The top telltale is the key, as it will stall first. On a deep run with the mainsail eased all the way out perpendicular to the boat or up against the shrouds it may not be possible to get attached flow off the back of the sails and the telltales may not be useful. In this scenario you just have to go back to keeping the top batten parallel to the boom. Upwind the mainsheet sometimes helped out by the vang in windier conditions takes over the job of controlling twist.
Light Air: In light air, make sure there is flow off the back of the sail by having all the telltales flowing. More twist makes it easier for the boat to accelerate. Again, the top telltale will stall first if you are over trimmed and pulling down too hard.
It is almost impossible to stall the lower telltales unless you are grossly over trimmed. Medium Air: In medium conditions you can sheet harder since the boat is now up to speed. Trim as hard as you can without slowing the boat down below target speed.
The top telltale may be stalled a lot of the time. Heavy Air: In heavy air it is just a matter of keeping the boat on her feet. Ease the mainsheet to control heel and helm. The telltales will always be streaming, but they are no longer the issue. I mentioned earlier that sometimes we use telltales in addition to the ones on the luff of the jib and the leech of the mainsail.
Telltales can be used on the leech to indicate flow on a non-overlapping jib. As usual, it is the top telltale that counts. Trim too hard or pull the lead too far down or too far forward for conditions and that telltale will stall. Twist is essential in a non-overlapping sail so you always want the telltale flying.
Additional telltales are also used sometimes in the upper sections of the mainsail across the middle of the sail. They help refine the twist picture and give a more subtle indication of how hard you are trimming the mainsail.
They may indicate stalled flow before the leech telltale disappears. Again, they are in the top sections of the sail because that is where the sail will stall first if over trimmed. If they are too close to the mast the disturbed flow behind the spar will make them useless.
Experiment with easing out and trimming in, as well as adjusting cars or vang, and pay attention to how things change, not only how the boat sails, but also how the telltales change. As you practice, reading your telltales and sail trim will become second nature.
There are also many circumstances when the sail is out of shape shrink with modern plastics as well as blown out and cannot ever be trimmed "properly" according to the sailmaker's original intent. This is especially true for larger boats where sails are expensive to replace often enough. John - very good question. Let me get a full comment for you - stay tuned! Robert - that's a great suggestion and I'll add it to our content queue! Julie - Quantum Sails Marketing. No items Shop now. Toggle navigation.
Sailing Accessories Apparel One Design. Live Video Series Schedule. Find a Loft or Consultant. About Us. Quantum Racing. June 8, Whether you're trimming or steering, your telltales have a lot to say and listening to them can improve your performance dramatically.
Request a quote. Share this:. On a jib, the best set-up is to have three sets evenly spaced along the luff so that you can see how the wind is flowing at different heights of the sail. Telltales should be in aft of the luff, depending on the size of the boat — the bigger the sail, the further aft the telltales should be. If they are too far forward they become confused by the flow from the headfoil and become too sensitive. On a mainsail, there should be a telltale on the leech at each batten.
If you want to be able to read your telltales in all weathers and times of the day or night, there are some hi-tech options available.
The company has experimented with luminous telltales, but says their small size makes them almost invisible. Tale-lites use a hi-tech circuit sewn into fabric to create a light-emitting textile, so your telltales light up at night. They are powered by a small battery plugged into the tack of the sail, and should be available from your sailmaker later this year. Teflon telltales British dinghy sailing equipment company Rooster Sailing has started selling telltales coated with a water-repelling Teflon substance to stop them sticking to the sail when they get wet — one of the major problems with woollen telltales.
Mainsails can also be trimmed with the help of telltales — but these tend to be ribbons of spinnaker nylon attached to the leech at each batten. These show the flow as it comes off the back of the mainsail. What this means: Perfect upwind mainsail trim; with the traveller pulled up so that the boom is in the centreline and the sheet adjusted so that the top telltale flicks round the back.
In light boats, you may need to play the traveller or mainsheet to keep the boat on her feet in the gusts. Instead, drop the traveller down and ease the sail until all the leech telltales are just appearing all the time. Ideally, the telltales will all be streaming, but on the verge of flicking behind the sail. Beating in light airs When beating in light airs, it helps to induce some twist into the sail. When the yarn streams straight back, it tells you that there is attached flow over the sail at that particular point.
If a telltale stops streaming and hangs limp, there is no air flow and that side of the sail is stalled. If the telltale dances around, flow is turbulent.
By concentrating further on interpreting the telltales, you can get even more information. If the telltales go from one extreme to the other after a two-degree course change, put a bit more tension on the luff. The rounder entry angle will broaden the gap between stalled from sailing too high and stalled from sailing too low. Remember not to sail with the telltales in the pointing or pinching mode in light winds or in wavy conditions.
The boat will lose too much speed. In heavy winds when the boat is overpowered, you can reduce heeling by heading up into the pointing mode.
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