I’m wintering with mast down this year, which gives me an opportunity to get a much better look at Soave’s rig.
A couple observations about mast wedges :
The mast wedges in Soave have been easy to set and without much force all. They end up with all their shoulders resting on the deck collar.
My manual says there are 12 wedges, Soave has 16.
The wedges are plastic ( see HERE ) and are coated with a thick sticky substance the seems like lanolin.
Questions :
I’m thinking of make 4 new wedges that are slightly thicker than the current wedges. Very slight difference, just enough so none of the wedges bottom out on the shoulder. This gives me a total of 20 wedges. Am I correct in thinking that my wedges were made too thin and that they should be think enough that their shoulders don’t come in contact with the deck collar ?
In the spring when I recommission, I’ll follow the manual and use 12 wedges spaced as shown in the manual ( the 4 new thicker wedges plus 8 of the current wedges. The new ( slightly thicker) wedges would be used in the aft region of the deck collar. The result will be snug wedges tapped evenly so their shoulders are within 1/16" of the deck collar but not bottomed out. The second result will be the mast will have a very slight forward rake as compared to last season. A direction I’d like to see given how the boat currently steers, with negligible change in the mast’s side-2-side orientation. ( I suppose I could measure to plumb in the port-starboard direction ). Am I correct in thinking that snugger wedges that are not bottomed out in the collar is a primary objective, and that any change to mast rake would be negligible enough to ignore for structural purposes ?
I assume the lanolin like substance was used to reduce friction while the wedges were being set and possibly keep them in position once set ? I’ll apply again in the spring ?
Thanks for thought and insights.
Have you ever noticed that your boat sail faster on one tack than the other? Having mast wedges that don’t go all the way down to the collar is the only way a Nonsuch owner has to “tune” his rig - by adjusting some wedges higher or lower than others.
Herb G. Huber, MISTOFFELEES 30C#91 Sarnia/Point Edward, Ontario
Lake Huron Nonsuch Association
That’s really interesting. I’ve definitely noticed that my boat’s faster on one tack than the other, but always attributed it to differences in weight distribution and currents encountered on the different tacks.
Would you be willing to expand a bit on how you’d tune the rigs with wedge adjustments? Is this about getting the mast precisely even, or about adjusting fore-and-aft rake and side to side angles to compensate for other factors? How does one go about analyzing their situation to decide which wedges go up and which go down?
BTW, those of us with carbon fiber masts are encouraged to use Spartite rather than wedges because of concerns that wedges will point load the mast. Any thoughts about how this kind of rig tuning would play out for us folks?
Thanks,
– Bob
Me Gusta
Nonsuch e26U #233
Marina del Rey, California
Bob, hopefully some of the more seasoned racers will contribute on this topic of mast lean. I only took up sailing as a retirement hobby. But back when I commented to a long-time racer about how my boat performed differently on one tack vs. the other, he said that I might be surprised how a slight change at the deck level of a Nonsuch changes the mast lean higher up. Have you noticed how racers of traditional sailboats draw the mast top back by tightening the backstay when the seas are flatter (and they want a flatter sail), because they want to go faster (& want less heel), or loosen it when they need more power in lighter air or higher seas?
I could be wrong on some of that & for that reason hopefully the more seasoned Nonsuch racers will contribute their two cents on this topic.
Herb G. Huber, MISTOFFELEES NS30C#91 Sarnia/Point Edward, Ontario
Lake Huron Nonsuch Association
You can check if the mast is in the middle of the boat (at the top anyway) by measuring back from the bow symmetrically to each side and making marls abeam or a little behind the mast. Cleat the halyard so it just reaches one mark and check on the other side. I’ve never done this on my Nonsuch because it didn’t seem like there was a way to adjust it even if it wasn’t square so I didn’t bother.
I just received a new set of wedges from Mike Quill today because somehow I only have 11 after my mast was removed this fall. The instructions with the wedges do not say anything about using them to center the mast. Obviously a little change at the bottom will make a big difference at the top.
One item in the instructions with the shims I have a question with and that is “trim as needed”. I suppose what gets trimmed might be obvious when the mast is put back up but I’m curious now.
Bob,
My NonSuch tuning experience is pretty close to zero, which is why I floated the question.
For other boats that I have raced, tuning was a fascinating subject that took lots of effort to master. We tuned our Flying Scot rig multiple times a season and for particular weather/wave conditions to stay competitive. New sails usually came with a new tuning guide.
Maybe the answer ( based on responses) is not to obsess about tuning on a NonSuch ?
My goal with Soave it is to make sure I adhere to assumptions that her designer intended. Secondarily, if I make any rig tuning changes, I’d like to be confident that they do not hinder her performance. Having sailed her for a season, my intuition is that any change ought NOT increase weather helm. In 14+ knot wind she has plenty.
Sailmakers have assured me a new sail will reduce weather helm, by holding its shape much better. I intend to start next season with a new sail. I don’t intend to do any serious PHRF racing, but local club racing is pretty popular in my area, so it will be nice to understand tuning parameters for Soave.
Every boat is different, I don’t mean to imply that anything I learn with Soave will help other NonSuch owners. Just in case I’ll share.
The issues I found on Soave are :
The bolts in Soave’s mast step casting were either missing or broken. My takeaway is that, after I remove the seized bolts, I will replace them and exercise them ( remove, apply anti-seize, and return ) each season to prevent them from seizing again. Stainless bolts in cast aluminum is seizure waiting to happen. This is too easy to ignore given the design of our Nonsuch boats.
The mast wedges at the deck collar are loose. I suspect someone trimmed them down to make them easy to insert. My takeaway is that my mast is a little loose in the collar and that the present wedges make it impossible to tune. It’s not that I feel the need or even have the knowledge to tune at this point. I want have the option to tune after I get my new sail.
The pad eyes for the wishbone hanger had begun to corrode the aluminum wishbone. This is a high priority - must address - issue that supersedes the other two. There are many places where stainless is touching aluminum, I will inspect for corrosion and remediate as necessary. I will do a close up inspection of the wishbone each season.
My experience ( on other boats ) is taking baseline measurements ( with and without the weight of the ( centered ) boom or wishbone ) is the start of every tuning process. Make sure you know how to get back to where you started.
Pick symmetrical locations on the gunnel along side the mast. Verify they are symmetric measuring from the bow to each one… adjust as necessary till they are identical. Mark them so you can return to them in the future.
Run a tape measure up the halyard and measure each side. Note any difference. ( in addition to the tape measure run a messenger line secured to the halyard shackle to make sure you don’t lose control of the halyard).
Site up the mast if it’s not straight, run a plumb line to the top and try to estimate the magnitude of bend.
Pick a centered spot on the stern and measure from the top of the mast to the point.
Once you have a baseline, you can compare and detect changes in setup. My tuning experience is from Flying Scot… 1/2" difference in the measurement from transom to mast top made a significant difference. Being off by 1.5" totally blew any possibility of being competitive. I’d imagine the variance will be much larger on a Nonsuch, but still worth measuring.
One thing to remember about using the halyard to center your mast – if you have two sheaves on the crane, neither is centered. If you only have one, it should be.
Joe Valinoti
S/V iL Gatto NS30U #221
Sea Harbour YC
Oriental, NC USA