Many cruising yacht skippers mark very little on board their boats. They rely on experience and remembering how the sails should be set in various conditions. But it is an advantage to have a good coding system on your boat.

The boat’s balance is the most important indicator of correct sail setting. Even if the helm is neutral, it is no guarantee that the sails are set correctly. If the rudder angle required to keep the boat on course is larger than 8 degrees, you can be sure that the sail or rig tuning could be improved. It is therefore important that you know the status of the boat’s balance precisely.

Marking rudder stations

If your boat has a tiller, you will be able to see the rudder angle at all times. It’s more difficult if your boat has wheel steering.

Use marks or a numbered scale on the mast and boom as a reference for halyards or outhaul

Then you need marks that show the rudder angle. It is easier to mark wheel steering accurately when the boat is out of the water.

Have someone turn the rudder to predetermined positions and mark the actual rudder angles on the wheel. If you know the maximum rudder angle, you may mark the wheel while the boat is afloat. Count the number of turns of the wheel to move the rudder from one extreme to the other.

It is then fairly easy to calculate the rudder movement in degrees for a certain turning of the wheel. If you try to eliminate as much slack as possible in the steering system before you start, the marking will be more exact.

Marking halyards

Marking halyards where they exit the lower part of the mast allows you to determine how tight they are. A mark showing how high the sail may be hoisted before the halyard shackle touches the sheave at the top of the mast will give you the maximum halyard/luff tension, unless you use a Cunningham. It is also wise to mark the main halyard for each reef cringle position so the correct halyard length can be found quickly.

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