it is hard to tell your exact speed by feel or sound. How could you possibly expect to get the wire tension right when you only do it once a year or so?

Buy a gauge or borrow one and keep those wires tight, Steve.

I agree with Steve on this. I bought a Loos guage last year for my boat and used it to adjust the backstay and shrouds. I check them once a year now and they seem to stay the same. I do not change them for the winter. You cannot do it by "feel".


Question for the group: Have you adjusted your headstay? Mine is encased by the roller furler but the manual shows what looks like a fairly simple way to move the lower part of the mechanism up and expose the turnbuckle for the headstay (after removing the genoa). It is an older Hood SeaFurl furler which works well.

[Jim Walsh]

As others have said, you want to leave the wires tensioned all the time. When the rig is lose, it can work back and forth, which is what you do when to want to break something.

I would say that most boats do not have properly tuned rigs. The yard doesn't usually tune the rig. Yes they do try to get it close. If you actually put a gauge on it when they are done, you will probably find that the numbers are all over but generally hold up the mast. That doesn't mean it is right and good luck to you if you think you can feel or hear the difference between wires on one side and the other.

With a gauge, you can set each wire to a percentage of it's breaking strength and have numbers to go by. You can then check those numbers before a trip or after you re launch to see if they have changed.

Most people would not feel comfortable driving down the highway without a speedometer to keep them at the speed limit or 7 MPH over. You may drive every day and yet it is hard to tell your exact speed by feel or sound. How could you possibly expect to get the wire tension right when you only do it once a year or so?

Buy a gauge or borrow one and keep those wires tight, Steve.

I agree with Steve on this. I bought a Loos guage last year for my boat and used it to adjust the backstay and shrouds. I check them once a year now and they seem to stay the same. I do not change them for the winter. You cannot do it by "feel".


Question for the group: Have you adjusted your headstay? Mine is encased by the roller furler but the manual shows what looks like a fairly simple way to move the lower part of the mechanism up and expose the turnbuckle for the headstay (after removing the genoa). It is an older Hood SeaFurl furler which works well.

I adjust my headstay(s) annually since my boat is hauled out for winter storage and “mast in” is not an option due to power lines.
The only way to objectively tune a rig is with a gage as you stated. Any other method is subjective and is like asking someone “how long is a piece of string”.