Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.
Despite all my strength and pulling out from the mast on the jib halyard for leverage I could not get the Genoa tight enough and there were 2" deep scallops between the hanks. I'm not 100% sure what the problem is but it may be the Genoa luff is slightly too long. I also loosen the backstay prior to tightening the jib halyard, then crank down on the backstay after to try and get it a bit tighter.
When I first bought my Cal 25 I had the same problem. It might be that the luff is too long as you suggested, but I got lucky and found a simpler solution. The previous owner installed a snap shackle at the head of the sail and at the clew. Snap shackles are much longer than ordinary D shackles, so I replaced the snap shackles with small D shackles, and that enabled me to get the jib's luff as taut as I needed to. Look at your shackles and see if you can do the same.
If not, a sailmaker should be able to shorten your luff a couple inches.
Steve Milby J/24 "Captiva Wind" previously C&C 35, Cal 25, C25 TR/FK, C22 Past Commodore
Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ. The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.