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How to use Tension Gauges

How to use tension gauges video transcript.

Ahoy mateys

Hey today lets talk a little bit about the tension of your stays

I’ve got good news and bad news

The good news is Loos and Company helps take some of the guess work out of what the tension ought to be

Now they make three different tension gauges and it’s a function of how big your stays are, the size of your cable

So this is the middle one and there’s one for smaller cables and one for bigger cables

Now there’s certain tolerances that your stay should be within and that helps right here

They’ve got a little thing on here

The bad news is you’re not going to find a chart somewhere that says you have ABC boat and your stays are a quarter inch and you have such and such a sail, so your tension needs to be 900

While the tension on the stays is also a function of sailing performance, the shape of the sail

But you know there are certain tolerances that you should be within and Loos helps take the guesswork out of that

Now you may say to yourself well hey I’m not a professional rigger, what do I need this for?

All the more reason you need one of these

You know these professional riggers they can go around and they can test things out pretty well

Here you want to make sure that you’re somewhere in the tolerance levels of this and then fine-tune it as you get more comfortable and learn more about sailing

Especially racing sailors tension is very very important

Well let’s talk with Eddie the shop foreman here at the Salient Emporium who is a professional rigger to give us some general guidelines as to what we should be looking for and what we should have on our stays

And then he’s going to come on board my boat and we’re going to go through the process of how to use this gage and how to tighten the stays

Alright guys so here we are with Ed, a professional rigger, give us a little more information

Now Ed, as a typical cruising sailor how tight do I want my rigging to be?

You want it, you don’t want it tight tight but you do want it on the tight side because what you want to do is that so when you’re sailing if you’re on a starboard tack then the rigging on the port side is not loose

So you want everything to stay tight so say when the wind comes across starboard side pushing the sail and everything that way then if everything is too loose and all your rigging

you’ll see it on the port side will hang loose and vice versa if you want a port tack then all of the wind of the rigging on the starboard side will be loose

You don’t want to be able to see it moving around in the wind

So you want it to be a little bit tighter than looser?

Okay, now on this gauge here we’ve got now I’ve got quarter inch stays

I’ve already tested that guy’s

So here we’re going to go on anywhere from 450 pounds of tension to 2,000

Where do I wanna be at

I would start that somewhere about in the middle

So maybe somewhere around the 900 to 1100

Somewhere in that area at 11-13 percent

All right now is that for all the stays or just the two main ones that go up to the top

Well the uppers and the forward and the lowers will be tighter than your, the uppers your back stay head stay will be tighter than your lowers will be

Okay so we’re going to go out to the boat and see where I am

Now I did notice guys I took my main halyard and I brought it down

I measured on the starboard side and I brought it over to the port side and I seem to off a little bit there

You know so the mast is not quite straight

So I wanna straighten that out first

You want to get it to the center of the boat as far as side-to-side

You don’t want it more towards the starboard side, the top, or the port

You want to have it dead center of the boat

Okay now what stage are those the first ones we want to do?

We will start with uppers and get the masthead in the center of the boat as far as side-to-side

Okay, and then we’re gonna do the ones that go up to the spreaders?

Do the lowers yeah and that way once you get to the top of the mast in the center then you work down and you get the rest of the mast lined up with it

Okay, and so the tension is really a matter of the size of the cable?

And sail shape and kind of sailing you’re doing?

All right well guys let’s go out and just see how we do this, how we test this, and then how we actually adjust the turnbuckles to get the right tension

All right let’s go

Okay what we want to do is make sure the top of the masthead is in the center of the boat, side to side

So what we’ve done we’ve got a line hook here to the main hired and we’ll stretch it down to the top of the staunch and then go to the other side to see how they compare

You always want to make sure that whatever you use is it’s the same on both sides

That way you get a good accurate measurement

So we’ll pull it down and top of the staunch is right here so we’ll go to the other side of the boat and do the same thing and see how far off we are

All right so Eddie has given me this, let me see what we got here

You can see we are that far off so the mast, that top of the mast is actually heading towards the starboard side of the boat

So what we want to do is either loosen up on the starboard side and crank up on the port side, pull it over to get it straight

Or just crank up on the port of the rigging if it’s loose enough maybe we can pull it over and straight it out that way

And then once get it in the center then you take up evenly on both sides so that everything is tight

The same tightness on both sides and a mast stays on the center of the boat

Okay we’re going to check the tension now on this

We’re going to use the Loos gauge

Check tension on the upper

To use this we’ve added a safety feature here so we are gonna clip this around here so if we drop it, it doesn’t fall overboard

Okay then you just put the stays in between these two knobs here at the bottom

And you pull back on this and let it clip in there

And that’s where you get your reading from

You can see it’s on about 17 and then we look down this gauge here and 17 is up here

We need to be down in this area here somewhere

So that’s telling us we need to tighten up on this cord upper to get it one thing to get the mast over this way but also tighten up on the rig all together

All right yeah I’m pretty far off there Ed

All right now let’s look down at the turnbuckle and how do I actually do that

Okay once you get the locking nut loose

Not all boats have the locking nut sometimes they just have the stud coming down into the turnbuckle

And then there’s just cotter pins going through to hold it in place so if you have that you just pull those cotter pins out and then it’s ready to loosen or tighten

To tighten this we’re going to put the wrench on the flat spot of the fitting here coming down the rigging

And you can stick a screwdriver into the turnbuckle, the body turnbuckle, and turn it

Most time it’s counterclockwise to tighten so we will put a few turns on this and then check our tension gauge and see how much it changed

Okay so I’m tightening up on the turnbuckle and we’ll see how it changes on the gauge as I’m tightening up on this

Well this is pretty good Ed because we’ve got the gauge in place and as you’re tightening I can see it’s moving and we’re getting closer to, let me see what number we wanted

We wanted 32 and we’re at 25 right now so we’re getting there

Okay but now before we tighten up too far on this what we ought to do is check the top of the masthead again and see if we’re getting closer to pulling the mast back over to the side

we don’t want to go too far this way and then watch and loosen up on this side and pull it back on the other side

Okay so we want to take it in small increments?

All right well let’s test this and see here where we are on our straightening

Inside we are now here, we’ll take it over to the outside

Tail a little bit these gotta go to port just a little bit more but we’re getting real close

Actually right now we have gone too far to the port side

So when you tighten up on the starboard side and bring masthead back over this way a little bit

Alright so now we’re going to bring the gauge back over here and work on this one

Okay so you can see we’re right on 25 over here so we still need to get down into this area here around 30-32

So when we tighten that we bring that down, we’re also going to be tightening the other side too?

Yes we’re going to pull on the other side

So masthead back in the center and at the same time we’ll be tightening the rig both the uppers to get where it needs to get

Tightened it up on the starboard side now to bring the masthead back over this way and also tighten everything down to get it where it needs to be on the gauge

All right so now Ed we’re up to about 26-27

All right so now we’re on 30 here now we need to check for our straightness again?

Yes we’ll check straightness again and if we still want to make it tighter at that point if the mast in the middle then we want to take up the same on both sides

Take a turn here take a turn there or two turns here two turns there

It’s that way once it’s in the center we’ll keep it in the center

Okay so we’re kinda just gonna bounce back and forth?

Okay it’s pretty much right at the same height from each side to side so we got the mast pretty much in the center of the boat now

So then what we’ll do, we’ll work down from that

We’ll go down to the lowers and get the middle of the mast lined up with the top and the bottom

Okay we’ve got this set on 30 which is about midway of where I wanted to get it at

We’ll leave it there, we’ll get everything tightened and pinned and locked back in place and then we’ll start with the forward air flows get them tensioned and get the middle of the mast lined up with the top and the bottom

And you take it out sailing and check things out and then we’ll recheck it once you come back in

All right so now on these other ones that we’re going to do here

These things here ‘the half lowers and full lowers’ those need to be the same tension?

No they will not be as tight as the uppers are

they will be somewhere around the 20-26-28 somewhere in that range

Okay so we’re gonna do that next

All right Ed so now I got a pretty good idea of how this thing works and really it’s pretty neat

I don’t want to tie you up so I’ll go ahead and do the forward and half stays and can you come back and check me then?

Sure yeah I can check it, but just don’t forget when you get done, make sure all the turn buckles are locked back down so these nuts will screw down to the top and the bottom will screw up to the bottom

and then once you’re done that as an extra safety thing put in these caudal rings as it will go through the turnbuckle and in the holes and the studs there and that would keep those turnovers from backing out on their own

All right well I’m gonna give it a shot Ed

Man I tell you what, I’m just really shocked at how loose these stays were and how crooked my mast was

I’ma feel a lot better about heading out tomorrow

You’re sailing should be a lot better

Well thank you

All right Ed what do you think?

Well first thing I’m going to check is I want to make sure you got the mast in a straight column going all the way up and what I’m going to use is I’m gonna look at the sail track and if it’s off one way or the other here in the middle it’ll look like a snake or look like a banana

It would be bent so I’m just gonna look up the mast and see if it looks straight

Actually Dominic you’ve done a pretty good job as the mast track is straight all the way to the very top

Wow! All right

So the next thing we want to do probably is to check the tension on all the rigging to make sure everything’s at the proper tension

Okay and you’ve got that on actually pretty well, it’s up on 29

So you’re right in the area of where I wanted you to be

As long as this one’s the same and then what you want to do is just take this off of here and go over to the port side and make sure that everything is set to the proper tension on both sides

Which I would say they’re going to be because if not the mast when we pull it over to that side of the boat would not have been straight

And that you’ve got it exactly on 29 so that looks good

All right so I’m ready to be a professional rigger?

No, but you will be able to go out and adjust your sails and get it fine-tuned for you to sail the boat you know to what it’s supposed to be sailed at

I’ll get this cable out of the way here Eddie

Well Ed I really appreciate the help on this I think it’ll be helpful for a lot of cruisers

I’m headed out tomorrow so I’m gonna give it a test

Okay well good you definitely will see an improvement in the sailing I’m sure of that

Guys did you see how easy that was?

It didn’t take long at all and I’ll tell you what, I feel much better about going out sailing tomorrow, knowing that I’ve got even tension

I mean this thing was so far off it was unbelievable

This (Loos Tension gauge) I think is going to very very handy to have on board on a regular basis

Anyway guys happy and safe boating to you, your family, and friends

The Loos Tension Gauges take the guesswork out of cable or rod tension adjustment. The tension gauges are especially designed for accurate, repeatable tuning of a sailboat’s standing rigging.

Model #PT-CR

(Cable Railing)

Sizes 1/8, 3/16, and 1/4

Model 90 & 91

Sizes 3/32 to 9/32 and 2.5mm to 7mm

Model RT Series

(Sail Rigging (Rod))

Sizes .172 to .375 and 4.4mm to 9.5mm

The Loos tension gauges take the guesswork out of cable or rod tension adjustment. The tension gauges are especially designed for accurate, repeatable tuning of a sailboat’s standing rigging.

Contrary to popular thought, a slack rig is more punishing on a hull than a properly adjusted, tight rig. Insufficient tension will not reduce the loads transmitted in the hull. Slack rigging will punish the spar and rigging needlessly by allowing excessive movement, chafe and shock loading. Modern fiberglass hulls should not be damaged by a properly adjusted, tight rig.

Figure 1 lists the rigging tension under different conditions for a typical boat with a properly tuned rig and with a slack rig. It will be noted that the maximum load is the same. However, for properly tuned rig the leeward / shrouds will not go slack under normal sailing conditions.

The lateral stiffness of the mast and the fore and aft stiffness of the spreaders is reduced by a factor of 2 when the leeward shrouds go slack. This Important structural characteristic is not generally recognized.

Rigging tension is becoming more important as a result of the trend toward the use of mast bend to control mainsail shape under different wind conditions. Mast bend will also affect the shape and trim of the jib, since mast adjustment generally affects forestay tension. The expert skipper will benefit by maintaining consistent rigging tension while developing the optimum sail shape and sailing tactics.

Safety and Performance

The failure of a fitting, shroud or stay could damage your boat, buckle the mast or even cause personal injury. To avoid such failure of (cable or rod) and fittings from fatigue or shock loading, it is important to set up your standing rigging with the proper tension. Too little tension in the shroud will permit the leeward shroud to go slack, only to fetch up with a jolt when the boat rolls or pitches. A less common problem is excessive tension. This can cause permanent stretch to the (cables or rods) and possibly damage the mast.

PERFORMANCE

The actual set of sail under load is determined by the cut of the sail and the shape of the structure which supports the sail. Rigging tension plays an important part in determining the set of the sails.

When the boat has been tuned for peak performance, measure (cable or rod) tension should be recorded. The stainless steel used to make the rigging can stretch a little bit over time under high loading. Thus, marking turnbuckles, etc. cannot guarantee that subsequent adjustments will provide the desired tension. Only by gauging is it possible to repeat the initial tuning or improve it.

Limiting the sag of the forestay is perhaps the most important benefit to performance from having the proper rigging tension. Forestay sag permits the jib luff to fall off to leeward, tightening to leech and seriously degrading the performance to windward.

Tension in the upper and lower shrouds will influence the mast bend and set the mainsail. This is especially important on modern, fractional rigs where the mast bend is used to de-power the sail in heavy winds.

If the shrouds are not set up with enough tension, the leeward shrouds will go slack when the boat is sailing to windward. This can result in fore and aft pumping of the mast in a head sea. This mast movement will change the shape of the mainsail and can cause performance loss as well as possible structural damage.

