Sail Tell Tails

[CliffMilliner]

So I thought I would start this topic, even though Pete has hinted he has some secret go faster Tell Tails in the making...

At the Open this weekend I had the chance to follow a few other boats with the normal black ribbon tell tails, and it was obvious (to me at least) that the sails were not set correctly even though the tell tails looked like they were flowing.

Personally I really dislike the standard ribbon tell tails that come on a Jackels sail. I find that as they are flat cloth they don't bend and twist as much as they should, especially in the vertical plane. So its a 5 min job to swap them over to something else.

There are 2 simple and very cheap options:

1) Buy some black wool. Black is good to see behind the sail. Peal back the round sticky pads on the sail. Pull off the ribbon then stick the wool on, and press back onto the sail.

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2) Buy some woolen tell tails of the internet <£5. I like the red and green ones just to help me remember when I'm on Port! I think Rooster even do some Teflon coated ones that apparently help them stop sticking when they are wet, no idea if that works or not.

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Job done... Tell Tails that actually move with the wind flow on your sail. Now all we need to do is learn how to read them.

Cliff 1245

[Pete1177]

I agree that the flat telltales as supplied on the Jeckells sails are not very good. They aren't sensitive enough as you need to sail in a very narrow upwind angle (maybe only 5 degrees wide) to get max sail power, It's hard to read the standard ones. I have tried wool in the past but found they stick to the sail too easily and take too long to dry out when wet. Maybe the Rooster ones work better.

The telltales I use don't absorb water so dry out easily and cost pennies. The idea is so simple I'm surprised no-one has thought of it already. I'm a bit busy at the moment but promise to put something together on how to make them and (more importantly perhaps) how to read them.

Pete
SN1177

[Pete1177]

Finally I have managed to put together an article on how to make better telltales.

Here is a teaser ...

The standard telltales (small strips of cloth) as supplied on the Jeckells sail are not very good. It’s possible that you think the sail is set correctly because the telltales look right, but in fact you are not developing optimum power from the rig. This is because they are not sensitive enough. What you need are better telltales that give you much better information about the airflow across the sail.

DIY Low Cost Telltales

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This article tells you how you can make super-sensitive telltales and how you can interpret the information they give you. I have also included a section on choosing the right 'gear' for staying in the groove for optimum VMG upwind.

Download the article from the Technical section under the 'Improved Telltales' tab.

You need to be a current Class Member and be logged in to this website to view/download.

Pete
SN1177