FWIW, I've seen some improvement in mainsail shape and boatspeed increase when the backstay is tensioned for headstay and I add runners to straighten the mast a little. Sometimes adding backstay will remove headstay sag, but flatten the mainsail a little too much, and adding a little tension to the runners/checkstays will straighten the mast enough to add roundness back into the mainsail luff area. The change was dramatic.
Chuck Scheaffer Resolute 1989 C&C 34R > On 08/18/2022 1:39 PM Hoyt, Mike via CnC-List <[email protected]> > wrote: > > > > Hi Charlie > > > > Different boat but also has check stays and hydraulic backstay. Frers > 33. Somewhat bendy mast (with the hydraulic backstay). > > > > Check stays should be ideally close to mid line in boat at the transom > but that is not very possible because helms person would be hindered by > these. Those boats with a tiller often mount on the track that runs across > the transom. On persistence are mounted to pad eyes at the forward end of > pushpit port and stbd, Rod Stright with the C&C 99 Equinox also on this list > also had a Frers 33 so may chime in. > > > > We were told when we bought the boat that the checks were to prevent mast > pumping in a chop. We almost never see this. However the boat is masthead > rig and backstay is primarily used to tension forestay and luff of headsail. > This is often detrimental to mainsail shape resulting in large wrinkle > extending down the middle of the main. The check stays pull the mast aft > from a point just below the upper spreader. This eliminates (or reduces) the > wrinkle in the main caused by backstay tension. > > > > Of course we rarely use the check stays as it adds an extra layer of > complication to running the boat but when we have in the past it made for a > better mainsail shape in certain conditions. Normally we just run them down > the shrouds and tie them off at shroud base for simplicity. > > > > We do not have runners. > > > > Hope this helps > > > > Mike Hoyt > > Persistence > > Halifax, NS > > > > > > > > From: Charlie Nelson via CnC-List <[email protected]> > Sent: August 18, 2022 1:43 PM > To: [email protected]; [email protected] > Cc: [email protected] > Subject: Stus-List Runners/check-stays > > > Hello all; > > > > My C&C 36 XL/kcb was delivered with the runners/check-stays run to the > aft rail just about the location of the original headsail winches. They are > rigged with a 4:1 purchase and are released/tightened depending on what tack > we are on. Downwind they are unshackled and pulled forward. > > > > I removed the baby stay and its purchase/track to save wear and tear on > the headsail during tacks so my boat is slightly modified from its factory > settings. I do have and use a hydraulic backstay adjuster and always race > with a roller furling headsail. > > > > I just had all the standing rigging replaced after 27 years of mostly > PHRF racing in the lighter airs of the Pamlico Sound/Neuse River in NC. With > a PHRF rating of 120 I am usually competitive with the fleet against similar > sized boats sailed reasonably well--which I manage to do most of the time. > > > > My question for this group, especially those with runners/check-stays > rigged, is two fold: > > > > 1. Given their aft location on the quarters, the angle they make with the > mast is mostly aft--I'd guess about 75 degrees from perpendicular to the > mast, or maybe 165 degrees off the bow. At that angle and purchase, they > certainly have a minor effect on pulling the mast to weather upwind, which I > understand is their main purpose (although they may also help prevent mast > pumping in serious chop). Question #1 is do I really need them as currently > set-up? > > > > 2. If the answer to question #1 is yes, my next question #2 is should I > move them forward so they have a better angle keeping the mast to windward > and perhaps increase their purchase? I know from these groups that some run > their runners/check-stays to winches to put some serious tension on them at > the expense of more trimming, etc. > > > > Before I do a sailing test with and without them, thoughts from the lists > are welcome. > > > > BTW, my mast is a relatively bendy Off-Shore spar--hardly a telephone > pole--so it can be bent with the hydraulic backstay adjuster. > > > > Thanks, > > > > Charlie Nelson > > 1995 C&C 36 XL/kcb > > Water Phantom > > > > > > >