Specific tension requirements for your application must be obtained from the boat, mast, or sail manufacturer or the manufacturer of the product on which the (cable or rod) is used.

How to Tune a Sailboat Mast

Here are some general guidelines for tuning your mast’s standing rigging . please see our blog on how to properly adjust a turnbuckle before you begin. as always we recommend seeking the advice of a professional rigger for more specific tips and tricks regarding tuning your boat’s rigging..

Your boat must be in the water. Begin by just slacking off all of the side shrouds as evenly as possible, so that all stays can be adjusted by hand. Once loose, try and adjust all turnbuckles so that they are pretty much equally open (or closed) from port to starboard respectfully. Also go ahead and line up the cotter pin holes (if present) in the studs so that they are in a pin-able position. Now is also the time to balance out the threads, between the upper and lower studs of the turnbuckle, IF they are not even. Do this by unpinning the turnbuckle from the chainplate – BE CAREFUL HERE – to ensure the mast is secure before unpinning any one stay. Lastly, loosen all halyards or anything that may pull the mast to port, starboard, forward or aft.

1. Check by sighting up the backside of the mast to see how straight your spar is side to side. You can take a masthead halyard from side to side to ensure that the masthead is on center. Do this by placing a wrap of tape 3′ up from the upper chainplate pin hole on each upper shroud. Cleat the halyard and pull it to the tape mark on one side, mark the halyard where it intersects the tape on the shroud. Now do this to the other side, the mark on the halyard should also intersect the tape similarly. Please note: when the mast is equipped with port and starboard sheaves, instead of just one center-line sheave, it will appear slightly off to one side. Just keep this in mind……

2. Using the upper shrouds as controls, center the masthead as much as possible using hand tension only. Some masts are just crooked. If yours is(are) crooked, it will reveal itself when you loosen all of the stays and halyards initially and sight up the mast. Although you should use hand tension only, you can use a wrench to hold the standing portion (the stay portion) of the turnbuckle. If for some reason the shroud is totally slack and you still can’t turn the turnbuckle by hand then the turnbuckle may need to be serviced, inspected, and maybe replaced.

3. Tune the mast from the top shroud on-down, making sure the mast is in column. Remember: as you tension one shroud by adjusting the turnbuckle, to loosen the opposing shroud the same amount.

4. Once the mast is fairly straight from side to side, tighten the shrouds all evenly using tools for tensioning. Typically, for proper tension, the shrouds should be tightened using these guidelines; uppers are the tightest, and then fwd. lowers, then the aft lowers and intermediates should be hand tight plus just a turn or two. ~ With an in-mast furler it is recommended to tension the aft lower a bit more to promote a straighter spar (fore and aft) for better furling.

5. Now you can tension the aft most backstay (s). If the backstay has an adjuster it should be set at a base setting (500-1000 lbs). If the backstay simply has a turnbuckle then it should be tightened well. After this has been done, in either situation (adjustable or static backstay), one should site up the mast from a-beam and notice that the masthead has a ‘slight’ aft bias. If there is no aft bias, too much, or the mast is inverted (leaning forward), then the forward most forestay (s) will most likely need to be adjusted to correct this. If a furler is present then seek the council of a professional rigger or refer to your furler’s manual for instructions on how to access the turnbuckle if there is one present.

6. Finally, sight up the mast one last time and make any necessary adjustments.

7. MAKE SURE ALL TURNBUCKLES AND PINS HAVE COTTER PINS AND ARE TAPED NEATLY TO PREVENT CHAFE!

Read HERE for how to use a LOOS & Co. Tension Gauge!

Here is a little vid from our friend Scott at Selden Masts (click the link then hints and advice for more info) on rig tune…..

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcCALZ4x6R4&w=420&h=315]

Is your mast fractionally rigged, only has a single set of lowers or is just plain different? Be sure to leave any questions or comments below.

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56 Comments

Any hints with tuning a sportboat that only has a set of uppers, a short forestay and no backstay????

Just got an email from someone else with almost the same question, for a FarEast 23r. Since I don’t know what Sport boat you have, I’ll just copy and paste my reply here. Generally, these “guidelines” work for just about ANY type of sailboat. The article is trying to focus on the concept of mast tuning rather than specific numbers, but also touch on how a guide can be created that is specific to YOUR boat and your style of sailing.

Thanks for the comment and enjoy the read.

“The Fareast 23r looks like a fun boat and simple in terms of rigging. I am a bit surprised that there isn’t any real support offered to the aft end of the top of the mast given the masthead kite. The boat must sail at enough of an angle downwind when loaded that the main leech and vang support the masthead….. but it must work.

As for appropriate tension, in terms of what’s fast, you will need to dig into the class a bit and figure out who’s figured out what. Ultimately the maker of your sails should have some data in terms of prebend for the mainsail and perhaps even jib luff curve (a.k.a. intended sag). If you can gather that info, I would do a static dock tune and then make adjustments until I achieve the sailmakers recommended pre-bend.

Additionally, you may be able to start with the Fareast 28r’s base setting for just V1 and D1 and try that to get started. Or at least see how that compares to the previous owners’ notes.

I haven’t’ sailed the boat but as a general guideline, and as you will read in the comment section of this article, you will need to start with good dock tune. The amount of tension is irrelevant at this point, contentedness and straightness is numero uno….. and then just the order of tension.

Order of Tension (Single aft swept spreader rig) – the uppers are the tighter of the two: upper and lower. The upper is in charge of providing you headstay sag (or tension). The lower will allow the mast to create mid mast bend, or keep it from bending. The forestay length gets adjusted to affect the mast’s rake, the amount aft lean.

Once a straight and centered mast with adequate rake and a touch of pre-bend is achieved (static tune), using hand tension only and you can’t tighten it ‘by hand’ any further, add three or four whole turns to the uppers and one full turn to the lower. If you have pre-bend recommendations, now check them and adjust as needed. Then go sailing close hauled, ensure you are trimmed and canvased correctly given the condition, and observe the leeward shrouds.

IF the leeward shrouds are flailing about loosely in the lulls, add tension by hand while sailing until they just begin to fetch up. Count the number of turns, tack and do the same thing on the other side.

IF the leeward shrouds aren’t slightly moving in the lulls, you’re likely a bit a tight and you should do the opposite of the above procedure.

For me, while sailing close hauled, properly trimmed, and properly canvased, if I see the leeward shrouds just starting to slack in the puffs or waves, then I feel like the boat’s tune is typically pretty dialed in. Then if I want to make cheat sheet “Tuning Guide” when I get back to the dock, I pull out my loose gauge, pen and paper and note: today’s wind and wave condition, and the Loos Gauge setting that I thought was ideal.

Soon you’ll have created the Fareast 23r Tuning Guide😉

Hope that helps.”

I have a 1965 Alberg 30. On a starboard tack the boat has more weather helm than on a port tack. I have not been able to achieve a balanced helm on either tack. New full batten main, new 150 roller furl genoa.

Other than the boat being evenly ballasted from port to starboard, e.g. holding tanks, fuel tanks, below deck furnishings, and storage items, I would check the rig from side to side. A crooked mast or poor static tune can result in the boat sailing differently on both tacks. A good way to test this is either sighting up the mast at the dock to ensure that the mast is relatively straight side to side and in column. You can also see that when beating (aka hard on the wind), you have to make adjustment’s to the mainsail sheet tension (NOTE: the traveler will likely need to be adjusted to mirror the same setting as on the previous tack). If notice that with the traveler in the same position on each respective tack that the sail is bubbling or flogging more on one tack than on the other, it is likely necessary to re-tune the mast. This can be done at the dock by following the guidelines in the article once the everything has been appropriately loosened to tension.

Let us know if this helps.

Any Hints, tips for tuning a 1977 Whitby 27 sloop 1/4 ton rig?

Nothing special that I can think of. Just follow the guidelines in the article. From what I can gather there are only a single set of lowers correct? Are the spreaders aft swept at all or just straight out? If it is single lowers and no sweep to the spreaders you’ll need to set the rake using the forestay adjustment to set the rake and the backstay to control the forestay tension. If you are interested in optimizing sail tuning, like in racing situations: higher wind sailing conditions will desire more tension on the shrouds, a bit more tension on the lower than the upper, but only slightly; and in lighter winds loosen them up a bit, a tad looser on the lower than the upper.

Hope that helps, and good luck.

How do I tune /2 in rigging. Neither of the loos gaug s are large enough?

Thanks for the question. Yes, I think the Loos gauges only go up to 3/8″ wire. First let me say that a tension gauge is not a must for proper tuning, more for tension recording and also not exceeding max tension which is typically hard to achieve without additional fulcrums or wrench extensions. Having said that, if you know that you need one simply search google for cable tensioning gauges. There are a few others like this one https://www.checkline.com/product/136-3E , pricing is not easily apparent and may be excessive for your needs.

My recommendation is that if you have a good local rigger have them do a static dock-side tune and perhaps sail-tune in the boat’s ideal conditions. Perhaps they can provide a tutorial on their process for you to be able to make rigging adjustments over time.

Hope that helps.

Hi. Nice article. I have a Mirage 27 (the Bob Perry design). It’s a masthead rig with single spreaders and the shrouds on each side come to the same chainplate. I have been tuning so that tension on the lower and uppers is the same and trying to set them so that (as you say) the leeward shrouds are just slightly slack. But how do I induce mast rake? I have a split backstay with a 6:1 purchase on the adjuster; should the mast have rake even with the adjuster off? or do I just haul on it? or should the tension on the inners and outers be different?

HI Michael,

You will need to lengthen the headstay and shorten the backstay. This can be done a few ways either with turnbuckle adjustment or actually shortening and lengthening cables, sometimes you can add or remove toggles also.

Hope that helps!

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I recently purchased a 1988 Catalina S&S 38 and experienced my first launch this season, including stepping the mast and tuning the rig. As we prepared, we found that the Cap Shroud and Intermediate Shroud were clamped together at the four spreader ends. The folks at the yard had never seen that, and I certainly didn’t know why it was there … possibly to keep the spreader ends and shrouds consistent? Anyway, as I am learning how to tune my rig, it seems to me that these clamps would prevent me from tuning the cap shroud and intermediate separately and correctly Thoughts? Should I remove them and re-tune the rig?

So it is a double spreader rig I take it? The upper shroud wire should run freely through the first spreader, or the closest one to the deck, and be clamped at the top spreader. The intermediate shroud wire should be clamped at the lower spreader.

Before stepping, if this was done correctly, both upper spreader and lower spreader should be clamped equal distance from the mast attachment point, when looking at the mast from port and starboard.

In other words, you should measure the distance from where the upper shroud attaches to the mast to the end of the upper spreader and it should be the same distance on the other side, port to starboard. Then the same goes for the intermediate shroud and the lower spreader. The upper shroud should run freely through the lower spreader although it is covered by the clamp, but not actually clamped at the lower spreader, j ust the top one.

If all 4 spreaders are clamped equally port to starboard. You should be good to tune from there. The spreaders should show a slight up angle, to be specific slightly more up at the upper spreader than at the lower, but all of them should be just ever so slightly pointing up. You even want to think about clamping them slightly higher than that before tensioning, as this will pull them down and into their preferred angle, just slightly up. Specific angles are really only determined on the spar builders drawing and vary for manufacturer to manufacturer. Generally it is pretty clear where they want to sit. With the shrouds loose if you find that angle that appears to be the right one, and push them up slightly from there then clamp. This will allow them to be pulled down slightly once tensioned.

Kind of a tricky thing to explain in writing but hopefully it helps.

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I have a Catalina 275 fractional rig with single swept back spreaders and an adjustable backstay. My questions are: how much rake, tension on cap and lower shrouds and on chain plate should cap shroud be forward and lower aft. I am racing and want the best performance. Thanks for any help. Bill

If the two shrouds are on the same plate, right next to each other, and the pin holes are the same diameter, and the plate is configured in a fore and aft configuration, I would choose the aft hole for the lower shroud and the forward one for the upper shroud.

In terms of specific rake, you will need to look towards the maker of your sails and or the boat manufacturer. I discuss how to measure rake in the preceding comments.

“You can measure rake by hanging a small mushroom anchor from the main halyard, with the boat floating on its lines, if you wish”

For racing I would start off with a good static tune at the dock by following the points in the article. If you know it’s going to be light day, start off with light rig tension. Be sure to use either Velcro wrap style cotter pins or simply lash the upper and lower shroud turnbuckles together to secure them. This will give you access to removing the pins or lashing while sailing and adjusting the stays.

From there you will need to sail tune for that days specific conditions, your shrouds will tell you what needs to be tighter and looser. I have answered how to do this a few times already in the comments below, please take your time to peruse the comments section to see what sail tuning entails. Doing this will always ensure that the cable tensions are set up ideally for the conditions and the boat can be sailed at maximum potential.

“For racing, ideally once the static tune at the dock (the part we just talked about) is done, go out and sail tune. Do this by going hard on the wind and checking to see if the leeward shrouds are just starting to dance, this is ideal. If they are swaying about they are too loose for the current conditions. If the leeward shrouds are tight, they may be a touch to tight. Tension and loosen as needed; count what you did and to what shroud, then tack and do the same to the other side.

ALWAYS secure the turnbuckles when you are finished adjusting them.”

