⛵️ Fast Dispatch - Getting You Back on the Water ⛵️

Trusted For 12 Years

Over 46,000+ Orders Shipped

90 Day Risk Free Returns

Over 4,000 5 Star Reviews

Price Match Promise

January 12, 2024 1 min read

Where Should I Apply My Tell Tales

Two types of tell tales are most commonly used on dinghies and keelboats. Leech and luff tell tales.


Leech tell tales are located on the back edge of the sail and are made from lightweight spinnaker/ streamer material. These will tell you how to trim your sail depending on what side of the sail the tell tale is curling towards or if it is flying freely.


Luff tell tales are located parallel to the bolt rope or luff tube. They are usually located approximately 50 to 60 cm inwards on the Laser sail. These are positioned in a way they can be seen and in the best-undisturbed wind in the deepest part of the sail. These will tell you about your angle if you are pinching too close to the wind or if the wind is stalling out of the top of the sail. 

Tell tales allow you to help you see what wind is doing on the sail; without them, you wouldn't be able to see this. 


Some ILCA sails come with a tiny X where the tell tales should go. These small pencil markings are just visible when new to give you an idea of where to put the tell tales.


In the photo below, you can see the lower tell tale location on an MK2 standard sail/ ILCA 7. 

Our Most popular Tell tales