GazMan said...
Mostly the suggestion that Ezzy masts are (with your 'limited exposure') flex tip masts. In my opinion misleading to others considering the number of people that read individual opinions on Seabreeze forums and take them on when they would probably be better off emailing the sail or mast manufacturer to get the real facts! Hence the reason for me doing the cut n' paste thing to clarify the facts in the words of the 'real experts' (the people that design the gear).
They do seem to be flex top. I rigged the 460 in sails that I would normally have rigged a pryde mast, and so far, there has been little difference. Other than the 7m Infinity, the rest have been KA Koncepts at 5.7, 6.6, 7.5, and 8.5m. I only tried the mix and match combinations on the Infinity, and the normal complete masts on the KAs.
One of the reasons I rigged these combos was to demonstrate the differences in real life that they had on the look of a sail. Like you I have read the information that I could find on these masts, but for me a few things didn't seem to stack up. By actually trying these combinations I could see for myself what the effect was.
I have a complete 430, 460, and 490, so swapping them was no drama.
My apologies though, I missed your first post in this topic and can now see where you're coming from! Curious to know if you've rigged any of your NP V8's on the Ezzys?
Here's another cut n' paste direct from Dave Ezzy which may explain why your 430 tip/490 bottom combo turned into a super flex-top Ezzy mast:
Again, this is interesting in that calling it a super flex-top doesn't completely describe the way it sets. It may be accurate, but the actual effect on the sail was different to what I expected. It is certainly softer in the top, but the thing that also impacts the sail set is that the stiffness in the bottom really throws the shape out of the sail and loses a lot of the draft.
In the case of the Infinity, it was not a combination you would ever want to use. Something David Ezzy hints at, but in this case it is very clear that it won't work.
Q: would the bend curve rating change if I used a different top or bottom section?
For example:
400cm bottom section paired with 430cm top section
Response: Our masts are designed to be mixed and matched with different lengths tops and bottoms. We sell each piece separately. Generally, I suggest going with a shorter bottom and a longer top. The 400 bottom/430 top is recommended for our 5.2 sail. The shorter bottom gives a bit more bend in the middle of the sail, which changes the bend slightly away from a "flex top" curve, but still is within the acceptable tolerance. If you go 370 bottom and 430 top, that would be much softer in the bottom and would throw the numbers more into the "stiff top" realm.
Maybe this varies with the actual sizes. I found the set of the 490 tip and 430 base to look the same as the 460 tip and 460 base. Maybe the smaller sizes emphasize the effect.
Q: 400cm top section paired with 430cm bottom section
Response: The 430 butt with the 400 tip will put the curve more flex top, since the 430 butt is stiffer and will bend less in the lower section of the sail.
Basically, what he is saying is that long butt with short tip equals a more flex-top mast than average, whilst short butt with long tip equals a more stiff-top mast than average.
Yeah, he's right. It is good to see the effect of this on real life sails. In my case I have the opportunity to test/prove this on my sails, so I did.
I haven't rigged my V8s yet, but I hope to do this soon.