Just hit ‘Ctrl F’ and search the page for “sail tune” and “rake”

I am trying to tune a Hallberg Rassy HR36 masthead rig. The rig has two in-line spreaders. The cap shroud is 3/8 inch and terminates at the lower spreader. From the lower spreader, the cable transitions to a 5/16 inch cable passing over the upper spreader to the masthead. A second 9/32 inch cable runs from the lower spreader to the mast (just below the upper spreader). The Selden rigging suggests that the “upper shroud” be at 15 percent of the breaking strength of the cable. In this situation, is it 15 percent of the 3/8 inch lower portion? If so, how should the upper 5/16 inch and 9/32 inch cables be tensioned?

Thanks for your help.

Hi Bryant, good question. Once proper alignment and centering of the spar has happened (static tune), and you are perhaps a hair tighter than hand tight on all shrouds, you can begin to tension things to a percentage of breaking strength. Do this by using the cables at the deck and use their diameters to determine the tensioning amount.

The V1 (aka cap shroud) in your case is a 3/8″ cable which supports the two cables above ii, hence its large diameter. The 5/16 V2,D3 and the 9/32 D2 total 19/32. So if 15% of the 3/8 cable is achieved you will below that threshold for the cables aloft. Does that make any sense?

With that in mind there is a range of acceptable tension from light air to heavy air. 15% sounds like a good middle of the road tension. Generally you do not want to exceed 30%. Sail tuning in ideal conditions is generally the best way to determine the right tension, but 15% of breaking strength sounds like a good place to start.

Don’t forget your cotter pins and tape, especially aloft.

Hope that helps and thanks for the question.

T.R.C. Thanks you for the clarification regarding the V2,D3 and D2 load distribution. When I set the V1 tension to 15%, the tension on the V2,D3 was at 8 %. I then tensioned the forward shroud to 12 % and the aft shroud to 10 %. Then I tensioned the backstay to 14 %. After doing this, I measured the tension on the V1 to be 10 %. The only information I could find regarding tension on the D2 was that is did not have to be tensioned much. I tensioned it to 5%. The mast sights straight and I used a bossen seat on a halyard to measure to the lower part of the V1, which also indicated that the mast was straight. Did I overtension the fore and aft stays? Is the tension in the D2 too much or too little? Again, I appreciate your advice.

When you tighten the backstay it usually induces a bit of aft bend in the mast which will soften the upper shroud (V1) a bit. You can just take up on it again to get it back to 15% if you like. As I said there is a acceptable range for all of the stays, which you are well within. Everything else sounds like you did a pretty good job. Next up sail tune and see if there is excessive waggling on the leeward side, but in moderate breeze. The shrouds will begin to sway as the breeze builds, this could be a telltale to either reduce sail a bit or you can add some tension to the shrouds all the way around.

Should be all good as they say.

Cheers, ~T.R.C.

T.R.C., your advice has been invaluable. I took her out in 12-15 knots and was very happy with the sail luff and stiffness of the rig. Thanks for you help!😁⚓️

Hi , can you provide any tuning guides for a Swan 38 Tall mast single spreader rig with baby stay, I am keen to set the rig up for new North sails and race her competitively. The mast is an exact Nautor factory replacement in 1998. She shall not have furling sails.

Hi Peter and thanks for the comment.

Unfortunately we do not have a guide for that boat. I would ask the sailmaker however to see what info he or she might have. Alternatively you can always start with a good static tune and then sail tune the boat as I describe in some of the comments below. This is the best way. I may use a Swan 45 Tuning guide as the template and then just fill in my own numbers over time. This is ideal, but infidelity start with asking the sailmaker you are working with, he should have some good info.

This may seem like a silly question, but it has me perplexed. How long should my cotter pins be? Long enough to ‘jam’ against the surrounding body, to prevent rotation? Otherwise, I don’t see how they’ll prevent my stays from loosening.

The length should be the minimum amount to just be able to bend the legs. Too long and they get caught up on things, too short and you can’t adequately bend the legs to keep the pin in place. The head of the pin is a actually providing the security.

Does that help?

Great article to get me started, thanks! I just have a few questions…

I originally owned a Tanzer 7.5. Her mast was rigid and simple to tune with a LOOS and an eyeball. I however now own a Mirage 33 (1982) and things are a bit more complex (but not too much). When I bought her the mast was already stepped and the owners said they replaced the forestay (inside the furler) 1 season ago. I went about the boat tuning the rig as best I could but I started second guessing the rake. I found noticeable rake in the mast with virtually no backstay tension on. So I think my forestay stretched (being “new”) and I need to bring it forward.

How do I measure how much rake (at rest on the tensioner) is enough? With my rig as is I felt worried that if I pulled down on the backstay tensioner I might buckle my mast by bending it too far. It seems to me it’s ALOT of downward pressure on the column when you pull down on her especially if the mast was already raked or maybe in my case leaned too far back to start? She has a babystay too, I wasn’t sure how far to tension that other than to assist adding bend\rake but since I had too much already I just lightly tightened it and hoped for the best!

Thanks for the question. With the backstay tensioner completely off, you should be able to adjust the static/ base tension of the backstay with a turnbuckle (s). Loosen the Baby Stay so that it is completely loose, sloppy, to take it out of the equation. Then mark furling line spool direction and remove the line. Next, open the furler up to gain access to the turnbuckle inside, if present. Remove all cotter pins or locking nuts to free the turnbuckles on the headstay and the backstay. You should then loosen things so that the headstay and the backstay can be adjusted by hand. Close the headstay turnbuckle and open the backstay turnbuckle to reduce rake, and vice versa if wanting to add rake.

You can measure rake by hanging a small mushroom anchor from the main halyard, with the boat floating on its lines, if you wish. Then once you achieve the desired mast rake go ahead and tension the forestay and backstay a few turns equally with tools; not too tight, but a good base light air setting, or as loose as you can imagine the headstay ever needing to be. Lastly, tension the baby stay a bit until it just starts to tug on the mast, helping induce bend. From here the backstay tensioner will do the rest: wind it on and it will tension the headstay and induce mast bend via the baby stay. You may have to take the boat sailing and adjust things as you find out how it performs at various degrees of rake and bend.

I hope that’s not too wordy, but helps explain it all a bit. Feel free to email or call with further questions.

Regards, ~T.R.C.

Can you provide some specific information regarding rig for 1980 C&C 32. Looking to purchase new main and want to get the most from it for Wednesday nights. Boat currently does not have a pony stay, it has been removed. Can replace that track/car. What should initial bend look like, keel step is fixed so assume I need to some chock aft of mast at deck? Have rod rigging but no Loos gauge for same, should I acquire one? Love this site, very helpful RayK

Thanks for the compliment. This may be less technical than you might expect. I would start with the basic guidelines given in the article to ensure a good base, static tune setting. A Loos gauge is good but not needed. If you focus on getting the spar straight, side to side, with a slight aft bias and then the tension is set so that it feels fairly tight. I know that sounds vague, but keep this in mind: if you are anticipating heavier wind make things a bit tighter, and loosen things up if less windy. The order of tension, in regards to the which shroud (upper vs intermediate vs lower) is important; more so than the amount of tension. Make sure nothing is so loose it is just flapping about.

The headstay should have some good slack to it with the backstay adjuster totally off. Adjust the backstay and headstay turnbuckles, with them in the slack position until the masthead is favoring a slight aft lean or rake, but only slight. From there, tension the backstay adjuster very tight and see what the headstay tension feels like, should be very tight.

PLEASE NOTE: if the backstay adjustment is totally bottomed out at this point, the backstay needs to be shortened a bit. Just pay attention to how this affects the rake. …

This part is where the pony stay or the baby stay will play a critical part, for mast bend. You may even find the pony stay to be good for mast pumping in light air and waves. Making this baby stay removable is a good idea, as well as, we’ve found that Dynema rope is the best choice here.

So… a centered mast head, side to side. A straight, in column mast from the top on down. A slight aft rake to start with…and as you begin to wind on the backstay and the baby stay you will add some rake but also a good bit more bend.

Take this set up for a few test sails and see how things act, in different conditions. After that you can make some adjustments here and there as needed: weather helm, shroud tension, mast rake, pre bend, etc…Moving chocks and using a Loos gauge.

ADDT’L TIP: Chocks and mast step position affect bend and rake properties. Want more rake? Chock mast aft in collar and move step forward. Want more bend? Chock mast forward in collar and move mast aft. As all things, there is more to it than that, but that’s the gist of the whole chocks and mast step thing…

“Sail Tuning” is a blog we are in the works of, but the punchline is that if hard on the breeze, and the leeward shrouds are excessively loose, and you are sure you aren’t over canvased…then go ahead and take turns on the leeward side until they just stop waggling, count what you’ve done, tack and mirror the turns on the other side.

Once the boat is set up for that specific condition, and you return to the dock, you should take your loose gauge and record these settings…creating a tension gauge setting for various conditions.

Hi, Thanks for your information. I have a Dehler 34. 1986… How much mast prebend and rake is recommended? The boat is new to me in March. Raced ok but I want to get a new main and want it to fit a well tuned mast. What do you think of a 2 degree rake and 4″ prebend at the speaders? Also, I have a Harken furler, How do you measure the forestay tension? Thanks, Duke

The answer, this boat is pretty sporty so it should show some rake. The spreaders are swept slightly aft so this will produce some natural bend just to tension the headstay.

Head-stays are always tough to measure with any sort of gauge, there are some class specific tricks for using a gauge in funky ways in order to get data, but they aren’t really reliable in my opinion. If you live in a typically windy area, go for bit more shroud tension, headstay tension and mast bend, and see how the boat feels. This will take some trial and error. If the forestay feels too stiff, slot too tight, loosen the uppers a bit, thus reducing bend and slackening the headstay.

Once the boat is sailing well in the ideal conditions, record that bend and those tensions. This is where I would leave things set, record it, and then just adjust shroud tension to affect bend and headstay in order to compliment different wind strengths and sea states. It takes quite a bit of back and forth, and documentation to get it right. One designers have already worked all of this out and then they share it for others…..very helpful. The rest of us will have to be the trailblazers for this type of information for other boat owners with the same (similar) boats to benefit.

Hope that helps, thanks for the kind words, and good luck. Once you figure things out post a link here for others with the same boat…..would be helpful.

Hello, Thanks for all of this great info. I just purchased a 37′ boat with a 3/4 fractional rig and a tapered mast. I was wondering if there were any special considerations when tuning the fractional rig? Currently the stays and shrouds are a little loose and can be wiggled (borderline flopping) by hand although the mast stands and is visually centered. (We are in SW Florida and the boat went through a direct hit by hurricane Irma like this and still stands tall!) Also is it advisable to increase shroud tension in small increments first on one side and then do the same on the opposing side? Thanks so much for any info

Hi Nathan. There are some thoughts, so fractional masts are usually fitted with aft swept shrouds and spreaders. If so, this means that the uppers also tension the headstay and create mast bend. The lowers then also act to reduce mast bend, so the tighter you make them you are actually reducing mast curve, thus powering the mainsail up. So be conscious of these two thoughts when tensioning the shrouds. The rest is fundamentally the same as the guide suggests. Loose or wiggling shrouds (excluding the scenario where we are talking about the leeward shrouds under sail), should be tightened. Doing things in increments is definitely a good idea.

Hope that helps. Thanks for the questions.

Thanks!! Now that you say that about the swept spreaders helping create mast bend it makes perfect sense. I had an ‘oh duh’ moment. I’ll probably err on the side of looser lower shrouds knowing if we need more power we can always tighten them up. Thank you again this helped immensely!

I want to buy a tension gage. Most familiar with Loos. But do I need Pt 1 or 2? (Pretty sure I don’t need 3 or Pro.) I have two rigs to tune: a 1972 Morgan 27 and a Catalina 22, I think 73 or thereabouts. The Morgan 27 is mine, fresh water for life, and 99.9% most likely factory wire. The Catalina 22 is a borrower in the Gulf, but pretty sure the owner has never tuned it. My problem is I can’t find the gage of wire for either standing rigging anywhere! Any help?

I think this one will do… https://sep.yimg.com/ca/I/yhst-70220623433298_2270_120385950 . The Morgan is likely 3/16″ wire and the Catalina is likely 5/32″, that’s an educated guess. Hope that helps.

I just purchased a 1980 C&C 40. I was told that I need to replace the rod rigging as it is “too old”. The mast is down and the rod rigging seems ok but I have not done any penetration testing. Does rod rigging need to be replaced due to age? Thanks Rigging Co.

Not replaced, but re-headed. This can mean that some stays need to be replaced as a whole, but not typically not the whole set. There are instances where you’ve almost replaced all of it anyways, so full replacement just makes sense. Other than those scenarios, full replacement is due after a certain mileage with rod…60,000 NM. Please keep in mind these standards are very general recommendations. It sounds like in your case, you should send in the rod, tangs, and chainplates for service and inspection. once we receive everything we will make a quote for the recommended services and/or replacement.

Hope that helps and give us an email for more info.

I have had a problem with securing the spreaders to the shrouds, resulting in the spreaders dropping. I am using stainless wire to seize them but still having a problem. Any tips on how to do this properly?

Seizing the wire onto spreaders with hinged spreaders is a bit of a trick of the trade that requires some practice. We use the X’s and O’s method. The end result should be something that looks like this… https://theriggingcompany.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/2012-06-07_14-26-09_899.jpg?w=900 . A trick to make the wire bite into the spreader end a bit more is to wedge a small piece of leather between the spreader and the wire before seizing. Also parceling and serving the wire where it intersects the spreader will help create more bite too. Lastly, and I don’t like this method but you can install a bull dog cable clamp beneath the spreader, nuts facing in, to keep it from dropping when slack.

