Rigging Guide

(Please read this manual in its entirety before you begin rigging or sailing your Aerotech Sail.)
Unroll the sail in a wind-protected area that is free of sharp or abrasive objects.

Thread your mast carefully through the luff sleeve opening at the foot of the sails. If your sail has cambers, run the mast on the inside of the cambers rather than above or below them. Feed the mast into the sleeve by working it along the cambers rather than pulling the sail down the mast from the foot of the sail. If your mast gets stuck or snagged on something, do not force it! Investigate the snag, correct the problem, and then continue. It is easier to scrunch the whole luff sleeve onto the top half of the mast, install the head fitting, and then ease the sail down the bottom half of the mast. To work the cambers down the mast physically grab the camber through the luff sleeve and work it down the mast. Do not pull on the neoprene tack fairing. This method helps to prevent the cambers from popping off while rigging. The more time and care taken at this stage of the rigging process will allow for quicker rigging overall. If the cambers do fall off, do not try to put them in place yet.

Sail head fitting:
If your sail has an adjustable head, adjust the webbing so that you are using a minimal amount of base extension. Once the proper length has been determined, use the remaining webbing to tie an overhand knot through the head buckle to prevent slippage. Make sure that your mast has a female head fitting for the male adjustable head. The extra webbing can be inserted inside the luff sleeve.

Insert the base extension into the mast. Adjust the length of the extension so that the combined length of the mast and base are approximately that of the printed range on the sail. Use the printed numbers as a guide only. The actual numbers will vary from sail to sail and are dependent upon several factors. Downhaul the sail enough to thread the line (6' to 8' recommended) through the entire 8 to 1 downhaul ratio.

Your sail is equipped with a patented 8 to 1 removable downhaul pulley. You can either leave this pulley on the sail or remove it and leave it threaded and attached to your extension. This latter option will provide you with the quickest rigging, but will require a longer piece of downhaul line.

Adjust your boom so that the length is approximately that of the printed numbers on the sail. Again, these printed numbers are to be used only as a guide. The actual numbers will vary slightly. Finish connecting your boom. Outhaul until the sail is as flat as possible in the area between the clew and the boom opening. This distance may be longer than the boom length needed for sailing. Outhauling in this manner helps to facilitate the rigging process by pre-bending the mast before you fine-tune the downhaul setting.

If any cambers have popped off up to this stage of the rigging, now is the time to put them back into place. Usually if the camber has come off it will be the one below the boom. These instructions were written assuming that this is the case. Your next step is to lower the tension on the batten. Next, push the camber backwards toward the leech. Scrunch the luff sleeve until the area around the camber is baggy. With one hand push down on the batten approximately two feet back from the mast. At the same time pull up on the camber with your other hand. These two forces should pop the camber back into place. Re-tension the batten. Do not force the camber on if it is very difficult to pop the camber on. A better solution is to re-insert the mast taking care that the cambers don't pop off.

Downhaul the sail. This is a critical portion of the rigging process and will be covered in more detail in the tuning section of this manual. Simply put, there will be enough tension so at the minimum the top portion of the leech will be loose.

Apply tension to all battens. Using a flat blade screw driver, turn the bolt at the end of the pocket clockwise. Apply enough tension to just remove the wrinkles from the batten pocket. You may need to add more tension after sailing the sail once or twice.

Check each camber. Make sure that none of them have fallen off the mast and that each is seated properly against the mast. Grip the mast at each camber to determine this. Apply enough tension to each of the remaining cambered battens to remove any small wrinkles on the batten pocket. Be careful as you can over-tighten a cambered batten. Correct batten tension is an important aspect of proper sail tuning. Excessive batten tension forces too much shape into the sail and may hinder camber rotation. If the battens are properly tensioned the first time the sail is rigged for a particular mast there should be no reason to de-tension them for de-rigging or re-rigging the next time you use your sail.

Tuning
The most common error that we see in rigging is not enough downhaul tension. Another common problem is the impression that some people have about "power." The assumption that a sail with a big "belly" or "full" shape is powerful and will give the sail better power is not entirely true, but it will compromise sail performance if rigged in this manner. The following guide will help you to overcome these problems an allow you to get the most range out of your sails.

With the sail outhauled as described in the rigging section, downhauling the sail will be easier, but not easy. Sails that have as much range as ours will require strong amounts of downhaul tension. A rigging tool is strongly. There should be enough downhaul so that if you look at the top two battens, the area along the leech should appear loose or "floppy."

In higher winds, this floppy area should be extended further down the leech. The leech should never be taut (on the beach). This would indicate a lack of downhaul and the sail will not perform as intended. Please refer to the drawing above as a guide to the way a properly downhauled sail should look.

