Hi All,

I have some queries on rigging and tuning my V8.

Two weekends ago I broke the lower batton/cam joint and i am suspecting that it could have been my rigging but some other guys have said that this is a typical issue on NP cammed sails.

I followed all the instructions and even had an experienced guy give me some advice on rigging the sail, but I must have done something wrong otherwise it would not have happened. I didnt have any major stacks either so i can only put it down to my rigging.

Basically i downhauled 80%, then outhouled 90%, let some of the downhaould out and attached the cams, then putthe rest of the downhoul on and then the outhaul. - I think thats right anyway. Whatever last just say I followed the instructions on the sail to the word.

Finally I found the sail heavy and after gybing it took a hell o a snap to flip the cams on the sail.

Surely it souldnt feel that heavy and be that hard to flip the cams? Should i be adding more downhaul, I am already at the bottom so another 2.5 on the extension or perhaps there is toom much tesnion in the battons?

Help. I am taking her (the V8) out again on the weekend and dont want to snap her batten again.

What mast are you rigging this on? Is it a NP mast?

jermaldan said...

FormulaNova said...

What mast are you rigging this on? Is it a NP mast?

Yep. X5 460 imcs25 - The recommended mast.

X5? Not X3 or X6? How old is that, and how old is the sail?

Using the right mast or a closely matched one shouldn't put much pressure on the cams, although I have broken 2 or 3 on the bottom cam on a few V8s.

Even so, the cams rotated okay, although sometimes the bottom one was a bit sticky.

You seem to be suggesting that all of the cams are not rotating properly though, and this suggests that there is something wrong with the amount of downhaul and/or outhaul (or the wrong mast).

Dunno if this will help, but i have the same sail But on an X6 mast, and 2 weeks ago i had a guy who i have no doubt knows what hes talking about, (he can certainly sail better than me), advise me that i had too much outhaul on in my attempt to depower the rig, so we let it out a bit and got a bit more curve in the sail, but then i had the same problem, the only way i could pop the bottom cam was to kick the batton after each gybe.... hmmm

Conclusion..... im going to put a little more outhaul on the way i'm used to doing it next time. my outhaul setting is 2-3 cms longer the recomended. Now i'm not saying this is right but it works for me.

I think both Formulanova and Bertie are heading in the right direction here, i find the V8 has a real narrow sweet spot and for me its a tricky sail to rig right, with my lack of experience. It may be the mast or a little d/haul here, a little o/haul there and finally it will work right.

I also believe that the bend characteristics of NP masts changed at some point, and i guess maybe its possible the X5 bends a little different to the x3/x6, therefore not suiting the sail quite as well as the later vintage masts.

The other thing about the V8 i find is its just a heavy feeling sail compared to my others, and definately not as nice to use as my other 3 un-cammed sails.

Good luck

Thanks all for the advice. I will be trying it all tomorrow. Unfortunaly I only have the X5 matrix at hand but it will need to do.

Just noticed another rip inside the luff pocket near the upper cam. Mono film is just gone. Back to the sailmaker - Ugh!!!