I hope that helps a little. Thanks for commenting.

I am struggling to get enough rake into my mast. 33 foot Charger 33 keel stepped. Have loosened forestay and moved mast foot forward by about 10 mm. Should the chocks in the collar be adjusted? Runners and 2 spreaders, and check spreader. Spreaders do not have much aft angle. Move mast step more forward? Outers are tight with inners looser. Thoughts?

Hey Bernard,

Yeah, it sounds like chocks are the last thing. Maybe remove the chocks with the rigging slack and see if you can get the mast to sit where you like it with just hand tension. Then chock it where it wants to sit. It sounds like you are on the right track everywhere else, perhaps add a toggle into the headstay and shorten the backstay is next. Good luck and I hope that helps somewhat.

Hi, We have a Lagoon Catamaran with fractional rig, upper and lower shrouds, fore stay and upper and lower diamonds. No back stay. The mast has a degree of pre-bend. I do not plan to drop the mast.

I may have to do some work on the port side upper diamond. Is it as easy as just undoing the turnbuckle? Or do I need to loosen the starboard one at the same time. If it needs replacement should I also replace the starboard one even if in good condition?

As a further question, what happens if a diamond breaks, does it result in mast failure?

You would need to loosen the other counterpart to that stay for sure. It is just good practice, will keep the mast straight, and also make your life easier for removal install. Now, do you replace both? I don’t know. How old is the standing rigging? Why are you replacing the one? If it is not all due for replacement and you are just replacing due to damage, just do the one, but loosen both sides to do this.

Hope that helps and thanks for the visit.

Hello! I recently purchased a keel-stepped 1982 Goman Express 30 which came with an Alado Furler. I have been sailing it since May of this year. My question is this: Despite relocating mast wedges at the cabin roof to bias the lower mast aft about 2″, I still have a pronounced backward bend (10 degrees or so) just above the highest spreader. When sailing on jib alone, most wave action causes the mast to pump right at the bend point. I have a split backstay that is as un-tensioned as possible and the forestay only has another inch of adjustment left. There is no baby stay.

How can I get the bend out of the mast? How concerned should I be that the mast might break at that point?

Thanks in advance for your reply!

Eric Hassam – Delta Flyer

Thanks for taking the time to comment on our site. It sounds like you are on the right track. So one other adjustment that you have is the mast step position. This greatly affects mast bend on keel stepped masts. For a stronger bend and less rake, move the mast butt aft. For more rake and less bend (probably what you need to try), move the mast step forward a bit. If neither of these help, you may be off to have your headstay shortened and this means it is too long. This is likely not the case, but it is a possibility.

Keep in mind….A mast should have a slight aft rake bias along with a small amount of mast bend. This is quite normal. You can send us a picture if you’d like a second opinion on if it is over-bent. Having said all of that, even if you remove all of the mast bend, the mast may still pump. This is a design flaw in many spar designs that lots of end users have experienced. This can be remedied by redesigning the stay lay out. Is there a place for a staysail stay and/ or runner backstays? If so add them. Is there a place for a baby stay? If not, that may be a consideration.

Thanks again and I hope that helps.

Hi, I have a 48 foot yawl with a 7/8 fractional rig, is the tuning procedure the same as a masthead rig? I seem to have trouble getting aft rake and proper headstay tension. Also, is there a particular tension number the upper shrouds should have? many thanks in advance

Hi Bill, thanks for taking the time. 7/8 is very close and I would treat it like a masthead rig, especially if the none of the spreaders are aft swept. Tesnsion the headstay using the backstay(s). This should pull the top of the mast aft. If there are any other forward stays, i.e. stay sail stay, forward lowers, or anything else that could be holding the mast forward, go ahead and loosen those completely. You then may need to tighten the Tri-attic (the stay that connects the top of the mizzen and top of the main) if present. OR if the mizzen needs more rake too, then lossen all forward stays and pull it back using the available aft stays for this as well.

Hope this helps and please email us and send some pictures if you need more help.

I have a 1972 Morgan 27, which has both forward and after lower shrouds. I wish to remove the forward lowers so I can trim a 110% jib inside the stays. I see a lot of boats without forward lowers and think this will work OK, but wonder if I should increase the size of the aft lowers and beef up the chain plates. Any suggestions?

THANKS FOR YOUR INPUT. I AM GOING TO REMOVE THEM ANYWAY AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS. “HOLD MY BEER, WATCH THIS….” FAMOUS LAST WORDS.

Lol! Good luck. Call us if you need assistance.

I have rod rigging on my Beneteau 32s5

Any other guidance on tuning them vs wire rigging

Hi and thanks for commenting.

Just follow the guidelines in the write up. The over all goal is that the mast needs to be straight and in-column when looking at it from side to side.

Fore and aft, the mast should show a very slight lean aft. Depending on whether or not the spreaders are in-line or aft swept; you should also see some slight bend if there is any aft sweep to the spreaders just from the tension of the uppers.

A Rod stay tends to run a bit tighter than wire, so keep that in mind.

For racing, ideally once the static tune at the dock (the part we just talked about) is done, go out and sail tune. Do this by going hard on the wind and checking to see if the leeward shrouds are just starting to dance, this is ideal. If they are swaying about they are too loose for the current conditions. If the leeward shrouds are tight, they may be a touch to tight. Tension and loosen as needed; count what you did and to what shroud, then tack and do the same to the other side.

ALWAYS secure the turnbuckles when you are finished adjusting them.

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Wow, I would hate to be charged by her for three trips up the rig and forget the screw driver the rubber plugs that are sacraficial and replaced everytime removed just to clean the stainless 1×19 rigging.

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Standing Rigging: How Tight Is Right?

Standing rigging tension is a peculiarly under-addressed subject. Easy to see how it would worry a new boat owner or someone going to sea.

Most experts step aboard, yank or twang the shrouds and stays and mutter, Pretty slack, Too Tight, or, Thats about right.

Youll find in the sailing literature very few discussions of the question: What does tight mean?

Even riggers rarely explain how much tension they like to see.

There are a few sailors who like the rigging so tight you could send an elephant up the backstay. It can result in excessive loads and wear on fittings, chain plates and the hull. The ultimate penalty for those who can’t stand any sag in the forestay is what ocean racing sailors call a gravity storm or, less dramatically, dropping the rig.

Others like to take up the slack just enough so that the rig is at rest when the boat is motionless. This approach sometimes leaves excessive slack to leeward that can result in shock loads, excessive wear and misalignment in fittings. It may take longer, but the ultimate penalty is the same.

In between (and probably in the most logical position) are those who like to take up the slack and stretch the wire just a bit. This is frequently accomplished, at least for the stays, with an adjustable backstay. When sailing, especially on the wind, tighten down to minimize slack in the forestay. When reaching, running or at anchor, ease off.

But the question is: How much stretch…especially in the shrouds?

If you stretch the wire 5% of its breaking strength, it will be considered moderate tension. Crank in 15% of the breaking strength and it is regarded as tight. These figures apply for any diameter of wire. You need only know the wires breaking strength.

Three years ago, in the June 15, 1995 issue, we published a discussion of the views of author Richard Henderson, Skenes Elements of Yacht Design and several riggers, along with an evaluation of an excellent booklet published by Sailsystems about a Selden Mast approach (described in detail in the October 15, 1991 issue) and an entirely new method developed by Michael Dimen, who called his gadget a Rigstick.

Mentioned was the familiar (see photo) Loos rigging tension gauge, which comes in two sizes. The Model 91 ($39) is for wire 3/32″ to 5/32″. The Model 90 ($45.50) is for 3/16″ to 9/32″. The gauge depends on the bending property of aluminum plate.

The strange-looking gauges don’t willingly produce great accuracy because you have to hold one reading steady while noting another, which also requires that you make a judgment about where the centerline of the wire falls on a scale. Not easy to do.

The big name in galvanized and stainless cable (as wire is called in the trade), cable hardware and tools, Loos & Co., Inc. went looking for a better mousetrap.

Who did Gus Loos go to? The guy who designed the original gauge, his old friend, Donald J. Jordan, an 82-year-old retired Pratt & Whitney engineer who has been sailing out of Marblehead, Massachusetts, in the likes of Lightnings, Friendship sloops, Sound Schooners (which was the prized New York Yacht Club class in 1918), Pearson Wanderers and currently in a 16′ Starling Burgess design, appropriately called a Marblehead.

The old tension gauge wasnt bad, said Jordan. But it tended to get bent. Then the patent ran out and I told Gus we could do a better one.

The new version (see photo) is a distinct improvement over the old aluminum version. A better design, its also much more substantially made of aluminum, stainless and nylon.

The design problems were interesting, Jordan said. A conventional cable tension gauge has two rollers at the ends with a spring-loaded plunger in the middle and a dial gauge to measure the plunger movement. The wheels have to rotate…because they must permit some small but vital movement. That makes the tool expensive. My approach was to have two stationary wheels and a carefully contrived square slider in a arc-slot on the other.

The new Loos gauges use a long-lasting stainless spring to produce the tension. Slip the lower grooved wheels on a shroud or stay, pull the lanyard to engage the upper hook, relax, read the tension at your leisure and consult the scale to learn the pounds of pressure on the wire and the percentage of breaking strength of the wire. There are three wire gauge notches in the edge. The gauge can be left on the wire while turnbuckle adjustments are made.

The accompanying booklet, very well-done, contains a good tight discussion of the subject; some recommendations; a table on how to equalize tension in different sizes of wire, and line-drawn diagrams clearly showing rig tensions (windward and leeward) created by light, medium and heavy winds.

The wire gauge comes in three sizes, for 3/32″-5/32″, 3/16″-1/4″ and 9/32″-3/8″. West Marine sells them, respectively, for $57.99, $69.99 and $$122.99. Defender Industries cuts them to $49.95, $51.95 and $105.95. Prices in the BOAT/U.S. catalog are in between.

What if, instead of 1×19 wire, you have rod rigging? There are four new models that are bigger, heavier and, of course, more costly. They work the same, but take some arm strength. One is for .172-.250 rod, another for .281-.375. Two others models are for metric rod. West Marine sells the rod gauges for $186.99. Neither Defender nor BOAT/U.S. shows them in their catalogs.

Contact- Loos & Co., Inc., 901 Industrial Blvd., Naples, FL 34104, 800/321-5667. Rigstick, 311 Jackson, Port Townsend, WA 98368; 800/488-0855. Sailsystems, PO Box 1218, Marblehead, MA 01945; 978/745-0440.

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How To Measure Standing Rigging Tension

Whether or not you’ve replaced your standing rigging, you may be wondering how to adjust it. How tight should the rig be? How can you measure it? After all, what good is great rigging if it isn’t tensioned properly to perform its best?

Before I continue, a bit of legal housekeeping. This post contains affiliate links. That means I receive a small commission if you make a purchase using those links. Those commissions help to pay the costs associated with running this site so that it stays free for everyone to enjoy. For a complete explanation of why I’m telling you this and how you can support this blog without paying more, please read my full disclosure .

A properly tuned rig isn’t only important for racing, it’s also a good idea for cruisers. It minimizes uneven stress and wear on hardware, it’s safer, and it protects the shape of your sails.

Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades

Unfortunately, without a tension gauge, tuning your rig is mostly subjective guesswork.

The 1987 (last) edition of the Catalina 22 Owner’s Manual and General Handbook puts it this way:

Adjust forestay and backstay so that the mast is straight up and down. The upper shrouds should be firm but not far apart . A 50 pound push should deflect the upper shroud about 1″ at shoulder height. The lower shrouds (4 of them) should be adjusted so that they are looser than the upper shrouds. While at dock, they should have no slack , but no tension either. No lower shrouds, when pushed, should deflect the mast more than any other shroud when pushed equally hard. If this can’t be achieved, the upper shrouds are too tight. Back off one-half turn at a time on the upper shroud turnbuckles until the tension of the lower shrouds is brought into balance . [Emphasis added]

Not very precise, huh? It doesn’t take very much tension at all on the forestay and backstay just to make the mast plumb and that’s too loose for anything but light air sailing. How much is “far apart?” How exactly do you measure a 50 pound push horizontally against a wire at shoulder height? Standing where, on the cabin or on the deck? How much is “looser” but “without tension?” How do you measure balance between four shrouds without a tool?

That’s like your mechanic telling you that the best way to tune your car’s engine is by ear alone so that it idles well but not too fast and not too slow. It should accelerate smoothly with good power but no cylinder should exceed 10% less compression than any other.

You can’t lose with a Loos

You can skip all the guesswork with a tension gauge. Loos & Co. has manufactured cable in the US for over 50 years. They make the most popular and economical tension gauge for sailors. It’s available in several models depending on the range of cable sizes that you want to measure.

The current model numbers are:

PT-1 (3/32″ to 5/32″)
PT-2 (3/16″ to 1/4″)
PT-3 (1/4″ to 3/8″)

Older models of the gauge can still be found for sale new and used:

Model A (3/32″ to 5/32″)
Model B (3/16″ to 9/32″)

The major differences between the newer models and the older models are:

The older models use a flat spring built into the gauge to measure the tension. The newer models use a coil spring.
The older models have a slot for the cable. Measuring very tight cables can produce a very slight kink in the cable. The newer models have two round, plastic guides that don’t harm the cable.
You read the tension on the bottom of the older models. This means you either have to stoop down to read the gauge or use the gauge over your head. You can read the tension on the front of the newer models from a more natural stance.
The older models have fewer parts and are all metal construction except for the lanyard. The newer models have more parts, some of which are plastic.
Unlike the older models, the newer models can be hooked onto the cable while you are measuring it so that you can read the tension and your hands are free to adjust the turnbuckle. This is a nice feature that reduces trial and error.

