wind indicator

[wharfrat]

Has anybody ever purchased a wind indicator called Windwest? I can’t figure out how to set it up. There weren’t any instructions. There is a part that has two wings that can be set at either 30 degrees or 40 degrees by the use of another spreader plate. But what is it for? Why 30 and 40 degrees? At what direction do I fasten it to the wind indicator shaft in comparison to the mast direction? What is its purpose?

Thank you to all and any that responds with some answers

[Todd Bradshaw]

If it's like most of them, the little wings go just below the rotating vane and form a horizontal "V", aft of the shaft that the vane is mounted to. They act as a visual guide to show you just how close the apparent wind (true wind direction, skewed by your boatspeed - indicated by the angle of the vane) is to the keel line. On models with bendy arms, you can sometimes play with the thing and the angle of the V so that as you look up at the vane while sailing to weather, if it's tail is at about the same angle as the half of the V on that side, you've probably got the boat pointed up about as high as it's going to go and still maintain good boatspeed. If the arrow gets inside the angle of the V, you're pinching up and it's slowing the boat to the point where it would usually be wise to tack.

Sounds like they just give you a choice between a 60 degree split and an 80 degree split on that model. If the boat points well, you could possibly use the narrower angle but most cruising and traditional boats would be likely to do better with the wider (40 degrees per side, 80 degrees total) setting. This doesn't however mean that your boat needs to be able to tack through 60 degrees to use the 30 degree setting (very, very few can). Since the vane is showing apparent wind, not true wind, the vane's position will be pointing somewhat more fore-and-aft than it would be if you could stop the boat dead, removing the boatspeed part of the equation and just see the true wind direction as you would with a windsock on a pole on shore. Confused yet? I've almost confused myself on this one, but hope you get my drift.

Luckily, none of this is really critical. You can still use the wings as a handy reference, no matter what angle they're at or what pointing capability the boat has. After you use them for a while, it can be as simple as "I know that when the vane gets about to this position in relation to the wing on this side, the boat seems to slow down" or "In today's conditions, I seem to be getting my best speed with the vane just about here in relation to the wing." In it's simplest form, the wings just give you a fixed reference of which way the boat is pointed to compare with the vane's position without having to look down at the bow.

[Art Read]

... or you could just tie a bit of tired, old cassette audio "tape" to the shrouds. ;)

(But that was a great description, Todd...)

[Todd Bradshaw]

I usually have something on top of the mast with the wings, but given my druthers going to weather, I usually trim the jib in as far as possible without backwinding the main, trim the main in until the leech telltales stream, leave the sheets alone and steer with the jib luff telltales. Driving the boat looking at the sails seems to give me faster information than looking up at the windex and translating that info into what it should be doing to the sails.

[wharfrat]

Yes that was a great explaination. A little confusing at first read but I do understand the principal now. Thank you very much Todd.

So far I have been using yarn. Even casette tape sounds high tech. I hope I don't hit an iceburg while I am looking up at this new contraption on the mast head

thanks again for the help.

[JimJ]

I hope I don't hit an iceburg while I am looking up at this new contraption on the mast head Iceburg? or Iceberg?

I thought that only Shackelton and Scott and blokes like them had that poblem!

It's cold here in the middle of winter and I plan to go sailing this Sunday but don't plan on navigating around icebergs.

Bring on the Bundy!!