Weatherhelm

Submitted by jabrams on Thu, 06/09/2005 - 07:51
I took 1263 out sailing yesterday solo in about 8-10 knots. When I tried to power it up and point I would start to get tons of weatherhelm to a point that my arm soon became tired and the boat was often tring to round up and did. I found that easing the main helped but I felt like this just let it lose a lot of power (jib was all the way in). Is there something I am missing here or is this just the nature of the boat? Had the outhaul tight. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Jody Abrams 1263
‹ Bridle mast step ›

Comments

You should not have too much helm when the boat is set up correc

Submitted by Dave812 on Thu, 06/09/2005 - 10:12.
You should not have too much helm when the boat is set up correctly, certainly not enough to tire your arm. I would check the mast rake measurement which should be about 28 feet 5 inches. If the rake is further aft it would add to weather helm. Check the sailmakers tuning guides. Next I would ensure your centerboard is going all the way down. The rollers on the top of the board should reach the flat spot on the top of the trunk or maybe slightly aft. The position of the board makes a big difference on helm, raise the board a little and helm goes up alot. Last thing I would check is the position of the rudder. When I bought my boat there was another pivot hole drilled in the rudder blade. One of the holes allowed the blade to go all the way down so the leading edge was parallel to the leading edge of the rudder head, which is best for me. The other hole does not allow the blade to go down all the way and the helm increases. Good luck.