Each gauge has handy notches in the side for measuring cable diameter.

The gauges work on the principle that if you bend a cable by applying a specific amount force, it will bend more or less depending on the size of the cable and how much tension is on the cable. The larger or the more tension on the cable, the less bend. The smaller or the less tension on the cable, the more bend. The gauges use a spring (flat or coil) to measure the amount of bend that results when you bend a cable slightly and they convert that amount into a tension number.

Dialing it in

I use my gauge whenever I modify my standing rigging in any way and periodically to recheck it, especially because I step the mast for every launch.

To measure tension with an older model Loos gauge (the process is slightly different for the newer models):

1. Hook the gauge on the cable. If you have cable covers on the cable, the gauge won’t fit over them, hook the gauge on a bare part of the cable. You read the gauge from the bottom so hook it over your head.

2. Pull the lanyard until the indicator aligns with the mark on the gauge.

Pull the cord until the indicator aligns with the mark on the gauge

3. Read the (bend) number from the scale.

4. Measure the cable size and look up the tension in pounds that corresponds to the cable size in the chart on the gauge. This step is optional unless you’re trying to set the tension to match a recommendation stated in pounds of tension (300, for example). Some recommendations are stated as the equivalent and easier to remember scale number (24, for example). In that case, you don’t need to look up the tension in pounds.

When you know the cable’s tension, you can adjust its turnbuckle to either increase or decrease the tension by measurable amounts. With a little trial and error, you can “dial in” a very accurate amount of tension. Dial in all of your stays and shrouds, and you will have a well-tuned rig. For instructions on using the new model gauges and a video, go to How to use PT Series Tension Gauges .

Once you get your basic rig tension set, you only need to remember the scale numbers and you can confidently adjust it to best suit your style of sailing or changing conditions. There are good guides available online that recommend settings for different conditions. One of the better ones for the Catalina 22 is the Catalina 22 Tuning Guide from North Sails. They have guides for other sailboats as well.

If you don’t know anybody that you can borrow a gauge from, consider getting one of your own from Amazon . Then you’ll have one to loan to others in need.

Stop hoping that your rig tension is close enough. Tool up and dial it in!

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How To Tune Your Sailboat Rig

August 2, 2023

Sailing, with its perfect balance of adventure and tranquility, has enchanted mariners for centuries. Whether you’re cruising coastal waters or vying for victory in a thrilling regatta, your sailboat ‘s performance hinges on a seemingly unassuming yet critical aspect: rig tuning. Understanding how to properly adjust the tension in your sailboat’s standing rigging is the key to unlocking the full performance of the boat. In this article, we delve into the art of sailboat rig tuning, exploring the reasons why it is not only important but fundamental to achieving optimal performance, safety, and overall sailing enjoyment.

Why Tuning Your Rig Is Important

Tuning your sailboat rig is essential for several reasons that directly impacts your sailboat’s performance, safety, and overall experience. Here are the main reasons why rig tuning is important:

Sailing Performance: Properly tuned rigging ensures that the sails are set up optimally for various wind conditions. A well-tuned rig allows the sails to achieve their best shape, providing better lift and speed. It improves the boat’s pointing ability, acceleration, and overall sailing performance.
Sail Shape and Balance: Rig tuning helps control the shape of the sails, allowing them to perform efficiently. The correct tension in the rigging ensures the right amount of luff tension on the headsail, preventing excessive sag and maintaining proper sail balance. This, in turn, results in better boat balance and easier handling.
Safety and Durability: An improperly tuned rig can lead to increased stress on the rigging components, mast, and sail. Over-tensioned rigging can cause excessive loads, leading to potential failures or damage. Conversely, under-tensioned rigging can cause the mast to pump or the rig to be unstable in rough conditions. Proper tuning helps prevent rigging issues and increases the overall safety and longevity of the rig.
Weather Conditions: Different wind conditions require adjustments in rig tension. In light winds, a looser rig allows for a fuller sail shape, while in heavy winds, a tighter rig flattens the sails and depowers the boat. Adjusting the rig to suit the conditions helps maintain control and optimize performance.
Boat Balance and Helm Feel: Rig tuning affects the boat’s balance and how it responds to the helm. Properly tuned rigging ensures a balanced helm and a boat that tracks well, making it easier to steer and reducing fatigue for the crew.

Regularly checking and adjusting the rig ensures that your sailboat operates at its best, whether you’re cruising or racing. If you’re unsure about rig tuning, consider seeking advice from a professional rigger or an experienced sailor to help you get the most out of your boat.

Sailboat Rig Tuning Process

Tuning a sailboat rig involves adjusting the tension in the standing rigging (shrouds and stays) to achieve the correct balance and shape of the mast and sails. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you tune your sailboat rig:

1. Check the Basics:

Ensure the boat is level and upright, preferably in the water, with the mast straight.
Check that all turnbuckles are free and not corroded or stuck.

2. Determine the Baseline:

Refer to your sailboat manufacturer’s manual, sailmaker ‘s tuning guide, or rigging expert’s recommendations for the initial baseline settings of your rigging tension. This usually includes the recommended tension for the upper and lower shrouds and forestay/backstay.

3. Loosen the Rig:

Loosen all the rigging turnbuckles to the point where they are free to move. This step allows you to start with a clean slate and avoids putting undue strain on the rigging while adjusting.

4. Center the Mast:

Use a measuring tape or a specific mast rake measurement tool to ensure the mast is centered and straight on the boat, both athwartships (side-to-side) and fore and aft.

Closed Reel Long Tape Measure – Flexible Fiberglass Double Face Printing Inch/Metric

5. Adjust Shroud Tension:

Begin by tensioning the lower shrouds to the recommended baseline tension. Use a tension gauge, Loos gauge, or tensiometer to achieve the desired tension. Repeat this process for both sides of the boat.
Next, adjust the tension in the upper shrouds to match the recommended baseline tension. Be careful not to overtighten any of the rigging.

Spinlock Rig Sense Tension Gauge for 2-5mm Wire

Sailboat Rigging Tension Gauge from Loos & Co., PT-2 Professional Hands-Free Force Gauge Up To 2,000 lb

Sailboat Rigging Tension Gauge from Loos & Co., PT-3 Professional Hands-Free Force Gauge Up To 4,500 lb

6. Check Mast Bend:

Securely, attach the main halyard to the lowest point on the rear base of the mast. From there, tighten the main halyard until there is a fair amount of tension on it. The main halyard represents a straight line which is the base line for your measurement. If there is mast bend present, there will be a gap between the main halyard and middle of the mast at its furthest bend point. This gap is what is to be measured for your mast bend measurement.

7. Check Mast Rake:

Mast rake refers to the fore and aft angle of the mast. It can impact boat balance and helm feel. Use a mast rake measurement tool or reference marks on the boat to adjust the mast rake as needed, following the manufacturer’s recommendations or your sailmaker’s advice.

8. Check Forestay Tension:

Adjust the forestay tension to achieve the desired amount of luff tension on the headsail. For sailboats with adjustable backstays, make sure your backstay off off when taking this measurement. For boats with a fixed backstay, a proper forestay tension ensures proper sail shape and minimizes sag in the forestay.

9. Tune the Backstay:

If your boat has an adjustable backstay, adjust it to control the bend in the mast and headsail shape. More tension on the backstay usually flattens the mainsail and depowers the rig, while less tension allows for a fuller sail shape.

10. Fine-Tuning:

Go sailing and make small adjustments to the rig while underway to achieve the best sail shape and performance. Pay attention to how the boat behaves in different wind conditions and adjust the rig accordingly.

11. Periodic Checks

Rig tuning is not a one-time task. Check your rig regularly for any changes due to sailing conditions, mast compression, or wear. Make adjustments as needed to maintain optimal performance.

It’s essential to keep a record of your rigging settings and changes so you can refer back to them and fine-tune your rigging over time. If you’re unsure about tuning your rig, consider seeking advice from a professional rigger or experienced sailor.

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Maintenance

How to Inspect and Tune a Sailboat Rig

By Ralph Naranjo
Updated: May 14, 2020

Major mast failures usually begin as minor hardware problems. At least that’s what scrap-bin forensics seems to confirm. So, instead of dreading a dismasting, prevent it with a sensible approach to rig maintenance.

Some sailors inspect their masts and rigging with the spar stepped, but most recognize how much will remain unseen. Riggers recommend that the mast come out every few years and be placed on a pair of sturdy sawhorses ready for close-up scrutiny. My DIY approach focuses on hardware junctions and points where load paths intersect. Packed in my rigger’s bag are the usual hand tools, plus a Scotch pad, a quality magnifying glass and a small digital camera to record the findings. The old rule of thumb is that standing rigging has a decade’s, or one circumnavigation’s, worth of reliability; it’s a benchmark that remains valid today.

Another important issue is the rigging’s designed safety factor, or how much stronger the components are than they need be. The catch here is material deterioration over time, and the fact that there’s a direct correlation between stronger structures and increased reliability. For example, by increasing 1-by-19 shrouds and their attendant hardware from 5/16 inch to 3/8 inch, the higher safe working load translates into a longer life span. It’s a legit assumption, but doing so is both costlier and adds weight aloft, which can rob performance. The same tenets apply for a larger-diameter spar section and greater wall thickness. Engineers and naval architects try to balance these competing factors.

Some decades ago, I watched the deck-stepped spar of my first little cruising sloop drop into the drink. It drove home the fact that it really is the little things that count. In that case, it was a stainless- steel toggle, connected to an upper shroud turnbuckle, which had endured a few too many on-off load cycles. A tiny, nearly invisible crack had opened up, and salt spray had found a new home. The resulting corrosion tipped the scale and led to a dramatic failure. Since then, rig scrutiny has become my obsession.

The old rule of thumb is that standing rigging has a decade’s, or one circumnavigation’s, worth of reliability.

Wire and rod end fittings need a close look, especially in areas where there are brown stains and signs of cracks, pitting or other surface deterioration. This includes an evaluation of clevis-pin holes that should be circular, not elongated. Confer the same level of scrutiny to the clevis pins themselves. Don’t confuse stainless-steel clevis pins with chrome-plated bronze pins. The latter are just fine when used in bronze fittings, but when a bronze clevis pin is placed in a stainless-steel chainplate hole, the bronze pin can be carved away by the much harder stainless-steel chainplate.

My inspection process includes a rigging-wire wipe-down with a rag that easily snags on tiny cracks. It includes careful scrutiny of hardware junctions. I search for signs of chafe, especially where fiber or wire running rigging makes directional changes at sheave boxes, and around where the headsail furler’s top swivel rides. Looking closely at masthead exit points, I check for sheave wobble, excess side play and signs of pulley damage.

This is also the time to sort out halyards that are rubbing against external or internal obstructions. I use a bright, narrow-beam LED flashlight for a good visual inspection of the internal portion of the mast. Not only will it pinpoint screws and sheave boxes that might be causing chafe, but it also will help you untangle crossed halyards and confirm fairleads. While working at the heel end of the spar, look closely for corrosion and a condition riggers call “elephant foot.” It’s an actual wrinkling of the alloy tube section caused by too much compression and a too-thin wall section. It’s most often seen on raceboats with powerful hydraulic mast-adjusting systems, and on cruising boats that have pounded into too many steep wave faces.

Roller furling foils hide the wire or rod on which they spin. Rigging end fittings and terminals can usually be inspected, but a broken strand of wire inside the foil might initially go unnoticed, at least for a little while. This is another reason why offshore cruisers opt for a cutter or solent rig that adds a second stay for some extra insurance. Following the once-a-decade rule, it makes sense to completely disassemble furling systems, and replace the wire along with any worn bearings, bushings or plastic spacers.

My inspection process includes a wire wipe-down with a rag that easily snags on tiny cracks. I search for signs of chafe everywhere.

Keep in mind that when the mast is unstepped, many roller furling drums and head foils (especially on boats with deck-stepped rigs) extend beyond the heel of the spar. If the yard doesn’t splint and immobilize the extended foil and drum, do it yourself. All it entails is a couple of 2-by-4’s, or a pair of old oars lashed or duct-taped to the mast just above the heel. This double splint should extend to the base of the roller-furling drum where it too is lashed or taped. It keeps the drum from dangling and bending the foil during transport, and while the rig is stored on a mast rack.

Spreaders also deserve a really close look. All too often, excess anti-chafe protection results in the spreader tips becoming a water trap that turns into a hidden corrosion bath. So, when the rig is down, cut away the spreader-tip padding, and use white vinegar and a plastic scrub pad to get rid of any white powdery oxidation. Remove the spreaders from the spar, and inspect the area where spreader bases make contact with the mast. Look for compression damage to the mast wall and signs of corrosion damage. If all is well, reassemble using one of the tried-and-proven water-resistant lubricants. I’ve settled on Lanocote, McLube Sailkote and Super Lube, using Boeshield T-9 and WD-40 as my go-to spray protectant and penetrant. Throw away the old cotter pins, and use new pins on all of the reassembled rigging.

