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I picked up a used Duke 5.4m sail and 430cm mast from Simon just before Easter and took it out for a try today. First thing I noticed was I couldn't pop the sail over because the second batten sits at least 2 finger widths in front of the mast (Hope I'm making sense, I don't know the lingo too well). I set the mast foot and boom to the correct size and had full downhaul, so don't know what's going on. I've been told that the batten should sit about half way across the mast to be about correct. Is there a way to adjust it at all? I'm sure Simon will have a look at it after Easter, but I'm just trying to see if it's something simple so I can use it next week.
Thanks
Michael
Need to know a few things:
- What brand mast?
- How loose is the leech (how floppy is the top of the sail)?
- How much outhaul?
I've found that sails rarely rig as specified by the manufacturer, particularly if they have had a bit of use (stretch) or are rigged on anything other than what is specified.
From what you say to me it sounds like one of only two things, wrong mast or nowhere near enough downhaul.
Measure your mast base - come down 10cm from the 10cm hole and is that the pulleys? If so you will never pull it down that far. For example my Chinook extension starts at 4cm (first hole is labelled 4cm and that is where I can downhaul the sail to) so I add 4cm to every sail spec
Picture perhaps?
Yeah bung it on 14 and downhaul to the 4cm hole. I mean the lowest part of the sail to the 4cm hole. On some of my sails the lowest part of the sail is waayy below the pulleys, maybe up to 10cm.
(caveat: not looking at it 
)
the dukes are a bit tricky to set up, but once you know how they are fine, make sure the down haul is set so it lands between the leech markers and all of norths wave/freestyle sails need outhaul,
sounds like there isnt enough downhaul, and you probably need more outhaul, next time you use it chuck a photo up so the specialist team here at seabreeze can comment 
oh dont trust your boom setting as they arent always correct, check it with a tape measure
Thanks Swoosh and jsnfolk for the extra info and links, very helpful understanding the vts. I posted some photos of what I have done. I tried adding an avi showing the leech put I don't think is will upload properly and I don't have a youtube account. I wonder what to do to if anything, to get that batten back from 3/4 to 1/2 across the mast? Should I pull a lot harder and move it down a bit more (couldn't budge it past the 441cm mark, but perhaps I could put a bit more weight on it but worried something might go bang!)
Edit. My captions didn't appear so this is the description of photos:
1) mast foot set at 10 gives 440cm mast length.
2) Pulleys are 3cm apart in this photo with mast foot at 10, so 437cm downhaul, the minimum spec on the sail
3) At the above downhaul, the batten is still 2 fingers in front of the mast
4)This photo the base is at 15 and the pulleys are 4cm apart so 441cm downhaul
5)With the above setting the batten is 3/4 across the mast. I think it needs to go back a bit further.
6) Avi didn't upload as I suspected, but the leech is floppy to about the light wind mark on the vts
Thanks
Michael
Both my North sails do this. When I pull the downhaul on enough to sit the battens where they should be ie halfway across the mast, the top of the sail goes over sloppy.(as if it is way over downhauled) Perhaps I have the wrong mast ?(thou it is a north wavesail mast) I dont like North Sails because of this..My Naish and Maui sails are fine.
Okey Dokey, I uploaded the leech avi to my picasa site here:https://picasaweb.google.com/115049943344198541722/DukeSail#5729234559218581346
It is a terrible video, I don't video with my camera very often perhaps I should have filmed it on the ground 
but maybe you can see how floppy it is. It is floppy through to the light wind mark on the vts.
Thanks
Michael
if 441 cm is how much is required to get the floppyness of the leach to the VTS marks and the batten to the right spot, then that's how you should rig it.
also, the main reason you are probably having so much trouble applying enough downhaul, is that you aren't threading it in the correct order. See:
www.peconicpuffin.com/the_peconic_puffin/2007/03/easier_downhaul.html
Thanks swoosh, I'll use that pattern next time I rig up. Thanks everyone, I've learnt heaps!
Thanks
Michael
Whats it like when its powered up on the water? Once the sail is powerd up and the draft filled out does the batton pull away into the correct position. My 5.4 North X-type does something similar when rigged for bottom end (low downhaul & negative outhaul) and have to give the rig an extra jerk when coming out of the gybes to get the batton to flick round.
When rigged on the beach - if you stand the sail up in sailing position on the beach can you get the batton to rotate when flicking the sail round, in both directions?
Oi,yeah I bought a North sail "duke" 6.4 from Simon couple of weeks ago myself.It rigged up well on the 430 north RDM mast I bought off him a couple of weeks earlier.It was so different to use than the Ezzy 5.2 that Carantoc gave me(thanks heaps mate).It was way lighter to uphaul and so much more power for my beefy 100kgs.Good sails from my very novice opinion
Yep put it on 16cm and downhaul it to about where you have it now in relation to the black pastic base, and that will enable you to get about maximum downhaul
