The latest Boat U.S. magazine, on page 35, talks about Tartan's memo in response to the near sinking of a Tartan 3700, possibly when the hull cracked under a rigging load. They said, "...if an owner tightens rigging while it is under load, he can exert enough compression loading at the mast step to cause damage."
I have a copy of Don Kohlman's recommendations on rig tuning where he suggests sailing on the wind in 15-18 kts apparent and tightening the leeward turnbuckles, tacking several times, tightening and looking aloft until the tip doesn't sag to leeward. Now, I trust Don's recommendations, and the PSC is a sturdy boat, and that's how I've been tuning mine. The leeward shrouds will have slack in winds above about 15 kts, but not in winds below that.
Clearly, this is tightening the rig under load, but you have to tighten it somehow, and tightening the leeward side while sailing allows you to turn the screws without stressing the threads of the fitting.
Any thoughts?
Dave Pomerantz, 1987 PSC 34
I have a copy of Don Kohlman's recommendations on rig tuning where he suggests sailing on the wind in 15-18 kts apparent and tightening the leeward turnbuckles, tacking several times, tightening and looking aloft until the tip doesn't sag to leeward. Now, I trust Don's recommendations, and the PSC is a sturdy boat, and that's how I've been tuning mine. The leeward shrouds will have slack in winds above about 15 kts, but not in winds below that.
Clearly, this is tightening the rig under load, but you have to tighten it somehow, and tightening the leeward side while sailing allows you to turn the screws without stressing the threads of the fitting.
Any thoughts?
Dave Pomerantz, 1987 PSC 34