To tune the outhaul properly, untie the outhaul. Next adjust you boom inward until the boom's rear end is 2 to 3 cm longer than the sail. Then, retie the outhaul. There should be 2 to 3cm on the outhaul. For most sailing situations this is the recommended sailing position. In overpowering conditions, or in situations that involve a lot of upwind sailing, the outhaul can be increased to allow for better control. These adjustments should be made in small increments only.
Never judge any sail's wrinkles by how it looks lying on the ground. Often as soon as the sail is being used in the wind it was designed for those odd wrinkles will disappear.
When one of the settings (outhaul or downhaul) is changed, the other setting must also be changed. For example, downhauling the sail another inch will require that you also increase the outhaul setting.

Specific details by model

Formula Vmg: These sails are designed to win races. If a particular race involves a combination of upwind, reaching and downwind courses, the use of an adjustable outhaul system is recommended. This system, along with a dowhaul setting that allows the leech to be fully opened will provide the most range out of your sail by allowing the sailor to vary the position of the twist with the outhaul while sailing. The outhaul can be tensioned for upwind courses to allow for a tighter leech and flatter profile. On downwind courses the outhaul can be loosened to allow the head to twist more and give the sail a slightly fuller shape.

Velocity Vmg: This sail should be rigged with lots of downhaul for all conditions. If you need more power, decrease the outhaul tension or rig a bigger size.

Charge: Although these sails do not have cambers, the rigging process is exactly the same. The sails will appear flatter on the beach. Do not try to force shape into the sail by slacking on the downhaul or the outhaul. Once the sail is filled with wind, it will assume the proper shape.

Air: In light winds these sails can be sailed with less downhaul and outhaul. As soon as you are powered up increase downhaul and outhaul.

Rapid Fire: The Rapid Fire is highly tunable. If you are sailing this model without the cambers, it will require more outhaul tension.

Saber: This sail has lots of range on the outhaul settings. An adjustable outhaul will help to get the most out of this sail.

Fun sails: Install the head batten and tension. Downhaul the sail to remove wrinkles out of the luff sleeve. Now outhaul the sail until it is flat then back off this tension approximately one to two inches. Re-apply downhaul tension if there is slack in the boom opening of the luff sleeve.

De-rigging
It is recommended that once the proper tension has been determined for each batten, do not release or lower the tension. This will make rigging your sail the next time much quicker and easier. Fold the neoprene tack fairing up. Release the downhaul tension and remove the line from the pulley system or release the pulley system from the sail. Gently release the outhaul tension. Remove the boom. Remove the mast. If the bottom of the luff sleeve is caught on the base (or the bottom of the mast), do not force the base out of the sleeve. Instead, pull the sail at the area of the tack toward the mast and slightly up. With the other hand, push the mast base toward the tack. This should free the sail.

Do not remove any battens from the sail! Exceptions to this rule are the Fun sails. You may or may not wish to remove their batten. Starting at the head fitting, roll the sail following the leech. This will ensure that all the battens roll up parallel to the roll. Never fold a monofilm or mylar sail. Insert the sail back into the sail bag with the luff sleeve end in first.

Sail care tips
Do not rig on paved surfaces. Your Aerotech Sail is built to withstand the normal forces from sailing. However no sail will stand up to that type of abuse. If you must rig on a paved or rough surface, lay out an old rug or tarp to protect the sail from damage.
Avoid leaving a rigged sail on the sand for any length of time. The slight movement of the sail over the sand will eventually give the monofilm a milky appearance. Remember that sandpaper is made out of sand!
Do not rig (or sail) with the head fitting not in place under any circumstances. If you do not have the proper mast cap, do not use a cap at all. Simply insert the head fitting directly into the mast. The head fitting itself will provide enough of a seal against water leakage until you can obtain the proper mast cap from your dealer.
When rolling the sail, walk up with the roll, do not drag your sail toward you.
If you store your sails on their ends, be sure to put the luff sleeve end of the sail on the ground. You don't want the weight of the sail resting on the clew area which is not as supported.
If you sail in salt water you can put your sails away wet. The salt water will not mildew. Avoid the habit of letting your sails dry in direct sunlight, as the UV damage is irreversible. Do not store your sails wet if you have been in fresh water. Fresh water will mildew as it dries and this not only looks and smells bad, it also weakens the cloth.
If you leave your sails rigged for longer than a typical sailing session or store your sails rigged, release the downhaul tension most of the way out. The outhaul setting does not need to be adjusted.
Avoid storing your sails where they are exposed to the UV rays of the sun. The more time sails are left lying on the beach or otherwise exposed to the sun, the more you can expect the sails to die a premature death.
If you own lots of windsurfing gear and other toys, congratulations! But try to keep your monofilm sails on top of the pile of toys in order to avoid crushing them.