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Personally I don't think the retrieval line needs to be tighter at all. Am I missing something ?

Secondly you can also get a tighter luff at the top of the spi. Alot of crews run a bead in the halyard line there and you can move that closer to the top of the spi or remove it completely. Additionally I suspect your F18HT has a spi gat made of simple high tension line. You can pull this a little tighter and get a tighter luff as well. And if you really have to then you made yourself a higher spi gate very easily with a drill and a piece of high tension line. So I would try to get the spi luff more tight by modifying the gate setup at the top.

Do you have pics of this spi gate ?


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p.s. sorry that this isn't an F16, but the same principles apply. Next time maybe on the general forum.


Don't worry about it !

Just don't tell this to W.F. he'll go ballistic if somebody tells him that the F16 calls is now supporting the F18HT sailors. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Welcome to the club PTP.

Wouter


I just changed the "gate" as you call it to the spectra wrapped around the mast as opposed to the SS bale that was rather limiting in rotation and also high friction. I have a 29mm carbo block with the spectra "bale" running through the center of the block and the block itself is attached to a pig tail with the hound about 3-4 feet up from there (some people have modified their HTs to have a longer luff spin and I wanted to preserve that option). The knot is as tight as it can be both on the halyard and tack line- but I think I will get rid of the stopper ball. Don't see the point really. Thanks for the help... gotta go crew on a monoslug... sort of kills me that I am doing that instead of sailing my HT.