11
THE TRIMMERS VIEW - #3 JIB - HEAVY AIR
Left and below are two views of a
three year-old 103% #3 jib in 24
knots true. We don‘t normally choose
to sail in this much breeze for a tun-
ing session, but this sail is function-
ing perfectly. The top stripe is twisted
approximately 15 degrees off the
centerline. The leech is clean and
open and the luff telltales from 1/4
to 1/2 to 3/4 are tipped upward pro-
gressively. The sail construction is not
today’s North “state of the art,” yet
the shape still delivers the goods. We
also like this sail for its straight, flat
exit from the leech which helps mini-
mize mainsail backwinding. The bot-
tom half is nice and flat which allows
the helmsman to steer in high point
mode. The knuckled entry provides
power when needed, especially in
really big waves. A sailmaker sitting
to leeward trimming this sail,might
think “Wow, there is minimal curva-
ture from 20% of the chord length to
the leech.”( Translation: Nice shape,
feels fast, good power.)
J/35
Tuning Guide
Another test of a good #3 is, how
close does the sail fly in front of the
spreaders? The set-up of this sail is
perfect; the halyard is taut and the
lead position is set to allow the top
chord to twist while keeping the bot-
tom half relatively flat. The high-
aspect ratio of the #3 (4.0 vs. 2.21
for the M#1) places a premium on
sheet tension. The difference
between blistering fast in 22 true
and unbearably slow can be as little
as 1.5” on the sheet. Try setting-up
your #3 like the pictures and make
small sheet adjustments to keep you
in the fast groove for the sea state.
