Newbee question regarding Leech telltale on main

I am a fairly new owner of a used Capri 14.2 and I have a question regarding the leech telltales on the main.

Last night I was sailing on our local lake here in central California in very light winds of 2 to 6 knots. I have the factory sails and the main has two sets of telltales on the luff and 3 telltales on the leech between each batton.

As I reached across the lake the jib telltales and the luff telltales on the main were in pretty good position pointing level and aft, however the leech telltales on the main were pointing forward or flopping around a lot indicating to me that the main was stalling.

I adjusted the outhaul, the main sheet (in and out) and the jib sheet (both in and out) and nothing seemed to work. We had pretty good speed considering the wind conditions and had a slight heel to the boat.

Why could I not get airflow over the entire main?

Why did the other telltales indicate good flow?

What adjustments should I try next time?

Fair Winds,
Brad
Capri 14.2 #1108

Mainsail telltales

It sounds like you have an overabundance of telltales. Most racers use only only a single telltale on the main, attaching it to the very edge of the leech at the upper batten. If it's hanging down continually, it means you are oversheeted. But don't fall into the trap of trying to make it stream continually. In fact the optimum is for that particular telltale to stream only about half the time. But don't try to keep it exactly that way, it'll make you crazy! I simply glance at it occasionally.

It's the telltales on the jib luff that matter. I would simply remove the ones on the mainsail luff - the airflow around the mast make them unreliable. Just use the one on the top batten.

So how to adjust the mainsail for optimum shape? It's the top batten that's the key. Let's say you're going to windward, the jib telltales are flowing, etc. Now knell down in the cockpit (or have your crew do it) and sight up the side of the boom. The top batten should be parallel to the edge of the boom. If it's hooked inward, the vang is too tight, and vice-versa. By adjusting the vang you'll get the right shape to the mainsail. (So that's what the vang is for!)

Thanks Ed! I will try that the next time out. I will remove the additional telltales on the main. I was thinking that there were an awful lot of telltales. I think that one of the previous owners probably purchased a pack of telltales and used them all.

Fair Winds,
Brad

This will be my third season sailing my Model 2. I will be the first to admit that I am still a novice at sailing. I know the basics of how to sail but when it comes to the finer points of knowing when to tighten the boom vang and adjusting the cunningham and the tension on the outhaul I am lost. I have tried to find some books on dinghy sailing that will explain these things but I could not find them. I like the articles that Ed Jones puts in the Main Sheet magazine but I would like more information. Are there and books out there that explain the trimming of small sailboats? Any information would be apprecieated.

Thanks
Roger

III. SAIL ADJUSTMENT GUIDELINE

The sail adjustments for the Capri 14 all have simple rules to set them correctly. By following these rules, you will be able to set your sails quickly and accurately for each wind condition. These rules will minimize the time spent on sail adjustment, allowing you to concentrate more on the race course and the competitors.

A. SAIL ADJUSTMENT FOR THE JIB

1. Jib Halyard

Since the rig relies on the forestay to support it, the jib halyard is used to properly maintain the jib’s sail shape position through the different wind strengths. The rule to follow is to tension the jib halyard so as to have very slight "crows-feet" emitting from the bottom three jib luff snaps (the other snaps will be almost smooth). The stronger the wind, the tighter the halyard will need to be to maintain this trim.

2. Jib Leads

Due to sail size and class rules, your jib leads must be in the maximum forward position all the time. This should not produce any problems as the sail is designed for this consideration.

3. Jib Trim

a. Upwind- The jib is designed to be sheeted quite tight. Since the leads are set very far outboard, it is necessary to trim tightly so the jib has a decent angle to the wind for going to windward. The rule for jib trim depends on the amount of wind, with the jibsheet getting trimmed tighter as the wind increases. Our gauge here is the amount of foot curl in the jib. For very light winds the jibsheet is eased to keep the foot full with no foot curl kicking up. In winds from five to seven knots the foot of the jib should be barely tight, causing the foot curl to just kick up. In medium wind the jibsheet is tight enough to get the foot curl to kick up but without any crease from clew to tack. In strong wind the sail should be sheeted in tight enough to get a slight crease. Too tight would cause the foot to kick up and then reverse, with the foot probably flapping. Older sails will have stretched out along the foot which will allow them to reverse earlier. For older sails, correct trim in heavy wind may have the foot reverse. Regardless of wind strength, the jib should be constantly adjusted to keep pace with the changing wind conditions and boat needs. Ease the jibsheet an inch anytime the boat feels like it needs a power boost. If at top speed, sheeting in tight will give optimum pointing ability. Successfully combining the two is the secret.

b. Reaching- If the wind is light enough to afford the crew’s weight to the leeward side, have them hand trim the sail. With the apparent wind back, the lead needs to be both farther forward and outboard than the fixed lead allows. By hand trimming the crew can pull down on the sheet to keep both the upper set and the lower set of telltales flowing. The rules for how far outboard the sail should be held are

less clear. If it is held too far outboard the foot will get too flat and when trimmed from the rail the foot is too full. Your goal is to find an area in between these two extremes which will give the sail moderate foot fullness.

c. Running- As the apparent wind swings aft of the beam the whisker pole must be used to better project the sail. When broad reaching pull the pole back as far as you can without the leech (which now acts much like the luff) collapsing. When running be aware that you can pull the pole back too far. The pole should be pulled back only so far as to place the clew of the jib just behind the bow of the boat. When sailing by the lee pull the pole back a bit farther than this. The goal is to attain maximum projection of the sail.