“She’ll be right, mate,” was the favorite phrase of an old Kiwi friend, but it isn’t good advice when it comes to keeping the rig where it belongs. Don’t shy away from calling in a qualified rigger to handle larger problems.

Most boatyards will restep spars but won’t tune the rig. Their goal is to set up the mast and rigging to approximate how it arrived. Occasionally, they hit the mark and even replace the mast wedges appropriately. Otherwise, I wait for a flat calm to make sure that the boat has no list. This involves using a tape measure to confirm the athwartship trim (waterline to rail-height port equals waterline to rail-height starboard). Then I check the perpendicular and rake of the mast using the main halyard with a makeshift plumb bob (dive weight) attached. The retune requires loosening the turnbuckles and incrementally retensioning the rigging. Small amounts of headstay and backstay adjustment relocates the masthead, causing the makeshift plumb bob to move significantly. I use prior measurements from previous mast-tuning successes to set the rake to a sweet spot that, in the past, delivered a minimal amount of weather helm.

With the rake set, I insert a set of teak or high-density hard-rubber wedges between the mast and the mast partners. These wedge-shaped spacers have a top flange that prevents them from falling into the bilge when the mast compresses on one side of the partners and opens the gap wider on the other. With all the wedges set, I incrementally add tension to the rig, tightening headstay and backstay first, while carefully maintaining the rake angle. Next, I adjust the upper shroud (or V1), working from side to side to keep the mast perpendicular. Finally, I snug up (but not overtension) the lower and intermediate shrouds. This static tuning sets the stage for an underway final tune, during which I check how well the spar remains in column. Leeward bends and S-curves are problematic and must be minimized. Boats with discontinuous rigging have shrouds that are not one continuous wire run. They utilize turnbuckles located above spreaders that must be individually adjusted to eliminate side bend.

During sea trials, make sure the leeward standing rigging is not overly slack and flopping around like loose spaghetti.

Intentional fore and aft mast bending can influence sail shape, and is put to good use aboard raceboats. Adding such complication to most cruising boats, which are normally steered by an autopilot, makes less sense. In-mast furling spars are least happy with powerful hydraulic backstays bowing the mast. So, get sound advice from a rigger/mast builder before adding hydraulic sail-shaping gear.

A sea trial should follow your static mast tune. And as you beat to windward in a modest 10- to 15-knot true breeze, check the leeward standing rigging. Make sure it’s not overly slack and flopping around like loose spaghetti. If so, add more shroud tension to both sides. A tension-testing gauge will work, but many sailors do fine estimating by hand. Cruising-boat rigs shouldn’t have the same amount of rig tension as a raceboat beating to windward. However, if your sailboat’s mast is deck-stepped, make sure the coachroof isn’t deforming due to the compression load. A compression post, ring frame or other rigid structure should be spreading such loads. If you’re unsure of the correct rig tune, arrange a session with a rigger or sailmaker—and start the season in optimized trim.

Technical expert Ralph Naranjo has inspected the rig on his Ericson 41, Wind Shadow , on countless occasions.

More: fitting out , hardware , How To , mast , rigging
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Rig tuning: a practical guide for sailors

August 28, 2023

Correct rig tension will maximise the efficiency of your boat’s sails as well as reducing stresses on the mast. David Pugh demonstrates simple rig tuning

Safety is the number one benefit of tuning your rigging

As a cruising sailor, it’s tempting to simply set up your sail boat rig at the beginning of the season, then leave well alone.

Perhaps you leave the mast up, perhaps you mark the position of the turnbuckles before the mast comes down, perhaps you set the rig up from scratch or perhaps you pay an expert.

All these can work, but none are immune from one basic problem: boats move.

How much depends on the boat’s construction, particularly whether the mast is keel- or deck- stepped, but most will do so within a few days or weeks after the initial rig tension is applied.

The boat may continue to do so over time and rigging may stretch, especially when new, so it’s worth knowing how to correct it yourself.

My own boat, Contessa 26 Red Dragon , is a devil for this.

During the winter she sits on a trailer with the mast down, the keel supported along its length and in turn supporting the superstructure, aided by six pads and a bow post bearing on the boat hull .

At launch, these forces all change: the buoyancy of the hull now supports the keel, and the mast foot pushes down on the laminated deck beam under the step.

The rigging, meanwhile, increases the pressure on the step while trying to pull the chainplates through the deck.

I’ve never measured her beam before and after applying rig tension, but I suspect she becomes significantly wider.

She certainly doesn’t maintain her initial rig tension.

Benefits of rig tuning to get the correct tension

The first and most fundamental benefit of correct rig tension is safety.

An improperly supported mast is put under all sorts of stresses that it is not designed to endure, and dismasting can be the result.

Try sighting up the mast when the boat is close-hauled in a good breeze.

If the lee shrouds are slack and the middle or top of the mast is sagging to leeward, your mast is not properly supported and you should check your rig tension.

The second benefit is efficiency.

Continues below…

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The combination of rig, spars and sails is anything but simple, and if your s ailmaker has done their job properly and measured your boat rather than making your sails from documented figures, the luff curve of the main and the hollow of the jib or jibs will have been cut to suit the bend in the mast and the forestay tension at the time of measurement.

That means you’ll need to be able to replicate that situation when you set up the rig in order to gain maximum efficiency from your sails.

And, just to make things harder, as time goes by and your sails stretch, these optimum settings will change.

Conditions also affect the best settings for your rig.

Light airs demand softer settings than sailing in a gale, and you’ll often see racers tweaking their rig tensions to suit the conditions.

For cruisers seeking to set up and forget about their rig, the best option is to err towards setting up the boat for stronger winds, especially with shroud tension.

Forestay tension can be more dynamic, provided your boat has an adjustable backstay.

Simple rig set up

Some boats have designer’s recommendations for mast rake, bend and rig tension – if yours is one of them, follow the instructions.

The rest of us are obliged to make it up from scratch – so where do you start?

While some professional riggers might be able to assess the tension in a wire with a carefully calibrated shove, the rest of us need a bit of help.

You can either buy a rig tension gauge or measure the extension of the wire.

This latter method works on the basis that, for 1×19 rigging wire, an elongation of 1mm over 2m equates to 5% of the break load of the wire.

Seldén have a good explanation on their website – search ‘Seldén rig set-up’.

The tension you are aiming for will vary from boat to boat and between types of rigging wire, but a gauge will make it much easier to keep the tension even on opposite shrouds.

For the initial set-up the boat should ideally be floating level – it makes it much easier to see whether, despite the measurements, everything looks right.

I find it’s best to be on a finger berth, which allows you to get off the boat to assess whether the mast is upright.

Make sure that the mast is upright

If you’re starting from scratch, begin by centring the mast in the boat.

Leave the lowers fairly slack and use the main halyard to measure to the chainplates on each side.

You can then adjust the bottlescrews to make sure the cap shrouds are of equal length.

Use the main halyard to measure to the cap shroud chainplates on both sides

If your boat is symmetrical, the mast will be upright.

If your mast is keel-stepped, insert the chocks in the partners now before you apply rig tension.

Finally, tighten the cap shroud bottlescrews hand-tight, making sure you put the same number of turns on each.

Set up the mast rake

Next, set the mast rake. If you have a setting from the designer, use it.

If not, you’re most likely looking for a rake of between 1° and 2°, or 1:60 to 1:30.

So for a 9m mast, you would expect the offset between masthead and mast foot to be between 15cm and 30cm.

Measure it by hanging a weight from the main halyard and measuring the distance between the weight and the mast foot.

A forestay bottlescrew on a boat which is adjusted for tuning sail boat rigging

The forestay bottlescrew sets mast rake

If it’s windy, hanging the weight in a bucket of water will help damp the swing of the halyard.

Pull on a little backstay before using the forestay bottlescrew to move the masthead fore or aft and adjust the rake.

The backstay helps the masthead to move – with no tension, the forestay will simply become slack as you back off the bottlescrew.

Steeper rakes tend to go with fractional rigs, but this is by no means a rule – you may need to experiment to find what works for your boat.

Increasing the rake will increase weather helm , and vice versa.

Tension the cap shrouds

It’s now time to begin tensioning the rigging properly.

Take the slack out of the lowers at this stage, but don’t tighten them fully yet.

Then, using your tension gauge and making sure you keep the number of turns on each side equal, tension the cap shrouds to their working tension.

Most tension gauges are calibrated to show a percentage of the breaking strength of the wire: with my boat, I find that around 15% is sufficient to keep the rig taut in the conditions in which we sail.

A gauge being used on a boat for rig tuning

A gauge makes rig set-up easier

If you have a keel-stepped fractional rig with swept spreaders you should carry out this stage with the backstay fully tensioned, as it will initiate a bend in the mast which is fixed by tightening the caps.

If you do this, be careful that the mast does not go out of column side to side – if it does, ease the backstay slightly.

Once the caps are tensioned, sight up the mainsail luff groove to check whether the mast has any bend, fore and aft or side to side.

If you have swept spreaders you can expect it to have some fore and aft bend, but otherwise it should still be in column.

If it isn’t, don’t worry too much unless the bend is large, as you can remove small errors with the lower shrouds.

Sight up the luff groove to check that the mast is in column from side to side

Set the mast pre-bend

The lower (and intermediate, if you have them) shrouds are your opportunity to set fore and aft mast bend, as well as preventing the middle of the mast sagging off to leeward.

It’s advisable to have at least some pre-bend in your mast to avoid it inverting downwind.

For straight spreader rigs, the lowers do all the work in setting bend. Start by tensioning the babystay or forward lowers.

The optimum amount depends on how your mainsail is cut – for a stiff masthead rig like mine I only look for about 10cm of bend with the backstay off, measured by holding the main halyard tight to the foot of the mast and eyeballing the deflection.

Use a second spanner to hold the shroud still when tensioning the bottlescrew

This usually equates to around 7% of the wire break load on the gauge.

For more flexible masts and fractional rigs, you will probably need more bend.

Again, use the tension gauge to keep the tension even from side to side.

Finally, tighten the aft lowers, enough to remove any slack but not to significantly alter the mast bend.

Swept spreader rigs will tend to have lower and intermediate shrouds set abaft the mast, so the simplest thing to do is to tighten them enough to maintain the bend set when you tensioned the cap shrouds.

The tighter they are, the less the mast wants to bend, which will help transfer backstay tension to the forestay but will make it harder to flatten the main with mast bend.

The optimum setting will depend on your sails and the conditions.

Check the mast is straight

With the fore and aft bend set, check the mast is still in column side to side.

Hopefully it will be, but if it isn’t, use the lowers and intermediates to true it up.

On a single spreader rig the aft lowers are usually the best tool for this, but if the bend is significant you might need to relax the opposite forward lower, if there is one, to allow the mast to move.

If you do, make sure you retain the fore and aft bend, and keep checking the tensions in all the lowers to keep them as even as possible.

With the bend set and the mast straight, go back and check the tension in the cap shrouds.

It may have reduced with the mast bend, in which case bring it back up to your desired tension.

Tension the backstay

With the rig basically set up, tension the backstay bottlescrews to your minimum working tension.

I set ours to about 7% of the wire load, with application of the tensioner taking it up to around 17%.

Even on a stiff masthead rig like ours, this compresses the mast enough to introduce significantly more bend, and more importantly for us dramatically increases forestay tension.

With a backstay bridle like this, check the tension above the joining plate

If you don’t use a backstay adjuster, set the backstay to a similar tension to that of the cap shrouds, then go forward and check the forestay.

The tension should be similar, and will help with your upwind performance.

The above will give you a good initial set-up, but there’s no substitute for seeing how it behaves under sail.

Head out in a moderate breeze, put the boat on the wind and hand over the helm to someone else.

Then check your leeward cap shrouds.

They should still be taut in these conditions – if they aren’t, you need more rig tension.

White sails filled with wind on a sail boat

In a moderate breeze, the leeward shrouds should stay taut

Next, sight up the mast to check it is still in column. If the middle sags to leeward, tighten the lowers.

If the tip sags off it could be the middle popping to windward or the tip sagging.

Both over-tight lowers and loose cap shrouds will have this effect, and it can be dangerous as it reduces the angle at which the cap shroud meets the masthead, making its support less effective.

If you have this problem, check your tension settings before making a decision which to alter.

Rig tuning: conclusion

A well-tuned rig makes a boat sail better, while ensuring your mast is correctly supported is a safety essential.

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, boats move, so although you should be able to leave your mast rake and side-to-side centring alone, keep an eye on the shroud tensions.

They may well reduce, especially in the first weeks after setting up the rig, so don’t assume that all is well.

You keep an eye on your engine levels – five minutes with a tension gauge or a wander around the deck under sail will do the same for your rig

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Using a Loos Gauge to tune shrouds on a Catalina 22

Sailboat Shrouds: Essential Rigging Components for Stability

by Emma Sullivan | Aug 17, 2023 | Sailboat Maintenance

Short answer: Sailboat shrouds

Sailboat shrouds are essential components of the standing rigging system that provide lateral support to the mast. They consist of multiple tensioned wires or ropes running from the mast’s upper sections to the sides of the boat. Shrouds help maintain rig stability and distribute forces exerted by wind, ensuring safe sailing conditions.

What Are Sailboat Shrouds and Why Are They Important for Sailing?

Sailboat shrouds – often overlooked but crucial elements of a sailing vessel’s rigging system. These vital components play a significant role in ensuring a safe and efficient sailing experience . In this blog post, we will delve into what sailboat shrouds are and why they hold such importance in the art of sailing.

