Here is a photo of my NS30c close-hauled in approximately 15 knots in a moderate chop. From the helm I did not notice all the wrinkles in the sail. I do not believe this is a result of trim but would like the opinion of other NS sailors. We were averaging about 6 knots on this leg, sometimes hitting 7. I have been struggling to sail up to my rating (PHRF 161) for the past two seasons, coincidentally from the time I purchased this sail. Thank you for your feedback.
Tom NS30 318
Olcott, NY
Can you provide the specs on the sail? Cloth material? Who made it?
Bob Gehrman
NS30U #396 “Quickbeam”
Baltimore, Maryland
Nice photo, Tom. To me, it looks like the leech line may be too tight and is causing the wrinkles.
Joe Valinoti
S/V iL Gatto NS30U #221
Sea Harbour YC
Oriental, NC USA
Hi Tom, it appears to me that the sail needs to be raised a few inches to eliminate the scalloping on the lower section of the sail. With the sail raised to the level you have it set at the topping lift appears tight and this will cause an unnatural set to the sail.
Ron
Ron & Diane Schryver
“Alpha Waves” 1987 NS30U #393
Georgian Bay Midland ON
Tom -
IMHO … I fully agree with Joe and Ron. I do think that the luff is a little loose and that the sail has to be pulled up a lot tighter. If it is at the max, the addition of a cunningham would allow you to tighten the foot of the sail it toward the the deck. To me, a big culprit here is that the topping lift should be genuinely loose, allowing the clew of the sail to establish the height/trim of the aft part of the boom. Only in very certain cases (i.e. not in these lovely and lively conditions) should the topping lft support the boom when actually sailing. And, I bet that Joe is correct and you should fully loosen the leech line until you solve this wrinkle issue.
The nice thing about photos is that you can greatly enlarge them on the computer screen. In this case, it seems like a fair whack of sail is simply sitting in the cradle lines (crying to be used).
So … haul that sail up the to max and loosen the topping lift - see what you’ve got. Wrinkles or not … your boat looks nice !!
Ernie A. in Toronto
I agree with what the others are saying. More hoist (halyard tension), slack topping lift, less leech line tension - ease the leech line until the leech starts to flutter then tighten it just enough to stop the flutter. If it were me, I would also tighten the choker more for close hauled sailing - about two feet of sail kissing the boom would be my starting point.
If you can try those changes and see if you can get someone on another boat to take a picture you can share with us.
As Ernie says, you might need a Cunningham with that sail. For racing you should have a black band at the top of the mast indicating maximum hoist. Maybe one of our racers will know where the band is suppose to be placed.
Having said that your speeds sound pretty good for the wind speed and point of sail. You have a tough PHRF rating. 180 is the average for a Nonsuch 30. The New England PHRF base rating is 177 for a standard draft Nonsuch 30.
Mark Powers
La Reina 26C
Vancouver, B.C.
I agree with all the other posts and would suggest you consider lengthening the cradle lines so they do not “bag” the sail below the wishbone, They should be just clearing the foot of the sail. Also, is the sail sheeted inside the rail? It is hard to tell from the photo. It should never be inside the rail. That will kill your windward performance. This sail is not a main, but a genoa and has to be treated as such. In our area using two full battens increases the rating. If they are stiff, they will reduce your windward performance.
John Newell
Mascouche 26C 1
Toronto
I have a brand new sail and it looked a lot like the photo adjust adjust and adjust some more if it looks wrong it probably is! I have read all the reply’s so just do it and if you need to make adjustment you will see your boat Preformance improve that’s the fun part.
Arawak 33/41
James P. Moores