PESOLA SPRING SCALE FOR TESTING THE LEECH TENSION OF SAILS
Dinghy Racing Centre (previously known as Hit Masts Holland) is a leading supplier of carbon wing mast for Finn dinghies. With its leading technology and ongoing tests Dinghy Racing has proven to be within the best in the world building fast masts for top Finn sailors around the globe.
Finn tuning is very much a preference of each individual’s sailing style. Everyone has their own unique style, therefore, this is more about having a system that allows sailors to accurately reproduce your settings.
One important setting is the leech tension. Rather than measuring a mast rake in a straight line “tip of mast to transom” Dinghy Racing measure what tension would be put through the leech of the sail. This allows sailors to get more accurate settings and go afloat with a good idea of how open your leech will fly. It also allows sailors to interchange different masts and set the leech profile to the same setting no matter how different your masts may be. Use the Pesola spring scale / force gauge for measuring the leech tension:
- Attach gauge and long tape measure to mainsail halyard
- Hoist halyard until it locates in the lock
- Attach hook of gauge onto the outhaul
- Tie the traveller to a traveller down position
- With the mainsheet, sheet the boom to the deck
- Take measuring tape and measure to the inner edge of the boom black band
- Adjust the outhaul until the tape reads 6020mm
- Read the numbers on the PESOLA gauge to get what the mast is set up at
To adjust the tension you can either move chocks at deck level or the screw at the base of the mast. Approximately 1mm chock is 1lb (1cm rake) Always re-check after changes.
Moving the mast around at deck level whilst controlling the leech tension allows sailors to balance the feel of the boat (helm). The simple rule is when it goes light and you want to increase helm move the mast back and as the wind increases and you want to reduce helm move the mast forward. This exercise goes hand in hand with the leech tension and if big changes are made you may have to change the heel of the mast position to maintain the same leech tension. It’s always good to have at least five 1mm chocks available for fine-tuning on the water.
The Pesola spring scale / force gauge model 80150 with a maximum capacity of 50kg / 100lbis the ideal instrument for measuring the leech tension. The scale has two units and the measurement can therefore be read in kilogram and pound. Pesola scales are robust and ready for use at any time. Thanks to its unmatched accuracy, the Pesola spring scale allow for a precise measurement.