Hi all,
After alot of consideration i bought a new Powerex RDM 400, also have a powerex 430. I have a basic understanding of mast bend curve / flex, IMCS value's.

I've only been windsurfin for a couple of years and are no expert.

The question i put forward and hope for sum informed educated answears is that we get told by sail manufactures, websites, this forum, magazine articles etc that a certain sail MUST have their mast that that sail was designed for or the sail wont perform or set correctly etc etc.

If you use a north sail you gotta have at least their gold mast but reccomend platinum, severne gotta use the redline but can use blueline.

I can get my head around all this, Use the sail/mast combo that they were designed for/together by the sail designers. Makes perfect sense.. No worries..

So how do the other mast manufactures fit into this, Powerex, Amex, Pro Limit, Sunshine etc.

I use Powerex mast with Tush sails, My mate uses Powerex with KA, the other Powerex with NP, another sailor uses Severne mast and a North sail. Unlike me these guys are very experianced. If Powerex, Amex, etc masts are universal whats with all this same mast/sail carry on from the sail companies.

If you listened to and agree with what the sail companies say about all this than surely powerex, amex etc wouldn't exist.

How many Powerex mast are out their being used by us guys??

So guy's, educate me and others iam sure about all this.

Thanx.
Maybe Ben could comment.

Hi Stone , No it is not Bogus. Sail designers enter certain mast bend figures into the design software and the luff curves are designed around these figures. The sails will perform to their optimum on the correct mast.
However the impact of an incorrect mast varies greatly depending on the size and type of sail. Small wave sails for example which have small amounts of luff curve are much more tolerant of mast curve variations as you are not bending the mast enough for it to be hugely effecting the leech twist. They will perform adequately on a greater range of masts. Large race sails like Formula sails have high amounts of luff curve and are very mast specific.Youare bending the mast alot more and the differences in mast bend curves is far more evident. They will perform badly on a mast that is outside the design range of curve as the shape and leech twist will be impacted.
So if your freinds are rigging small wave sails in the combinations you describe they are most likely OK ( although Powerex on NP is pretty dodgy) . I can guarantee they would be better on the correct mast.
If they rigged a 10.7 Neil Pryde race sail on a Maui sails mast for example it would be a disaster, not work at all.
As a general rule always rig a sail on a mast that is close to the recommended IMCS mast curve percentage. Most brands don't publish that figure so email them and find out. There is generally a "non brand " alternative that will be close to the correct curve.
I hope I have shed some light on the subject.

I find a massive difference.......late model (after 2005) NP wave sails rig so badly on an Ezzy (No Limitz) RDM that they are almost unusable and the mid leech flaps so much it is destroying itself. I was pretty sure Powerex RDM's were similar to the No Limitz RDM's so I'd like to see how those NP's are working.

Wow ..... NP must have gone back to a slightly more reasonable curve or something? It was quite obvious that 2004or5 to 2008 was a bit weird .... I had an 03 Zone that was magic on an Ezzy skinny and a 2008 Zone would not even look like a sail when rigged on it

not that ive seen a properly riged 5m naish force before but mine seems to rig fine on a 400 sailworks lipstick .... ive heard that stiffness of ya mast plays a bit part in how the sail sets 2? what will a stiffer mast do that a soft mast wont?

food for thought.

I have had both Tushy 75% SDM and NP x6's these two mast are the same and either rigged exactly the same in each others sails.

IMHO the Tushy 75%freewave is a better mast.

i have rigged the x6's in Tushy rocks and they were fine.

I'm even using a Tushy 75% in a RS Slalom and RS racing and its looks and sails identical to the recomended X6.

I sold my Tushy 490 75% to a fellow who uses it in a Severn Code red 8.3m with good results.

I hope this is some help. I think a safe bet could be a powerex or tushy for masts in a mixed quiver of sails

the only way to find out is rig them and see.

As Bender mentioned, I also use a tushingham 490 100% mast with both my 8.8 (09)& 7.7(07?) Code Reds and they work beautifully. In fact the recommended mast for the 7.7 is a 460 Severne redline which doesn't rig nearly as well as the 490 Tushingham - go figure. Maybe I just got lucky with the mismatch.

ikw777 said...

So what would be a smart/reasonable strategy if you were windsurfing on a budget? >>>>>

Try and stick to constant curve stuff, (that way you can buy any of the non sail makers masts), and stay away from manufacturers that try and force you into changing your mast every time you update a sail.

mkseven said...

Most things will work however, unless you are a professional who can test against people you sail with everyday or can easily tell fine differences and have access to many different masts then go for it- but that is not buying 1 random mast and hoping for the best.

Simply if you want the performance you paid for from your sail then match it to the correct mast

Yeah, most things WILL work. I think it'd be impossible to find a mast / sail combo that you couldn't windsurf with.
But to get the whole rig to work the way it was designed to it has to be rigged on the mast it was actually designed on. The design process is pretty manual - each size of each model is adjusted to fit a specific curve. It's not just a matter of plugging a mast bend % into the design software and letting it spit out a sail. (At least not on the top end sail brands)
When you put a different mast in the sail, it'll still get you out on the water. But without the windrange and performance. You might not realize it because you're not a professional or whatever, but you won't be planing as early as you could be and you'll feel overpowered and out of control earlier. Your windsurfing won't be as much fun as it could be.

If you're buying a new sail and you've already got a good mast with similar bend characteristics to the recommended mast you don't NEED to upgrade the mast. It'll work.
But if you ARE upgrading your mast at the same time it makes a lot of sense to buy the mast the sail was designed for. Otherwise you're not getting the performance and wind range that the sail is capable of (and you paid for).
Same goes for if you have a set of sails that you don't plan to upgrade for a while, and you need a new mast, it'd be crazy to not buy the specified mast.

Ben Severne said...
Yeah, most things WILL work. I think it'd be impossible to find a mast / sail combo that you couldn't windsurf with.

Lucky me Gaastra Manic Neil Pryde X3 combo Yoyo told me why it looked like crap. It now rigs sweet on one of Ben's masts

I have an '08 6.2m2 Blade, and '07 5.7m2 and 5.3m2 Blades.

All rig on a 430 RDM. I have a '08 PWX 85%RDM, and also a '09 Maui Sails 100% RDM.

The Peterman site as well as other sites state the ideal mast, a Severne Redline, is a stifftop @ 9.8 curve.

The Powerex is a 13. The Maui Sails is a 9.1.

I think the Powerex looks better in my sails, especially in the '07s. I think the whole leech is too loose with the Triana made MS mast.

Since, I have not even seen a Severne Redline RDM in my neck of the woods (USA), I have no way of knowing for sure.

I recently talked with Derek Rjiff of Windsport, who told me Severne changed from a Powerex to a more stifftop mast at some point, but he was not sure when.

I am confused as well.