To put it simply, sailboat shrouds are the supporting structures responsible for holding the mast upright. They consist of tensioned cables or rods that extend from either side of the mast, connecting to various points on the boat ‘s hull or deck. While their primary function is to provide lateral support to the mast, they also help distribute the rigging loads effectively.

One might wonder why sailboat shrouds are so essential when it comes to sailing. Well, let’s explore some key reasons why these unassuming yet invaluable components should never be underestimated:

1. Stability and Safety: The stability of a sailboat depends heavily on its ability to withstand strong winds and turbulent waters. Sailboat shrouds contribute significantly to maintaining stability by preventing excessive sideways movement of the mast . This helps prevent capsizing or loss of control during adverse weather conditions .

2. Mast Support: The vertical support provided by sailboat shrouds is paramount in keeping the mast properly aligned and evenly distributing its weight across the boat’s structure. This ensures that stresses on both the mast and hull are distributed evenly, minimizing any chances of structural damage or failure.

3. Control Over Sails: Sail controls, including halyards and sheets, rely on a stable mast for effective operation. Sailboat shrouds add critical support to keep the mast erect, thereby enabling proper trim adjustments and maximizing performance efficiency while adjusting sails’ shape and angle.

4. Rig Tuning: A well-tuned rig is crucial for optimal sailing performance and efficiency. Sailboat shrouds play an integral part in this process by allowing sailors to adjust the mast’s rake and side-to-side distribution through tension adjustments. Proper rig tuning ensures that the sailboat operates at peak performance, gliding smoothly through the water with improved speed and responsiveness.

5. Reducing Stress on Other Rigging Components: By effectively managing the loads transferred from the mast to the boat, sailboat shrouds help alleviate stress on other crucial rigging components such as stays, halyards, and sheets. This helps prolong their lifespan while also reducing chances of costly repairs or failures during a voyage.

While understanding what sailboat shrouds are and why they are important is crucial, it is equally essential to maintain and inspect them regularly. Regular inspections ensure that any signs of wear or damage are promptly addressed, preventing potential accidents or failures while sailing .

In conclusion, sailboat shrouds may seem unassuming in comparison to other more glamorous aspects of sailing; however, they are undeniably vital for a safe and efficient experience on the water. From providing stability in adverse conditions to supporting mast control and overall rig performance – these unsung heroes play an indispensable role in ensuring smooth sailing adventures for all sailors bold enough to embark on them. So next time you set out on your sailboat, take a moment to appreciate the humble yet mighty sailboat shroud!

A Step-by-Step Guide on How to Install or Replace Sailboat Shrouds

Title: Mastering the Art of Sailboat Shroud Installation: A Comprehensive Step-by-Step Guide

Introduction: Ah, the graceful dance between wind and water! Sailing enthusiasts worldwide understand the thrill of maneuvering their sailboats through choppy waves. However, even the most majestic vessels require a little TLC from time to time. Today, we venture into the realm of sailboat maintenance and explore the nitty-gritty details of installing or replacing those crucial components known as sailboat shrouds. Prepare to unfurl your knowledge sails as we embark on this step-by-step journey!

Step 1: Start with a Clean Slate Before delving into any installation process, ensure that your sailboat’s deck and rigging area are immaculate. Remove any debris or unnecessary equipment cluttering up space, providing you with a clear canvas on which to work your magic.

Step 2: Identify the Culprits Take stock of your existing shrouds’ conditions, identifying signs of wear and tear such as fraying cables or corroded hardware. If those fibers have reached their retirement age or if you desire an upgrade for performance purposes, it’s time to swap them out!

Step 3: Measure Twice Before You Buy Once Having accurate measurements is pivotal when ordering new shrouds. Loosely wrapping a flexible tape measure around each side stay will grant you precise dimensions. Remember this golden rule: measure twice before hitting that “Buy Now” button!

Step 4: Choose Quality Over Compromise Invest in high-quality sailboat shrouds made from marine-grade stainless steel or other corrosion-resistant materials to ensure longevity and performance under various weather conditions. Remember that scrimping on quality today may result in costly repercussions downwind.

Step 5: Unleashing Your Inner MacGyver – DIY Installation Process a) Gather Your Tools: Once all necessary items are acquired (cue dramatic music), gather the following tools: measuring tape, set of wrenches, wire cutters, cable swaging tool, open turnbuckles, and Tef-Gel or similar anti-seize lubricant.

b) Remove the Old Shrouds: Using appropriate wrenches, cautiously loosen and remove the old shroud from each attachment point. Ensure stability during this process to prevent accidental mishaps or involuntary dips into the water below.

c) Measure Twice Yet Again: Double-check that your new shrouds’ measurements match those recorded earlier. Any discrepancy here could turn your anticipated smooth sailing into an unwelcome jousting match with physics!

d) Attach and Swage New Shrouds: Fix one end of each shroud to its respective attachment point using open turnbuckles. Employ your cable swaging tool (following manufacturer’s instructions) to secure the cable ends. Double-check for any signs of imperfection; remember, accuracy is key!

e) Level It Up – Adjust Tension Equally Once all shrouds are in place, adjust their tension equally by winding their respective turnbuckles until they reach an optimal level suitable for your sailboat type and sailing conditions. Seek advice from experienced sailors or rigging professionals if you’re navigating uncharted waters .

Step 6: Treat Your Rigging Like Royalty To protect your investment and enhance performance, don’t overlook proper maintenance practices! Routinely inspect your sailboat shrouds for signs of chafing or loose hardware. Regularly clean with fresh water and apply a small amount of Tef-Gel (or similar lubricant) to thwart corrosion before it sets sail on your rigging.

Conclusion: Congratulations! By mastering this step-by-step guide on installing or replacing sailboat shrouds, you’ve shown a true commitment to keeping your vessel in prime condition. Remember that knowledge might be power but maintaining a safe sailing environment goes even further. Happy adventuring, fellow mariners, and may the winds always fill your sails with excitement and wonder!

Common FAQs about Sailboat Shrouds Answered

Sailing is a truly exhilarating experience, and one crucial element that ensures the safety and stability of your sailboat is the shroud system. Sailboat shrouds are essential components that provide support to the mast and prevent it from collapsing under the force of strong winds. However, understanding this complex system can sometimes leave sailors with numerous questions. To enlighten you on this topic, we have compiled some common FAQs about sailboat shrouds and provided detailed answers below.

1. What are sailboat shrouds? Sailboat shrouds are an integral part of a sailboat ‘s rigging system. They consist of stainless steel wires or ropes that run diagonally from either side of the boat’s mast to its sides or deck. These carefully tensioned lines help distribute the loads generated by wind pressure throughout the entire sailing structure, enhancing stability and maintaining proper alignment.

2. Why are there different types of sailboat shrouds? Different types of sailboats require varying numbers and configurations of shrouds based on their design, size, and purpose. Common variations include single-spreader rigs (featuring two upper diagonal shrouds per side), double-spreader configurations (utilizing both upper- and lower-diagonal pairs), and even triple-spreader setups employed on larger vessels for increased support.

3. How do I set up my sailboat’s shroud tension correctly? The proper tensioning of your sailboat ‘s shrouds is vital for optimal performance and safety. To achieve ideal tensioning, start by centering the mast base before attaching the forestay – this will ensure equal weight distribution between both sides while eliminating excessive bending forces on either port or starboard stays. Next, tighten each individual stay while monitoring their bend evenly using a Loos gauge or similar tool until reaching manufacturer-recommended tensions specified in your boat’s manual.

4. Can I adjust my sailboat’s shroud tension while underway ? Although sailboat shroud tension adjustments are generally made while docked or at anchor , it is possible to make minor tweaks while on the water. However, exercising caution and maintaining balance is crucial when working with rigging under load. Additionally, be mindful that making significant changes to shroud tensions during a sail can alter the trim and performance of your boat, often requiring corresponding adjustments to other sail controls.

5. How frequently should I inspect my sailboat’s shrouds? Regular inspection of your sailboat’s shrouds is vital for identifying potential issues before they escalate into more significant problems. Consider examining your rigging before each sailing season and periodically throughout the year – especially after severe weather conditions or rough passages . Look for signs of corrosion, fraying wires, loose fittings, or any unusual wear and tear that may compromise stability.

6. Are stainless steel wire shrouds better than synthetic rope alternatives? Both stainless steel wire and synthetic ropes – such as Dyneema or Spectra – have their advantages and disadvantages when used as sailboat shrouds. Stainless steel provides excellent strength and durability but requires regular maintenance to avoid corrosion. Synthetic ropes offer weight savings, lower costs, and reduced rigging noise but may require more frequent replacement due to UV deterioration or chafe.

In conclusion, understanding the importance of sailboat shrouds and staying informed about their proper usage is imperative for any sailor concerned with safety and performance on the water. By addressing these common FAQs about sailboat shrouds comprehensively, we hope you have gained valuable insights into this essential aspect of sailing rigging. Remember to consult your boat’s manual and seek professional advice if in doubt regarding specific setup or maintenance procedures related to your individual vessel.

Understanding the Different Types of Sailboat Shrouds: Which One is Right for You?

When it comes to sailboats, one of the most important components is the shroud. This essential piece of equipment plays a vital role in providing support and stability to the mast. However, not all sailboat shrouds are created equal, and it’s crucial to understand the different types available to determine which one is right for you.

1. Wire Shrouds: Wire shrouds are perhaps the most common type found on sailboats . These shrouds are typically made from stainless steel wire ropes that provide excellent strength and durability. They offer reliable support and rigidity for the mast, making them suitable for various sailing conditions. Wire shrouds often require regular maintenance, including inspecting for corrosion or wear.

2. Rod Shrouds: Rod shrouds consist of solid metal rods instead of wires, offering superior stiffness compared to their wire counterparts. Made from materials such as carbon fiber or stainless steel alloys, rod shrouds provide exceptional resistance against stretching and movement under extreme loads. These high-performance shrouds are popular among racing sailors who prioritize maximum control and precision in their sail trim.

3. Synthetic Shrouds: Synthetic shrouds have gained popularity in recent years due to advancements in technology and materials like Dyneema® or Spectra® fibers. While these synthetic materials may not possess the same strength as wire or rod, they provide several advantages such as reduced weight, increased flexibility, and excellent resistance against UV degradation and corrosion. Additionally, synthetic shrouds boast an impressive strength-to-weight ratio, which enhances performance on modern lightweight sailing vessels .

4. Hybrid Shrouds: Combining the best qualities of wire or rod with synthetic fibers leads us to hybrid shroud options – a blend of traditional and modern materials. These innovative designs offer increased strength while reducing weight compared to conventional wire setups. Hybrid shrouds utilize strategic combinations of carbon fiber or Kevlar with wire or synthetic elements to provide optimal balance between strength, flexibility, and durability.

Choosing the right shroud for your sailboat depends on a variety of factors. It is crucial to consider your sailing style, boat size , intended use, and budget. Recreational cruisers may opt for traditional wire shrouds due to their reliability and cost-effectiveness. On the other hand, performance-oriented sailors might gravitate towards rod or hybrid shrouds for their enhanced stiffness and control during racing or challenging conditions. Synthetic options are ideal for sailors seeking lightweight solutions that offer reduced maintenance requirements.

Ultimately, consulting with experts at reputable marine retailers can help guide you in selecting the most suitable sailboat shroud for your specific needs. Their knowledge and experience will ensure you find the perfect balance between functionality, longevity, and innovation – all while keeping your mast standing tall against the unforgiving forces of wind and waves. Remember to prioritize safety on the water by conducting routine inspections of your chosen shroud type to maintain optimal sailing performance throughout every adventure!

Key Maintenance Tips to Ensure the Longevity of Your Sailboat Shrouds

When it comes to maintaining your sailboat and ensuring its longevity, one crucial area that often gets overlooked is the shrouds. The shrouds play a vital role in maintaining the structural integrity of your sails and mast , so it’s essential to give them the attention they deserve. In this blog post, we will discuss some key maintenance tips that will help you keep your sailboat shrouds in top condition for years to come.

1. Regular Inspections: It is important to inspect your sailboat shrouds regularly for any signs of wear and tear or damage. Look out for corroded fittings, frayed cables, or loose connections. By catching these issues early on, you can prevent further damage and ensure the longevity of your shrouds.

2. Cleaning: Saltwater exposure can cause corrosion and rust on your sailboat shroud fittings. To prevent this from happening, make sure to rinse off the saltwater thoroughly after each use. Additionally, periodically clean all fittings with a mild detergent to remove any accumulated grime or dirt.

3. Lubrication: Keeping your sailboat shroud fittings properly lubricated is crucial for their smooth operation and prevention of corrosion. Using a high-quality marine lubricant, apply a thin coat to all moving parts such as turnbuckles and swage fittings regularly.

4. Tension adjustment: Over time, the tension on your sailboat shrouds can change due to various factors like wind conditions or temperature fluctuations. Therefore, it’s essential to check and adjust the tension periodically using a tension gauge as recommended by the manufacturer.

5. UV Protection: Sunlight exposure can degrade the strength of materials used in sailboat shrouds over time. To protect against harmful UV rays, consider installing UV-resistant covers specially designed for protecting your shroud fittings when not in use.

6. Professional inspections: While regular DIY inspections are crucial for maintenance, it is highly recommended to schedule professional inspections by a qualified rigger at least once a year. They have the experience and knowledge to perform in-depth assessments, detect any hidden issues, and provide recommendations for necessary repairs or replacements.