B. SAIL ADJUSTMENT FOR THE MAIN

1. Main Cunningham

The main cunningham is adjusted much like the jib halyard. The guide to follow is to tension it just enough so your main has "speed" wrinkles coming out from only the bottom half of the luff (the sail should be fairly smooth above this). The only exception is in winds under five knots where these wrinkles should extend up for most of the luff and in strong winds where the luff should be smooth. These wrinkles come out horizontally from the luff and their size increases at higher wind speeds. As the wind increases, you will need to gradually tighten this adjustment to maintain our guide. The important point is to not have it set too tight, which is much worse than having it set too loose. The cunningham should be completely eased when you are reaching or running.

2. Main Outhaul

This adjustment offers you the ability to change the fullness in the bottom half of the sail. When the outhaul is eased the sail becomes fuller and when tightened it becomes flatter. Since this is not an easily changed adjustment, it is important to set it correctly at the beginning of the windward leg.

The rule upwind is to keep the sail as full and powerful as long as you can. For winds below 8 knots, trim the outhaul so the foot wrinkle is just removed. From 8-12 knots tighten it so there is a slight foot fold over the boom and in winds above that trim it even harder for a definite fold over the boom.

Offwind the outhaul is eased so all foot folds are gone, with the sail curving off smoothly from the boom. The outhaul is never eased so much as to have vertical wrinkles coming up from the boom.

3. Boomvang

The boomvang is used both upwind and downwind. The vang is used upwind to maintain leech tension when you have to ease the mainsheet in overpowering puffs. Preset the vang for these conditions by sheeting the main in correctly and then taking all the slack out of the boomvang. This way when you dump the main the vang will help keep the boom down and thus prevent the leech from spilling way off. In big breeze you will need to apply slightly more tension than the above rule.

The vang will need to be eased for offwind sailing. When reaching enough vang tension should be applied to keep the top batten parallel with the boom. For running the top batten should be trimmed in the same manner or twisted off a touch. When sailing by the lee adjust the vang so the top batten twists off a few degrees. The boomvang is an important too which must be adjusted constantly as the wind fluctuates in velocity and direction.

4. Mainsail Trim

a. Upwind- The mainsheet is the most important adjustment on the Capri and should be constantly adjusted on all points of sail to keep pace with the changing conditions. A general setting for upwind sailing is to maintain a top batten position that is either parallel or just hooking to weather of the boom. Be aware that in light air the weight of the boom will prevent the top batten from opening. When this occurs you should ease the main out to get the top batten parallel to the centerline of the boat. As the wind builds you will gradually increase mainsheet tension to maintain proper top batten alignment. Many people find that a telltale placed on the top batten is helpful for trimming the main. Though this does not provide a consistent guide, the main does

seem to set well with this telltale on the verge of stalling. In a lull or when you need to increase speed you should ease the sheet and in heavy air or when going fast you should tighten the sheet. Like the jib, the secret to proper mainsail trim is the correct combination of both power and pointing.

b. Offwind- When reaching ease the main out as far as it can go without luffing. When sailing downwind, the main must go out until the boom just touches the leeward shroud. The vang is then used for proper leech trim when reaching and running.

5. Traveler

The goal is to rig the traveler so it enables the boom to be trimmed as close to centerline as is possible when sailing upwind. First, restrict the traveler block’s movement by tying it in the middle of the traveler. Next, the traveler bridle height must be set correctly for every given wind strength. Ideally the bridle will be high enough so when the mainsheet is trimmed correctly, the back boom block will be almost touching the traveler block. Since the mainsheet must be trimmed tighter as the wind increases, the traveler height must be reduced. An approximate light air traveler height is 28", which is measured from the top of the stern to the apex of the traveler bridle. You will need marks on the traveler tails so you will have consistent height settings for light, medium and heavy.

Thank you for the information, Brian. I did replace the standing rigging prior to my first sail and I have checked it and found that both the shrouds and when rigged the forestay were way too tight. I have loosened the rig to your guidelines and will try it out Friday when I head up to our lake for an afternoon sail.

I am trying to get some tiller time under my belt before we take the boat over to Morro Bay on the central coast for a couple of day sails during 4th of July week!

Fair Winds,

Brad
Capri 14.2 #1108