Messages

Hmmm - sounds like you could do some tweaking to the lowers to make them adjustable - pull on and straighten the mast for offwind, release to allow the mast to bend upwind is the theory.  You need some non-stretch spectra or equivalent and some blocks to rig the lowers up.  The tuning guides on the website are written by more intelligent people than me and describe what should happen.  However, there's lots of other basic stuff to practice first, including getting the kicker right, so I wouldn't worry too much for the time being.

Mike D
N3496

Just a thought - are you using lowers?  They're rather more important for controlling the mast shape than an adjustable ram, which can be replaced by a wooden wedge or block without any great loss of speed.

Mike D
N3496

The article drawing looks a bit complicated but it all works really simply if you follow the instructions.  You can buy pre-rigged carbon ones from P&B but some light aluminium tubing would do just as well, and be much cheaper, for your first experiment and you'll have some small blocks in your tool kit, I'm sure, which could be used to keep down the cost.  Dangly poles have made a real difference to sailing downwind and since they're tied on to the mast you can't lose them!  

Mike D
N3496

Marcus

Mike or Terry Cooke would be good guides for you on this - but if you decide to fit a strut, I have an Aardvark special completely unused sitting in my spares box and available at a reduced price!

Mike D
N3496

Mike

It's down in the provisional calendar as Sunday 29 January - later than this year.

While we're on open meetings for next year, do you have a date for Desborough?  If so, please email me at home.

Thanks

Mike D
N3496

So David, will there be an apple sequel or was this the final chapter?  Let's hope not ... you're too young to hang up your tiller extension yet!

Mike D
N3496

Twelves work best with 2 sails and 2 people.  If you feel a bit nervous at first, just find a gentle force 2 and enjoy the boat's responsiveness - I'm sure you won't come to any harm.  I raced my 12 at Hickling back in the 1970s and the worst thing that can happen is getting blown into the reeds!

Mike D
N3496

Hey you two, as Anne and I won't be at Grafham, this is just to say good luck for however long that you plan to be there and hope it won't be for ever as the Class can't afford to lose its stalwarts permanently.  Have a great time ...

Mike D
N3496

We might be interested in coming to a one-day meeting, depending on the fixture list and what else is on.  I fear that you are in the South West, rather than Thames, so would be included in that series, though we include all the Southern area meetings in the Thames area series so further expansion is not out of the question!

Mike D
N3496

Haven't checked with Twickenham yet but assume 11am unless I post somehing different here later this week.  Do try and come - the local boats will be v. welcoming.  

And thanks to all at Henley for a good day today

Mike D
N3496

The Thames Area Series is about to reach its denouement and to guide your weekend planning, remember it's Henley on Sunday 18th and Twickenham on Sunday 25th September.  Both can offer, if the conditions are right, big waves, knee-trembling beats, exhilarating spray-in-your-eyes reaches, scary nose-diving runs and lots of helpers to launch you through the surf!  Or sometimes we have known them more gentle with nice teas.  Come and see which the weather gods serve up and support these two long-established and very friendly meetings.  Go on, put them in your diary now!

Mike D
N3496

Having started the thread, I appreciate all the views, except those of the anonymous poster.  It's a good debate about what I accept is a relatively minor point.  Three things strike me:

1. Clearly, lead on the mast is not the biggest of the Twelve's challenges.  And no-one would claim that changing the rule would solve any of the big problems.  However, I wasn't offering it as the solution to all our ills - just as an arguably pointless irritant that could easily be removed if we choose.  Future direction for the Class needs a proper strategy - and my understanding is that the Committee is constantly working on that.

2. I cannot understand the cost argument.  A new Twelve is an expensive (though beautiful) thing.  We allow the hull, foils and every other fitting to be made in whatever material we like.  If we were truly serious about limiting the cost of a new boat (which we last tried to do in the early 1950s) there are many ways to do this, (including not allowing carbon masts at all).  If people want to build a cheaper boat, they do it themselves in wood and use the minimum number of cheap fittings - and that's great.  Others want to invest more and are choosing carbon, and other exotic materials.  Either we limit everything to keep the cost down, or we allow everything - picking on the mast alone is daft.

3.  I could understand the structural integrity argument if remained true.  However, Chipstow have shown that you can build a perfectly strong mast at 4-4.5kg.  We don't limit the weight of any other component (eg the boom, foils etc) to preserve strength so why the mast?  As Kevin said, no-one wins races with a mast that keeps breaking.

Thanks for engaging with this - it's all good stuff.

Mike D
N3496