would instaling a mast rotator on a p-16 be a waste of time?it seems like im havn to stick my foot into the boom somtimes to get the full rotation onthe mast"last time I was in 20 mph winds so there was plenty of air to do the job" .I am a new sailor as well... so is the out haul on the boom to tight? or the rig over tentioned.Recently I added a few more inches of rake up to 8 or ten inchs now"that was very nice improvement,the helm was a little different so im gona try to tuck the rudders another half inch or so. My main shee is at 40 feet the book says 50 of one contnious 3/8 piece, cant I run a seperate piece of 5/16 like th p-18? any i nput wud be helpfull.My hats off to The beachcats this web site & those on it have been inspireing & helpfull without this site Id still be sailin but not nearly as well

Let me ask you this, is your mainsail connected to the boom, does the tack (bottom) of the sail slide up a groove on the boom like on the Hobie 16? If it does not, I don't see any problem installing as mast rotator, would help with hooking into the ring when raising sail.

--
TurboHobo
H14T
H16
P18
G-Cat 5.0
P16
--

the Prindles all have loose footed sails. A premium!
I say go for it, on our P18 the mast rotator helps during tacks. on the P16 I sometimes need to manually rotate it, a pain. I know that my rig is to tight, but one chain plate hole looser is a pain to sail.

--
Stefan, Denmark.
H14,H16,P16,P18,SC17,N5.8
Team StaySail
http://www.staysail.eu
--

Check and see if your mast rotates freely while just sitting on the beach without the sails up. If it does then your rig in not to tight. What a lot of sailors do not do is release about 1-2 feet of mainsheet during the tack, and they should. The following is taken from the Prindle owners manual.
Before tacking, make sure you are sailing to weather with good boat speed (sheeted in and traveler centered)
Make a smooth turn to windward using about one half the amount of rudder throw, turning the rudders to sharply will stall the boat
WHEN THE BOWS ARE POINTED INTO THE WIND, RELEASE THE MAINSHEET 1 OR 2 FEET. LEAVE THE JIB CLEATED.

When you release a few feet of mainsheet it takes some tension off the rig allowing the main to swing to the new side easier. If you keep the mainseet real tight through the tack, the main and boom will have a much harder time going to the new side.

I would try this before I installed a mast rotator. P-16s and H16s have mast stops on the mast base that is attached to the front crossbar, limiting the usefulness of a mast rotator. Look at all the boats that have a stock mast rotator and you will see that the mast can rotate well over 100 degrees, a P-16 is limited to about 45 degrees, due to the mast stops.

i had some issues with mine sticking and found that the stepping hinge would catch the mast base. oddly enough when i started tightening the forestay to tension my rig it pulled the mast foreward enough to stop it.

--
Check out "Prindle Sailors" on Facebook!
bill harris
hattiesburg, mississippi
prindle 16- "BLUE RIBBON"
--

next time I set set up, every thing is gettn a good coat of sail coat& ill look closer at the steppn hinge I think last time I looked at it it was a little tweaked.Hullflyer has apoint sometimes adrenaline causes me to be alittle up tite w/ the main sheet.thx for more beta to think about..

OK- I have a related question. I am fearful when jibing the 5.2 as I have had a few incidences where I thought I would capsize after the wind came across the stern. I have tried pulling the mainsheet in to prevent the "slamming" of the rig from one side to the next. Given my near capsize, I would assume this is not the best technique. Is it OK for the rig to "slam" over to the other side? If not, how does one allow this to happen smoothly without risk of losing control?

--
Eric C

Force 5 project boat
Unnamed

Previous boat
1980 Nacra 5.2
"Double Vision"
--

I think you are on the right track with the jibing. I pull my traveler in as I begin my jibe. And then let it out as I complete the jibe. Timing is probably you biggest issue. As long as you are pointed fairly far downwind, I do not see why a capsize would occur, since very little sail area is visible to the wind. If you point to far into a reach I can then see why you would go over. I would highly recommend against allowing your rigging to slam over on a jibe. Another trick is to put you hand on the boom or your blocks as you jibe, so you are pushing the sails over as you jibe.

--
Scott,
‘92 H18 w/SX wings
‘95 Hobie Funseeker 12 (Holder 12)
‘96/‘01/‘14 Hobie Waves
--

You can go about jibing a couple ways, but basically remember that the bigger speed difference there is between the boat and the wind, the less sail you want to expose. If you jibe fast while moving fast you can just grab the sheet between the blocks and manually move it over in the middle of the jibe. It'll swing pretty hard, but if you are holding the main without it being cleated you can just let a foot or so out when the wind catches it and there is no real banging to speak of. Also, if you're stalled downwind jibing is a non-issue as you never really expose any sail.

Just don't take a really slow jibe and expose a bunch of sail as you come around.

--
Rob
OKC
Pile of Nacra parts..
--

as above

biggest mistake multi beginners make is being too fearful of a gybe slowing down too much beforehand and not sailing deep enough

practice building speed up before the gybe and look over your shoulder to time it with the gusts and waves

carving a big "S" in the water during a high wind gybe is covered well in books like catamaran racing for the 90's

http://www.amazon.com/Catamaran-Racing-90s-Rick-White/dp/1880871009

also put a knot in your traveller line so that the sheet stops about an inch before the traveller hits the end caps of the track. the theory being that the line will stretch for about an inch when the car hits it at speed and so takes up a lot of the shock

main sheet tention can slow down the traveler from raceing to the other side alittle but you really should have one hand on the sheets puttn them where it best , one on the tiller&when the traveler comes across throw the tiller to the other side along with your weight .If your a big guy "single handed"all that weight in the back of the boat can tip the balance as well so be ready to move where you need the weight most.
I was sailn into the wind wizn off the back of my cat when a gust of wind got under the tramp & the whole rig came over back wards, free willy.
I like erice advise about the knot in the traveler line.
carve the water, dig in those hulls.
hope some of this helps