7. Storage: When not in use, proper storage is essential to ensure the longevity of your sailboat shrouds. Remove any excess tension and store them indoors or under a protective cover to shield them from harsh weather elements.

By following these key maintenance tips, you can significantly extend the lifespan of your sailboat shrouds and enhance your sailing experience. So, invest some time and effort into caring for this vital component of your boat , and it will reward you with many enjoyable voyages on the open water. Happy sailing!

Troubleshooting and Repairing Issues with Sailboat Shrouds: Expert Advice

Are you an avid sailor who enjoys exploring the open waters, feeling the wind in your hair, and experiencing the exhilaration of navigating a sailboat? If so, then you are probably familiar with one of the most critical components of a sailboat – the shrouds .

Shrouds play a crucial role in maintaining the stability and integrity of a sailboat’s mast . They provide support and prevent the mast from collapsing under the intense pressure exerted by powerful winds . However, like any other part of a boat , these vital elements can experience issues that may compromise their functionality and jeopardize your safety on the water.

But fear not! In this blog post, we will delve into troubleshooting and repairing common issues with sailboat shrouds, providing you with expert advice to ensure smooth sailing every time.

One typical problem that sailors encounter with shrouds is corrosion. As metal components exposed to saltwater and harsh marine conditions, it’s no surprise that rust can rear its ugly head. When inspecting your shrouds, be on the lookout for any signs of discoloration or pitting on the metal surface. If left unattended, corrosion can weaken your shrouds significantly and increase the risk of a catastrophic failure at sea.

To combat this issue, start by conducting regular maintenance routines such as rinsing off your shrouds after every outing. This simple step can help remove excess salt build-up that accelerates corrosion. Additionally, investing in rust inhibitors or applying protective coatings specifically designed for marine environments is highly recommended.

Another troublesome problem that sailors often encounter is improper tensioning of their shrouds. Uneven tension across different sides of the mast can lead to deformities or misalignments in both the rigging system and mast itself – compromising overall performance during sailing maneuvers .

The first step to address this problem lies in understanding how to properly tension your sailboat ‘s shrouds. Start by loosening all the stays and turnbuckles evenly. Then, using a tension gauge specific to your sailboat ‘s shroud material (such as stainless steel or synthetic), gradually tighten each stay until they reach the recommended tension levels provided by the manufacturer.

However, keep in mind that applying too much tension can also be detrimental. Over time, excessive force may cause strain on the shrouds and result in premature wear and tear. Achieving the perfect balance is crucial, so it is wise to consult with professionals or experienced sailors for guidance if you are unsure.

Lastly, let us discuss an issue that often goes unnoticed – fatigue and aging of sailboat shrouds. Just like any other component exposed to constant stress and frequent usage, these vital parts have a lifespan. Over time, signs of wear such as cracks or frayed wires may start appearing – compromising their overall strength and reliability.

To address this problem proactively, it is essential to schedule regular inspections with qualified rigging specialists who can identify early signs of fatigue before they escalate into more severe issues. By adhering to a preventative maintenance strategy, you can extend the lifespans of your shrouds while ensuring safe voyages on your beloved sailboat .

In conclusion, being aware of common issues that arise with sailboat shrouds allows you to troubleshoot and repair them effectively. Remember to combat corrosion through regular maintenance routines and protective measures, achieve proper tensioning for optimal performance, and prioritize regular inspections to detect signs of fatigue early on.

So next time you embark on an adventure at sea, you can do so with confidence knowing that your sailboat’s shrouds are shipshape!

shroud tension

Thread starter Jim Eller
Start date Oct 7, 2014
Catalina Owner Forums
Catalina 22

I was recently given at Loos No. 91 gauge. I have always just guessed at the shroud tension on my Catalina 22. Now I think it would be good to get it closer to recommended specs. Any advise on how much tension? Jim

Claude L.-Auger

Jim Eller said: I was recently given at Loos No. 91 gauge. I have always just guessed at the shroud tension on my Catalina 22. Now I think it would be good to get it closer to recommended specs. Any advise on how much tension? Jim Click to expand

I don't know if the model year matters but here is a guide for a 2007 Catalina 22 Mk II that I used year after year and never had any problems. I had a 1980 model C22. Greg

Attachments

Using a Loos Gauge to tune shrouds on a Catalina 22.pdf 66.2 KB Views: 325

Stu Jackson

$tingy Sailor

I think some slack is normal, especially for our old cruiser boats. Remember, they ain't what they used to be and most have probably lost some of their stiffness over the years, which is probably why racers often heavily reinforce the chain plates. Most of the corner braces in mine separated from the deck or hull long ago. I'd probably be shocked to really know how much it flexes in a stiff wind. Old sailors, now, are the opposite. We gain stiffness over the years and ain't as flexible as we used to be and that's just wrong.

The first few years the C-22's had smaller cable for the lowers, but the racers found out the boat needed stronger rigging when the 150 genoa and spinnakers started being fitted. The change to all 1/8" cable on the rigging was made years and thousands of boats ago. The National C-22 web site has all the recommended stay tensions depending on the wind. GOB's of information available on the site. Don

Using the loose gauge, I have been happy with, Forward lower shroud 26 Aft lower shroud 24 Upper Shroud 28 - 30

I'll be durned if I can find those specs at catalina22.org. Can anyone steer me toward them? I have a hard copy of the tech manual somewhere, is that where I should be looking?

Ton's of information on the C-22 National Web Site, so sometimes it takes a bit of looking around. Here is the link from the technical articles, and it's the C-22 tuning guide from North Sails: http://www.onedesign.com/Portals/106/docs/Tuning%20Guides/north-catalina22-tuningguide.pdf Don

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IMAGES

Sail Boat Rig Checks
By the Numbers: Tuning the Rig on Your Small Sailboat
Buy Loos & Co. Sailboat Rigging Tension Gauge, PT-2 Professional Hands-Free Force Gauge, Cable
Sail Delmarva: Shroud Tensioner
Sailboat Rigging Tension Gaug...B0000AXNQH
Sailboat main sheet, shroud tension

VIDEO

Ship's squat and its effects on ship handling
The Rigging Company Inner Forestay Storage System
RACE REPORT
Ungrounding a Sailboat Stuck In It's Slip at Hight Tide. Got It, But Couldn't Fully Resecure It
Skeg and Rudder
Part 6

COMMENTS

How to set up your rig: tension your shrouds on masthead or fractional
Step 3: Tighten the cap shrouds and backstay. With the mast now upright laterally and the rake set, tension the cap shrouds by taking the same number of turns on each. Take no more than two or three full turns on one side before doing the same on the other. Count carefully.
How to use Tension Gauges
Sizes .172 to .375 and 4.4mm to 9.5mm. The Loos tension gauges take the guesswork out of cable or rod tension adjustment. The tension gauges are especially designed for accurate, repeatable tuning of a sailboat's standing rigging. Contrary to popular thought, a slack rig is more punishing on a hull than a properly adjusted, tight rig.
Shroud tensions
The Ullman Guide says: "On the Loos Model-A tension gauge, the lower shroud tension should be around 5." (for our 1/8" wire .. the guage doesn't even show a load reading that low). The North Guide says 20 for the lowers at the same wind speed. Wind Speed. Upper Shroud Tension. Lower Shroud Tension. Head Stay.
How to Tune a Sailboat Mast
1. Check by sighting up the backside of the mast to see how straight your spar is side to side. You can take a masthead halyard from side to side to ensure that the masthead is on center. Do this by placing a wrap of tape 3′ up from the upper chainplate pin hole on each upper shroud. Cleat the halyard and pull it to the tape mark on one side ...
Standing Rigging: How Tight Is Right?
The new Loos gauges use a long-lasting stainless spring to produce the tension. Slip the lower grooved wheels on a shroud or stay, pull the lanyard to engage the upper hook, relax, read the tension at your leisure and consult the scale to learn the pounds of pressure on the wire and the percentage of breaking strength of the wire.
How To Measure Standing Rigging Tension
Pull the lanyard until the indicator aligns with the mark on the gauge. 3. Read the (bend) number from the scale. This forestay has a tension of 13 or 110 pounds for a 1/8″ cable. 4. Measure the cable size and look up the tension in pounds that corresponds to the cable size in the chart on the gauge.
How To Tune Your Sailboat Rig
Use a tension gauge, Loos gauge, or tensiometer to achieve the desired tension. Repeat this process for both sides of the boat. Next, adjust the tension in the upper shrouds to match the recommended baseline tension. Be careful not to overtighten any of the rigging. Spinlock Rig Sense Tension Gauge for 2-5mm Wire.
Sailboat Shroud: Everything You Need to Know
Short answer sailboat shroud: A sailboat shroud is a part of the standing rigging system that supports the mast and helps maintain its stability. ... Use either a wrench or a shroud tension gauge to ensure consistent tension across all shrouds. Establish good baseline stiffness without excess rigidity, allowing flexibility required for proper ...
Sailboat Stays and Shrouds: Essential Rigging Components Explained
Some commonly used shroud types are: 1. Upper Shrouds: ... To determine optimal tension, consult your sailboat's manufacturer guidelines or consult with a professional rigging specialist. Adjustments may also vary depending on sea state or anticipated weather conditions. Proper tuning necessitates periodic evaluation to ensure the stays and ...
How to Inspect and Tune a Sailboat Rig
If so, add more shroud tension to both sides. A tension-testing gauge will work, but many sailors do fine estimating by hand. Cruising-boat rigs shouldn't have the same amount of rig tension as a raceboat beating to windward. However, if your sailboat's mast is deck-stepped, make sure the coachroof isn't deforming due to the compression ...
Proper shroud tension
The Mariner (ODay/Stuart 19) racing tuning guide suggests 180# for the 1/8" upper shrouds as a starting point, 220-240# for the forestay, back stay effectively 0. Mariner backstay is 3/32, not 1/8. Some racers reverse the tensions for the forestay and shrouds. This year, adjustable, dual terminated backstay was authorized for racing by vote of ...
Rig tuning: a practical guide for sailors
Rig tuning: conclusion. A well-tuned rig makes a boat sail better, while ensuring your mast is correctly supported is a safety essential. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, boats move, so although you should be able to leave your mast rake and side-to-side centring alone, keep an eye on the shroud tensions.
Stay and shroud tension: Not just for sailing performance!
For example, a 3/16" diameter shroud has a 4,700 lbs breaking strength. From the scale, the shroud should be set to 500 lbs tension or roughly 11% of the breaking strength. The forestay would normally be more, around 750 lbs of tension. There is also a proper sequence when tensioning shrouds and stays. This sequence ensures the mast is ...
Using a Loos Gauge to tune shrouds on a Catalina 22
The correct number for the Catalina 22 shrouds is between 29 and 31 which correspond to 250 - 280 lbs of tension, about 15% +/- of the 1785 pound breaking strength. You get these numbers from the chart on the back of the gauge. Another item you want to look at is to make sure your mast is "in column". That is, make sure it is straight.
Sailboat Shrouds: Essential Rigging Components for Stability
Short answer: Sailboat shrouds Sailboat shrouds are essential components of the standing rigging system that provide lateral support to the mast. They consist of multiple tensioned wires or ropes running from the mast's upper sections to the sides of the boat. Shrouds help maintain rig stability and distribute forces exerted by wind, ensuring ...
Shroud Tensions
Shroud tension Oday 272 LE question Oday 272 LE - when I stretch a halyard down front of back side of mast it appears mast has a bend in the middle - bowed with bulge toward starboard side. I used shroud tensioning to get the mast straight - maybe not the best method. When sailing in 10-15 kn the lee side shrouds are both loose.
What Is A Shroud On A Sailboat? A Detailed Exploration
Importance of Proper Shroud Tension. Just like a finely tuned instrument, your sailboat requires a perfect balance. A big part of that balance lies in achieving the right shroud tension. Too loose, and the mast could sway more than necessary, affecting your boat's performance and potentially causing damage. Too tight, and you could put ...
Shroud tension
Given a 1/4" diameter stainless steel shroud, depending on the grade, the breaking load specs can range from 5500 lbs to 8100 lbs. 15% means 825 -1215 lbs of tension. Is this true? To me this seems excessive. The tension is not only dependant on the shrouds breaking load strength but on the hull and the mast's compressive strength as well.
Tuning A Sailboat Rig
You'll need a large screwdriver to rotate the turnbuckle, and a wrench to hold the shroud fitting and prevent it turning as you tighten. Give a couple of complete turns on either side. Have a helper release the main halyard and keep a little tension while you pull down the end that normally attaches to the mainsail until it just touches the top ...
What is the right rig tension for my boat?
Shroud tension: The setup for most fractional rigs the same as with a masthead rig. It's different when a boat has swept spreaders. If the upper and lower shrouds lead to chain plates that are aft of the mast, then the forestay tension is balanced by the upper shrouds. A shroud tensions of 20% of the cable strength may be required to achieve ...
Shroud Tension
I recently took my 2013 MH40 to my local rigger in Solomons, MD to tighten the shrouds. He tightened them using the Selden recommended tensions (20% of the breaking strength). Hunter does not have any recommendation for the tightness, but instead says to tighten the shrouds about half-way on...
shroud tension
22,761. Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada. Oct 7, 2014. #4. All Catalina boat manuals, especially for the single spreader models (don'tknow about the multiple ones) have an extremely well written HOW TO without using gauges at all. I've been sailing Catalinas since 1983, and have never felt the need for a gauge.